content/blog/2010/11/keep-calm-and-carry-on.html @ f1521e91b896

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{% hyde
    title: "Keep Calm and Carry On"
    snip: "You don't always need to be sexy."
    created: 2010-11-03 12:00:00
    flattr: true
%}

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I've been dancing quite a bit lately, both going to exchanges and teaching
blues dancing with [Lady Luck Blues][llb]. I haven't written anything about
dancing in quite a while, so I figured it was time for another blog post.

This post will be about a particular idea (or if you prefer: "pet peeve") of
mine about blues dancing today. I'm going to take a while to get to the point,
but I think it's worth the reading.

[llb]: http://ladyluckblues.com/

[TOC]

Saint James Infirmary
---------------------

For this post I'm going to use a very popular song as an example: "Saint James
Infirmary".  I'm sure almost every blues dancer has heard this song at some
point (probably many times).

There are *many* versions of this song around.  Here's one if you'd like to
listen to it to refresh your memory:
["Saint James Infirmary" by Snooks Eaglin on YouTube][sji].

[sji]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23VSDneTo60

What is this Song About?
------------------------

Saint James Infirmary is a very old song.  There's a great overview of its
history on [the Wikipedia page][wiki].

Let's take a look at the lyrics and try to figure out what the song is trying
to say.  The first verse goes (roughly) like this:

>I went down to Saint James infirmary,<br/>
>saw my baby there.<br/>
>She was stretched out on a long white table,<br/>
>so sweet, so cold, so fair.

The first thing we learn about the song is that the singer's lover has died.
He goes to the morgue to view her body. We can already tell that this is not
going to be a happy song.

Let's look at the next verse:

>Let her go, let her go, god bless her<br/>
>wherever she may be.<br/>
>She can look this whole world all over<br/>
>and never find another man like me.

In the first part of this verse the singer is accepting the fact that his lover
is dead, and wishing her well in any afterlife she may be in.  The second part
is a bit less clear, but he seems to be telling us that there's no man on Earth
that loves (or, rather, "loved") her like he does.

The last verse gets even darker (note: this verse's lyrics often vary quite
a bit between versions, but the idea is the same):

>When I die you can bury me in straight laced shoes,<br/>
>a box-back coat and a Stetson hat.<br/>
>Put a twenty-dollar gold piece on my watch chain<br/>
>so all the boys will know I died standing pat.

All of a sudden the singer is talking about his *own* death.  What happened?

The singer's lover died, he accepted her death, and now he gives instructions
on what to do when he dies. I'm sure some people will disagree, but to me it
definitely seems like he's contemplating suicide.

Now that we've got a pretty clear idea of the "mood" of this song, I want to
talk about what bothers me about how many blues dancers seem to dance to it.

[wiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_James_Infirmary

The Problem
-----------

Blues dancing is often seen as a "sexy" dance.  Often there's good reason --
many blues songs are lewd and suggestive, so being sexy as you dance fits the
music.

The problem I see often is that dancers get comfortable in one "mood" of
dancing (usually "sexy") and don't bother to explore other ones.

Almost without fail I see people dancing to Saint James Infirmary and trying
(often succeeding) to be sexy.  They use lots of hip and body movement like
they do with other blues songs.

I want to say something to them.

**Stop it.**

**You're doing it wrong.**

**You there, doing the body roll: *stop*, god damn it!**

Saint James Infirmary is *not* a "sexy" song.  It's about death and suicide,
not hooking up!

Would you ask someone for a date at their friend's funeral?  No?  Then why
would you dance like that to this song?  It doesn't make sense and it's
completely inappropriate.

We often talk about "musicality" in dance classes, but often it's just about
"hitting the breaks right."  There's more to it than that.  Reflecting the
music in your dancing isn't just about hitting the notes, it's about matching
the *mood* of the song too!

The Solution
------------

Now is the time when I tell you how to fix things.  I'm not the best dancer out
there, and it's hard to describe dancing in text, but I'll do my best.

If you don't agree with the specific things I mention that's completely cool --
my goal is to at least get people *thinking* about these ideas, not to tell
them one specific way to implement them.

### Followers

The one major thing I'd like to tell followers is: "stop being sexy."  There
are songs where that is completely appropriate, but this is not one of them.

If you're only used to trying to be sexy, what can you do instead?

The simple answer is: "just follow."  Don't worry about adding styling if
you're not comfortable with it -- a solid follower is much more fun to dance
with than one that's trying to force a style she has no experience with.

The more complicated answer is: "use styling that reflects the mood of the
song." Unfortunately I don't have much experience with following so I can't
really describe this.  Take a private lesson with someone like
[Mike Legett][mike] or [Carsie Blanton][carsie] if you want to get a more
informed opinion.

[mike]: http://www.mikethegirl.com/
[carsie]: http://www.carsieblanton.com/

### Leaders

As a leader, when I dance to this song I think about taking on one of two
personas:

* The singer -- someone who has just lost a lover.
* A friend of the singer that is comforting him (or her, if my follower is female).

In both cases I try to eliminate any "swagger" or "bravado" from my styling
(not that I personally use much of that anyway).  Funerals are not the place to
be an alpha male.

If I'm taking on the singer's persona (someone that has lost a lover) I'll
usually dance in a "ballroomy" style.  I'll use short movements (like muffled
sobs) punctuated by larger, sweeping movements (cries or wails). I'll (gasp)
slightly collapse my posture just a tiny bit to express the depression.

If I choose the other case (comforting someone) I won't collapse my posture at
all.  I'll try to represent the shoulder that someone would cry on when their
lover dies. I'll try to be strong, confident and solid, but not really
"manly."

In both cases I'll almost always stay in close embrace for the whole song.
Whether you're comforting someone or being comforted, a hug is usually helpful
in dark times, so it feels appropriate to use close embrace.

My Goal
-------

The reason I'm writing this post is not to tell people how to dance.  I just
want to make people think about an aspect of dancing that they may not have
considered before.

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