The Shake was a

fad dance A fad or trend is any form of collective behavior that develops within a culture, a generation or social group in which a group of people enthusiastically follow an impulse (psychology), impulse for a short period. Fads are objects or behavior ...

of mid-1960s, characteristic of "tense jerkiness" of limbs and head shaking, basically with no particular danced moves or steps. It superseded the

twist Twist may refer to: In arts and entertainment Film, television, and stage * ''Twist'' (2003 film), a 2003 independent film loosely based on Charles Dickens's novel ''Oliver Twist'' * ''Twist'' (2021 film), a 2021 modern rendition of ''Olive ...

in popularity by

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

. It was an individualistic dance, with no steps, legs trembling, arms arbitrarily gesticulating and head shaking. No partner was necessary. It was part of the "mod" subculture. It evolved from the

blue beat Blue Beat Records is an English record label that released Jamaican rhythm and blues (R&B) and ska music in the 1960s and later decades. Its reputation led to the use of the word ''bluebeat'' as a generic term to describe all styles of early Jamai ...

style and was danced under the loud and hypnotic music of

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

typified by

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

. Frances Rust cites a description by a contemporary who mentioned "feeling like being very drunk" under in influence of the

ostinato In music, an ostinato (; derived from Italian word for ''stubborn'', compare English ''obstinate'') is a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in the same musical voice, frequently in the same pitch. Well-known ostinato-based pieces include ...

beat of the

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

, as an anecdotal support for research of the influence of music on

central nervous system The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain and spinal cord. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity of all par ...

. The central theme from the British TV series '' The Avengers'' is based on '' The Shake'' LP (1965) by

Laurie Johnson Laurence Reginald Ward Johnson, (born 7 February 1927) is an English composer and bandleader who has written scores for dozens of film and television series and has been one of the most highly regarded arrangers of instrumental pop and swing ...

, which capitalized on the dance craze of the time.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shake Dance Novelty and fad dances category:1960s fads and trends

See also

References