Music for dancing triple swing and Lindy Hop

- Alain Wong - 18 janvier 2008

As a beginner student, it might not always be obvious what music you should buy to practice.

Here's a list of songs that we use in our classes. They are appropriate for learning triple steps and Lindy Hop.

  • Drop me off in Harlem - Victrola
  • Savoy Blues - Kid Ory's Creole Jazz Band
  • All of Me - Sidney Bechet
  • I've heard that song before - Harry James and Helen Forrest
  • Perdido - Duke Ellington's orchestra with Ben Webster
  • Organ Grinder's Swing - Buster Smith
  • Smooth Sailing - Ella Fitzgerald
  • C Jam Blues - Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
  • Viper's Moan - Willie Bryant
  • Apollo Jump - Lucky Millinder

Visit your local library for jazz music

Borrowing from the Bibliothèque Nationale (Berri-Uqam metro): if you are a Canadian citizen, membership to the Bibliothèque Nationale is free, and their jazz collection is amazing. Do visit and listen to music before buying. You can borrow three CDs at a time for a period of three weeks. Here are a few albums to check out:

  • Count Basie - The Best of Early Basie
  • Count Basie - Count Basie at Newport (1957)
  • Ella Fitzgerald - Bluella
  • Jimmy Lunceford - For Dancers Only
  • Benny Goodman - B.G. in Hi-Fi
  • Duke Ellington - Blues in Orbit
  • Artie Shaw - The Complete Gramercy Five Sessions
  • Oscar Peterson - Night Train
  • An Anthology of Big Band Swing (Decca)
  • Lou Rawls with Les McCann- Stormy Monday - section Blues
  • Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Gate Swings - section Blues

We also sell a CD compiled by Swing DJs, For Dancers Only by Chiarusco Records, for $20 in the studio.

What do you mean, Lindy versus Swing?

- Alain Wong - January 3, 2008

The name Lindy versus Swing is inspired by our struggle to educate people on Lindy Hop, the original swing dance, and on authentic vernacular jazz dances.

There are many misunderstandings about what swing dancing is. When we say swing, the majority of Canadians associate the term to partnered dancing, swing music, rock'n roll, zoot suits, two toned shoes, crazy aerials.

An example of confusion. Last fall, our teachers Alain Fragman and Sylwia Bielec were invited to teach on the reality TV show Occupation Double 4. The researcher in charge of the swing theme for the episode did her job, asking the crew to give the set at 30's and 40's feel. She was as shocked as we were when we saw the actual set. Instead of something reminiscent of the Savoy ballroom in Harlem, the artistic director had a 1950's post-war look, complete with Tail-finned cars, hula hoops and poodle skirts.

  • In the 1920's, 30's, 40's, people danced Charleston, Lindy Hop, Balboa, Tap, Cakewalk, Blackbottom, Peabody.
  • In the 1950's and 60's, people danced Rock, Boogie Woogie, Rockabilly Jive, Twist.

At Cat's Corner, our mission is to promote authentic jazz dances from the swing era, conserving the meaning and traditions of the dance.

The first steps

- Alain Wong - January 1, 2008

Lindy versus Swing is a new Cat's Corner project.

The goal of this blog is to gather and promote news and information on swing dancing in Quebec and Canada. We post on Lindy versus Swing a bit more than once a week.