Celebrating the 60-Year Anniversary of Andrew Warde High School's Class of 1962

Bill Baker is a member of the Andrew Warde High School Class of 1962. He is a very unique live performer, the likes of which you have never seen or heard before. 

Bill wrote and sang this song 10 years ago for his 50-year high school reunion at Andrew Warde High School.

While many musicians/vocalists today use midi-tracks, tapes or CD's to back them up, Bill, on his keyboard, plays the bass with his left hand and the piano, sax, trombone, organ, strings, and vibes with his right hand..

Bill plays his own drumfills with his left foot and sings four-part harmony with a digitech vocalizer, creating an incredible sound.

Bill is an entertainer in the classic sense of the word. A skilled musician and vocalist playing both keyboards & guitar, he utilizes the epitome of today's "state-of-the-art" electronic keyboard sounds and plays guitar on songs from mellow James Taylor to bluesy Eric Clapton to the rhythmic Antonio Carlos Jobim. 

Bill has performed with and accompanied such performers as Robert Goulet, Andy Williams, Roy Clark, Roger Miller, The Shirelles, The Drifters, Jay & the Americans, Chubby Checker, Little Anthony & the Imperials, and many more.

Bravo, Bill. Thank you.

Paul

Whatever Happened to Andrew Warde High School?

Whatever happened to Andrew Warde High School? That's a good question. In fact, if you happen to visit the high school, you'll see two monuments near the front entrance acknowledging the proud history of the school. The only problem is that there isn't any reference to Andrew Warde High School. It actually existed from 1956 to 1987. Don't you remember?

Once Andrew Warde High School consolidated with Roger Ludlowe High School into Fairfield High School at the Warde site in the Autumn of 1987, thirty years of memories were all but forgotten. Nearly two decades later, however, due to an exploding student population in town, the Fairfield Board of Education decided to reopen the former Roger Ludlowe High School and return to two public high schools in 2004.

The schools were named Fairfield Warde and Fairfield Ludlowe high schools in an attempt to unify the secondary student population, while at the same time offering a less-than-sincere cursory nod to the original names of the two high schools. The board never got it right in the first place, originally opting to name the schools Fairfield East and Fairfield West before yielding to public pressure, especially from alumni of the two high schools.

The childish antics of the board, students, and parents could have been avoided if the original names of the schools were returned. This corner has never fully embraced the new names of the schools, preferring instead to refer to them as Warde and Ludlowe. What is most troublesome, though, is the fact that there isn't any acknowledgement of the original Andrew Warde High School by the front entrance.

Upon entering the main lobby of Ludlowe High School, there are several engraved plaques acknowledging the building as the former home to Mill Plain School, Roger Ludlowe High School, Roger Ludlowe Middle School, and the current FLHS. In fact, an original school bell from Mill Plain School adorns the front lobby for all to see.

It's about time to pay tribute to Andrew Warde High School. Shouldn't there be a monument alongside the two which sit at the front of the high school? I think so. I am going to write to the Fairfield Board of Education and request that a third monument be placed alongside the others. Andrew Warde High School existed from 1956 through 1987. I should know. I graduated from AWHS! There are many proud graduates who will always call themselves Crimson Eagles.

What say you? Let's get a monument in honor of the original Andrew Warde High School.

Paul