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Dance Craze: The Twist
Every once and awhile, a dance craze sweeps the nation. And according to dubious sources, the Twist was the first worldwide dance craze. I’m not sure if I believe this, but it sure sounds awesome.
On August 6, 1960, the Twist debuted on American Bandstand. Dick Clark, Kingmaker and Crown Prince of Teenage Trends, had deemed Hank Ballard’s version of the Twist far too raunchy for the white teeny-bopper audience of American Bandstand. But the song had force and he wanted it for his show. As such, he had persuaded the record label to re-record the song with Chubby Checker, a more palatable alternative to the edgier Ballard. The difference between the sounds isn’t readily apparent. It is hard to tell from the audio quality of the versions available on the web. What I think it comes down to is this: Hank Ballard’s version is much more blues-y, his voice straight out of a choir of Gospel music, the bass line far stronger, and because of this, it sounds much more sexual. Chubby Checker’s version, on the other hand, is far pop-ier. The tempo is faster, the bass line nearly obscured by Checker’s voice. In short, it has much more of a big band sound than Ballard’s version. Let’s just say it: Checker’s version sounds whiter. But it topped the charts in 1960 and 1962.
The Twist originated, like many African American dances, out of slavery and the need to preserve the connection to the cultures blacks had been ripped from. The pelvic thrust, for instance, has been linked back to certain West African dance moves.
So how exactly do you do the Twist:
The Twist may be the simplest dance of all time, which goes far in explaining why it was such a popular dance. I bet you can do the Twist right now without even having to think about it. Basically, you just twist your hips, keeping your arms loose at your sides as they imitate the movement of your hips, and you pivot a little on your toes, as if you were putting out a cigarette butt you just threw on the ground. If you want to add in a little more pizzazz, you might lean back or forward, or twist down into your knees before twisting right back up again.
You don’t need a partner to dance the Twist. All you have to do is Twist. Like you did last summer.