Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra

Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra is an orchestra that is somewhat forgotten nowadays but they sounded great. Here is a video clip from a short movie featuring the band playing the songs "Hep And Happy", "Broom Street" and "Darktown Strutters' Ball".

The dancers in the clip are Dean Collins and Jewel McGowan doing a version of the Shim Sham as well as dancing lindy hop in a Hollywood style. Just look at Jewel McGowan doing those swivels. Wow.

You can find out more about the movie with Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra at Internet Movie Database (IMDB).

What do think of the video clip with Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra? Tell me.

Swing Dancer Magazine: June Edition

The June edition of Swing Dancer Magazine is now online.

It features an article by David Graybill about how to organize and promote dance events that has several kinds of swing dances at one time. Noelle Gray writes about the levels you go through as you become a better swing dancer. There is also an interview with Mary Ann Nunez who appears in this video clip with the Dean Collins Lindy Hoppers from 1983 (provided by Peter Loggins).



Editor Christina Oppold has also written a review of Frankie Manning's autobiography: "Frankie Manning: Ambassador of Swing".

What do you think of the June edition of Swing Dancer Magazine? Tell me.

Watch the Birdie - Hellzapoppin

Usually you will hear the song Watch the Birdie sung by Anita O'day but it first appeared in the movie Hellzapoppin'. Here is a video clip from Hellzapoppin' with Watch the Birdie, the song is sung by Martha Raye.



Before I knew about this clip I always felt like there where something more to the story than what was told in the lyrics, now having seen the clip from Hellzapoppin' (1941), the lyrics make perfect sense.

In this clip there is lindy hop dance sequence where Betty (Martha Raye) dances with Dean Collins. When experienced lindy hoppers think of Hellzapoppin they mostly think of another famous dance sequence from this movie with Frankie Manning, Norma Miller and Al Minns and the rest of the dance troupe Harlem Cangeroos. Therefor I thought it would be nice to show some other swing dancing from that movie.

The Anita O'day version of Watch the Birdie is a great one (Gene Krupas Orchestra is playing), but be careful when you are djing it if you got a lot of beginning dancers on the dance floor because it has some tricky breaks in it.

And while we are talking about birds and photography (well, kind of...), I must show you a cartoon that is played at every Christmas Eve on Swedish television at 3 o'clock. It, together with some other cartoons, has been shown for 30 years, it's a modern tradition.



What do you think of Watch the Birdie (both the Hellzapoppin' and Anita O'day version)? Tell me.