What’s it all about….? A Line Dancing History (Part 2)
So you made it through last weeks part one….. Did it change your mind on those over played wedding songs that you love to hate. Here’s some more trivia:
Da Butt:
Sung and performed by E.U (Experience Unlimited) from the 1988 Spike Lee movie “School Daze”. The song has it’s own dance, which involves simply shaking your butt when instructed by the lyrics. Spike Lee directed the video for this, and even appeared in it, shaking his butt.
This is one of the biggest hits with the “go-go” sound – a fun mixture of dance, rap, and funk. “Go-go” has been popular in the Washington, DC area since the ’70’s.
The Achy Breaky Heart:
Sung by Billy Ray Cyrus from Flatwoods, Ky, who bought a guitar at age 20, then played in local bands named Sly Dog and the Breeze. He spent 1984 to 1986 in Los Angeles, looking for a recording contract and supporting himself by selling cars. Next he lived in Huntington, W.Va., and traveled regularly to Nashville in search of the elusive recording deal. Finally, Cyrus was signed to Mercury Records in 1990.
Although the song has an amusing title and upscale rhythm, it tells a sad story: a couple are breaking up, and Cyrus asks that his heart be spared the pain because his heart `might blow up and kill this man.’ This was a remake of a 1991 song by the Country act The Marcy Brothers, titled “Don’t Tell My Heart.”
In 1992 the “Achy Breaky Heart” spawned dance contests held in dance clubs across the country. Over the years the song has been re-released and parodied most notably by Alvin and the Chipmunks. For the 25th anniversary in May 2017 they released a Spanish version of the song with Mexican group Caballo Dorado (golden horse).
The Macarena:
“Macarena” is a song by Los del Rio (Rafael Ruiz and Romero Monge) about a woman of the same name. Diana Patricia, the Venezuelan flamenco dancer inspired the song. It was originally released in 1993, as a new flamenco rumba pop fusion theme with Spanish lyrics, with a significant success in Spain. “La Macarena” is one of 8 sections (known as “quarters”) of Seville, Spain. That’s where they got the name. The song originally had no dance.
After being remixed by the Bayside Boys and having English lyrics added, it became a worldwide summer hit in 1996. The single spent 14 weeks at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.
In the original version, Macarena (which means “Mother of God.”) is upset because her boyfriend, Vitorino, has joined the army. She retaliates by going out on the town and carousing with other men. In the Bayside Boys mix, Macarena gets mad at her boyfriend and goes out to shake it while he’s out of town.
During its heyday, it was played incessantly at professional athletic games, rallies, the United States Democratic Party’s National Convention, and other places. The Israeli national radio station “Galatz”, chose “The Macarena” as the worst song of the 1990s. As for the dance credit can be assigned to Mia Frye, the choreographer of “The Macarena” video.
The Cha Cha Slide:
DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide sometimes called “The Casper Slide” The Cha Cha Slide is a dance created by Chicago’s Willie Perry (DJ Casper, aka Mr. C). It is an update of the Electric Slide, and includes DJ Casper’s called-out instructions. The rhythm of the Cha-Cha Slide is based on an obscure 1993 dance/club song “Plastic Dreams” by Jaydee (aka Robin Albers).
DJ Casper developed the Cha Cha Slide in 1996 for Bally Total Fitness; it became a hit with gym members, and the dance’s popularity prompted Chicago’s WGCI radio station to approach Mr. C to record a song to showcase the dance The Cha-Cha Slide in 2000. The following year, the song and dance caught on around the USA
The Wobble:
The line dance was originally called Nasty Girl and was to a different song. It originated out of Philadelphia and was choreographed by “Butterball’s Posse” with the late Dave Bush, Jr (Godfather of Line Dance) in the mid 90s. In 2009 Jeremy Stong of Texas changed the name AND placed it with the Wobble song by V.I.C, from there it was known as The Wobble.
The Cupid Shuffle:
Cupid (also known as Bryson Bernard, Louisiana R&B singer) originated the song in 2007. While on tour with the SOS Band and Lenny Williams, he would get the crowd motivated with a line dance. Once in the studio he didn’t plan the song, but freestyled the verses. Within no time, the “Cupid Shuffle” picked up steam on Youtube with tons of views and the rest is history.
If you don’t like these selections please advise your entertainer to remove them from your event playlist. If you like these songs and would like to learn these dances, please feel free to contact us.
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