Tag: Dance Craze

Jim over at Song Lyric Sunday has challenged us to write about a song that mentions a dance style or craze or a song that has it’s own dance. My choice covers all those options.

The Peppermint Lounge was a popular disco on West 45^th Street in New York City from 1958 to 1965. The club had a lengthy mahogany bar running along one side, many mirrors and a dance floor at the back, a capacity of about 180 people, and a large gay clientele. It was a happening scene.

As Chubby Checker’s “Twist” craze hit the scene, celebrities swarmed to the Peppermint Lounge, big names such as Audrey Hepburn, Truman Capote, Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Liberace, Noël Coward, Frank Sinatra, Norman Mailer, Annette Funicello, even the elusive Greta Garbo had a swinging time there. Jackie Kennedy was such an enthusiast that she arranged for a temporary Peppermint Lounge to be mounted in the White House.

The Beatles were filmed visiting the club during their first U.S. visit in 1964. Artists who performed at the Peppermint Lounge include the Beach Boys, the Ronettes (who made their professional debut there in 1961) the Crystals, the Isley Brothers, Chubby Checker, Liza Minelli and the Four Seasons. But the crowds loved to dance to the house band, Joey Dee and the Starliters …. especially after they recorded their biggest hit song “The Peppermint Twist”, written in 1961 by Joey Dee and Henry Glover.

Capitalizing on the “Twist” dance craze started by Chubby Checker and the name of the nightclub where Joey Dee performed, “The Peppermint Twist” hit No.1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in early 1962. The song was a huge hit, replacing Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” at the No. 1 position. 

I was just a kid but that didn’t matter; people of all ages loved dancing to “The Twist” and still do; “The Peppermint Twist” was no different. It was lots of fun, easy to do and had a great sound. Get ready to start cutting the rug. Here are Joey Dee and the Starliters with their biggest hit …. “The Peppermint Twist”.

And it goes like this…..

Lyrics

Well they’ve got a new dance and it goes like this
(Bop shoo-op, a bop bop shoo-op)
Yeah the name of the dance is Peppermint Twist
(Bop shoo-op, a bop bop shoo-op)
Well you like it like this, the Peppermint Twist

It goes ’round and ’round, up and down
‘Round and ’round, up and down
‘Round and ’round and a up and down
And a one two three kick, one two three jump

Well meet me baby down at 45th street
Where the Peppermint Twisters meet
And you’ll learn to do this, the Peppermint Twist

It’s alright, all night, it’s alright
It’s okay, all day, it’s okay
You’ll learn to do this, the Peppermint Twist
Yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah
Ey yeah
Ey yeah
Ey yeah
Ey yeah
Ey yey yeah
Ey yey yeah
Ey yey yeah

Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Henry Glover / Joseph Di Nicola
Peppermint Twist (Original Artist Re-recording) lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc, Wixen Music Publishing

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