The Whiffenpoofs, rather than attempting (in vain, undoubtedly) to escape the potential Ivy-League-snootiness issue, embrace it. Their official uniform is white tie, and they were clear from the beginning that although everyone else was expected to be good, expectations would be especially high for them. You know, because they invented a cappella singing.
This would have been a less embarrassing attitude if they weren’t competing against, among others, a group called Jerry Lawson & Talk Of The Town. Jerry Lawson was in the genuinely legendary group The Persuasions for 40 years — 40 years — and has now joined up with a new group of guys. (Here’s one of The Persuasions’ most well-known arrangements, of “Up On The Roof.”) Jerry Lawson, in terms of musical credibility, could snap any chosen Whiffenpoof like a twig, and any attempt on the part of the fellas from New Haven to be the entrants wearing the big shoes needs to stop immediately.
