Fad Dancing

By Jeremy Myong, Kokohead

Fad dances are dances which are characterized by a short burst of popularity. Dancing style fads have for some centuries been a part of social dancing, sometimes gliding smoothly into tradition after their "newness" has faded, and sometimes simply fading away into oblivion.

"It is when we find out we can make mistakes that

we know we are on to something."

Since the Renaissance, the courts of European monarchs and nobles played host to a long succession of dance fads, many of which became social 'crazes' that spread into general society and many have long since faded into obscurity, but their rhythms were preserved in European classical music.

In modern times new dance "fads" arise and disappear much more frequently. This is certainly spurred by modern communication improvements (printed media, radio, movies, television, internet). In the early 1920s a string of dance crazes swept the world, including jitterbug and the Charleston.

Perhaps the most significant of all these early 20th century crazes originated in Argentina and came to the US in the early 1900s. The tango swept the world in the late 1910s and early 1920s, sparking a worldwide craze that was fanned by its use in Hollywood movies, and the style was soon appropriated to become part of the standard dance repertoire.

"La Media Luz" por Julio Iglesias

The tango was the first in a series of 20th century Latin music dance crazes that included the Merengue, the Samba, the Mambo, the Rumba and the Cha Cha Cha. Each new Latin style enjoyed massive popularity, and many transcended their fad status to become standardized styles in the repertoire of western popular dance tradition.

"Begin The Beguine" by Artie Shaw

Latin dance styles also exerted a huge influence on the direction of western popular music; this was especially true of jazz, which was profoundly altered by the advent of the first wave of Latin music in the 1940s and then by the bossa nova craze of the 1960s, which also had a massive influence on American pop music.

From the 1950s to the 1970s, new dance fads appeared almost every week. Among the dozens of crazes that swept the world during this fertile period were the Madison, "The Swim", the "Mashed Potato", "The Twist", "The Frug" (pronounced 'froog') and "The Watusi", "The Shake" and "The Hitchhike"; several '60s dance crazes had animal names, including "The Pony", "The Dog" and "The Chicken" (not to be confused with the later Chicken Dance).

And they are still coming and still mostly for the young. The experienced dancers will generally be happy to enjoy their few dances in sheer joy night after night after night. "Don't Quit Now, Jack"