Dancing

Retro Music 76 (2 Videos)

~ beetleypete ~ 32 Comments

Northern Soul is a very British experience that started in the mid 1960s, consisting of soulful records made mostly in America that were not really hits in their home country. Away from the mainstream, and very different to the sound of Motown and Atlantic Records, they acquired a dedicated following (including me) in the UK that continues to this very day. They also started a dance craze that was unique to the sound, with the style of clothing resembling a uniform for the dancers.

This is one of my personal favourites.

Open the Door to Your Heart
Song by Darrell Banks
LyricsVideosOther recordings
Walk right on in
Stretch out your arms
Let the lovelight shine
On my soul, baby, and
Let love come running in
You know that I needed you
I’ve needed you a long, long time
My pride is too much for me, baby
And I’m about to lose my mind
()
Walk right on in
Let your love come running in
Open the door to your heart, baby
Open the door to your heart
Open the door to your heart
And let love come running in
Let your love come running in
Let it flow like the river
Let it shine like the light
Take all my mind and soul, baby
Why don’t you give it sight
I’m trying to
Keep from loving you
And I’ve been loving you
A little too long
Darling, darling
You’ve been so sweet to me
That’s what keeps my
Love so strong
()
I need you to stand by me
Let your love come running in
Let it flow like the river…
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Darrell Banks
Open the Door to Your Heart lyrics © Trio Music Company, Alley Music Corp., Trio Music Co., Inc.

This is an old video of Northern Soul fans dancing to another ‘classic’.

Rita Hayworth Dances To The Bee Gees

~ beetleypete ~ 42 Comments

The lovely film star Rita Hayworth was also an accomplished dancer. A clever person on You Tube has managed to include numerous clips of her dancing, to the background of one of the Bee Gees’ biggest hits. The timing is really good, and it is a joy to watch.

Thanks to my blogging friend, David Miller. He sent me this to cheer me up. And it did.
https://millerswindmill.wordpress.com/

Astaire and Rogers

~ beetleypete ~ 26 Comments

An old post from 2013, remembering my love of Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire films. Most of you have never seen this one.

beetleypete

Even when I was still a small child, the films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were already thirty years old. Their last film together, after ten years apart, was made some years before I was born, and their earliest collaboration was in 1935. Despite this, I always loved those films. The Art Deco sets, the snappy scripts, and of course, the wonderful music and dancing. Only ten films, nine in black and white, one in colour, yet they achieved an iconic status as an on-screen pairing, and nobody has ever matched their style since. Last week, I discovered that the BBC were showing two of their films, early on a Saturday, and I taped them. Although I have seen them all many times, and as recently as last year, the prospect of watching them always fills me with delight.

I agree that both Fred and Ginger were not the…

View original post 648 more words

A You Tube find

~ beetleypete ~ 51 Comments

I don’t scroll around on You Tube that much, to be honest. When researching for my Significant Songs posts, I recently came across this exceptionally clever short clip, with famous dancers and actors ‘performing’ to a modern song, ‘Uptown Funk’, by Bruno Mars. It is so well-edited, and contains a real feast of stars from the heyday of Hollywood. I couldn’t resist sharing it here.

Astaire and Rogers.
Moira Shearer.
Cyd Charisse.
Judy Garland.
Mickey Rooney.
Lucille Ball.
The Clark Brothers.
Shirley Temple.
Gene Kelly.
The Marx Brothers.
The Three Stooges.
Laurel and Hardy.
James Cagney.
Danny Kaye.
Rita Hayworth.
Donald O’Connor.
And many more…

See if you can spot the names I missed!

This is a real treat, believe me.