© 2003 Carole Moore
Myrtle Beach, S.C. -- In the 60s, beach clubs served cokes, beer and beach music to older teens and twenty-somethings who wanted to hear the wildly popular regional bands specializing in the genre. Such clubs were meccas for pony-tailed girls and guys wearing Weejuns penny loafers. And, although most of the women have foregone ponytails, the men still wear penny loafers and they're all shagging – or bopping, as some call it – to a sound that's alive and well, and attracting new disciples every day. .
Encounters of the Kid Kind Life With A Man
Beach music – an eclectic blend of 40s and 50s music and newer songs by aging bands with nearly fanatical followings – remains a
staple on the Eastern seaboard, from Virginia through the Carolinas. CD bins in music stores there still stock and sell releases by the Coasters and the Platters. "Miss Grace" and "With This Ring" – songs long
retired from the hit list – still play on the radio and jukeboxes, inspiring creative footwork on the dance floor by beach music buffs doing the shag. No one told them the old-fashioned, hold hands and swing-em-around kind of
dancing ever went out of style. While others let their backbone slip doing the twist or bump, these dancers executed smooth belly-rolls and pivot turns. Hip hop slipped onto the dance floor and off as they twirled their partners
around. They shag in public, by the hundreds, and have no idea why anyone would do otherwise. Shag clubs – from St. Louis to Richmond – strut their stuff to tunes by bands obscure by national standards: the Embers, the Band of
Oz, the Tams. The dancing is similar to the swing accompanying the big band sound, but different in subtle ways – smoother, slower, less athletic. Reflecting it's East Coast swing roots, shag encompasses a six-count, basic
pattern dance with most of the motion taking place below the waist. The steps are small and very smooth, with spinning and twirling added to the repertoire. Emerging in 1945, shagging takes its roots from rhythm and blues. Beach
music – the generic name for music with the right beat for shagging – originally played on regional radio stations and small clubs in Nashville and along the East Coast. Early songs reflect shag's R&B roots: "Meet Me With
Your Black Drawers On" by Gloria Hardeman, "She Can't Fix Grits" by Rick Strickland and "Sweet Home Chicago" by Ebs Allstar Blues Band. But as the rest of the music world moved from the bop music of the 50s
to tunes brought over by the British invasion of the 60s, beach music started developing its own artists, like the Breeze Band and the Catalinas. Outdoor beach pavilions, built for family entertainment, were some of the first beach
clubs, with dancers shagging barefoot in the sand. And, although the Beatles had little or no effect on beach music, Motown did. In fact several of beach music's biggest stars have their roots in the Motown sound. One of the most
enduring is General Johnson, who fronts the Chairmen of the Board. Johnson, who was born in 1943 as "Norman" – made a splash with songs like "Give Me Just A Little More Time" and "(You've Got Me) Dangling
On a String." He's still big in beach circles today, traveling from one beach club and private engagement to another, frequently playing the clubs in Myrtle Beach – where shagging got its start. It almost stopped in the
70s, a victim of the disco era, but staged a comeback in the 80s, spreading out and picking up beach music and shag fans all over the world. Now there are beach dancing clubs dotting the country, while shag lessons are sponsored by
community colleges, recreation departments, shag clubs and dance studios. Although beach music sounds like something mirroring summertime fun, there's plenty of beach music opportunity in the fall, winter and spring, too. In
fact, the National Shag Dance Competition preliminaries are scheduled to be held in Myrtle Beach, S.C., Jan. 23-24, 2003. The finals take place March 6-8th, also in Myrtle Beach. Tickets can be purchased for one night or
all five. For more information, check out the website located at:
http://www.tripsmarter.com/myrtlebeach/archives/events/shagdance.htm.
Other events to delight the beach bop enthusiast are sponsored by the Society of Shaggers (SOS). The Fall Migration traditionally takes place over a ten-day period and is scheduled for Sept. 12-21, 2003, in Myrtle Beach. The Spring Safari kicks off on April 25th and ends May 3rd. Both events attract more than 12,000 people, so book accommodations early, and be prepared for dancing, street festivals and lots of other attractions. The dancing is held in participating lounges up and down the beach and aimed at adults, though, so children are not admitted. SOS has more information on its website at: http://www.shagdance.com.
For a sampling of beach music titles, Ripete Records, a company out of Bishopsville, S.C., carries many of the beach classics as well as some of the newer songs, including last year's hit by the Fantastic Shakers "Don't Look Good Naked Anymore." To listen to short clips of the beach music sound, visit Ripete's site at: http://www.ripete.com/clips.html.
What songs make good beach dancing music? You might be surprised to find some contemporary favorites on the list, right alongside the more obscure
oldies. From Rhythm and Blues, come tunes like Etta James' "Baby What You Want Me to Do" and Muddy Waters' "Caldonia." Later beach music – with songs such as "My Little Red Book" by the
Drifters and Maurice Williams' "Stay" are considered "bubblegum" by hardcore beach music fans. But beach music bands play an unusual cross-section of sounds – everything from Aretha Franklin's
"Respect" to Sheryl Crowe's "All I Wanna Do," from the Isley Brothers' "This Old Heart of Mine" to Manhattan Transfer's gospel tune "Operator," fall into the beach music
classification. What makes a good beach song? The answer's simple: You've got to be able to shag to it. If the beat's not right, it won't work. What are some of the most popular beach songs? Try these: "Thank
You, John," by Willie Tee, "Sixty Minute Man" by the Dominoes and "Mother-in-Law" by Joe Hughes – all beach music favorites that can be heard at almost any beach music club. |
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