I am not fond of country music. In fact, it is probably safe to say that, with very few exceptions, I hate it. However, I very much enjoy square dancing, and there is a long-standing relationship between square dancing and country music. I think that part of the reason that square dancing remains a fringe activity is because of its association with country music. Country music has become quite a bit more popular than it used to be, but it is still not considered “cool” (<-- dating myself here -- I'm sure there is a cooler word than "cool" these days) by a good number of people. So, when I decided to become a square dance caller, I made up my mind to try to make square dancing cooler by making the music cooler. It is possible to download pre-packaged music for square dancing, but quite a lot of it has that old, familiar country twang that makes me want to stuff my ears with cotton balls. Instead of using what everyone else is using, I like to use instrumental versions of popular music. Here are some examples of music that I think goes well with a good square dance.
- Avicii – Fade Into Darkness, Hey Brother
- Crystal Method – Keep Hope Alive
- Decto – Urban RNB Beat
- DJM – Abrasion
- Eiffel 65 – Blue
- Green Day – Holiday
- J Cook – Shut Up and Dance
- Jessie J – Domino
- Maroon 5 – Moves Like Jagger
- One Direction – What Makes You Beautiful
- Rihanna – Only Girl, Where Have You Been
- Shakira – Waka Waka
- Ylvis – What Does the Fox Say?
Shaney,
I just spend the weekend with Chris Clarke & Joni Micals in Gatlinburg, TN. They spoke very highly of you and suggested I visited your website.
The conversation began when we started talking about my recent experience calling in Japan. (4th time there). Nothing quite like that experience. I’m slated to come back in 2016. Martha Ogasawa is my interpreter and she’s a genius at getting my points across.
Good luck in your calling career..
Thanks, Steve! Joni was probably talking about my other website, Square Your Dance (https://squareyourdance.wordpress.com/). I hope I will get a chance to meet you the next time you come to Japan!