The Swing Book (38 page)
Authors: Degen Pener
www.dancetv.com/tutorial/index.html
Ballroom Dance Group:
On-line instruction in the basics of such dances as East Coast swing, the waltz, and the foxtrot, as well as video and CD
sales and links to other dancing sites.
www.databasewebworks.com/swingdance
The National and New England Swing Dance Server:
Features search options for finding swing events and teachers by state, as well as listings for champion swing dance teachers.
http://members.tripod.com/DeanCollins
The Hollywood Jitterbugs:
This club of street dancers is dedicated to preserving Hollywood-style Lindy.
5678: The World of Social Dance:
This site features articles, reviews, discussions, and event and club listings for those interested in all types of social
dance, including swing.
www.halcyon.com/lindyhop/WLHF/wlhfa.html
World Lindy Hop Federation Archives:
Features information on Australia, London, Canada; current events; bios on famous dancers; movies with swing dancing; book
guides; even a list of
Life
magazine issues with dance articles.
www.mernyk.org/ross/swing.html
Ross Mernyk’s Swing Dance Steps:
Features cheat sheet guides to the moves of swing.
www.raper.com/dance/swing/clubs/usaclubs.html
Raper’s Dance Corner:
A great list of swing dance clubs and societies across the country, as well as information on music, film, and television
events.
http://members.tripod.com/~socalswing
The Lindy Hop Preservation Society of America:
This site includes an etiquette essay, Los Angeles club reviews, calendars, and other dance information.
406 Hepcats:
This on-line zine includes an amazing band links page featuring more than 224 groups.
The Swinger’s Links:
Connections to the best swing band Web sites.
Amazon:
Surprisingly good selection of swing CDs.
Drive Entertainment Online:
A great place to buy the music of the original swing era, from Bunny Berrigan to Charlie Barnet.
Hepcat Records:
The best source on-line for neoswing music and more.
Swing-Music:
Swing tunes, plus videos, CDs, and books.
www.angelfire.com/pa/Chipperjonesio/page6.html
Chipper’s Place:
Features mpegs and wav files of music from new swing bands like the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, and Royal
Crown Revue.
The BigBands Database:
Features bios of hundreds of bands from the famous (Basie) to the not so famous (the Memo Bernabei Orchestra).
www.bigband-era.com/newsletter
Swingin’Down the Lane:
A Web site dedicated to keeping the big band sound alive.
www.jazzkc.org.links/jazzsocieties.htm
Kansas City Jazz Ambassador
magazine: Includes a comprehensive list of jazz societies around the United States.
http://garywoooi.simplenet.com/bigband.html
GaryWoooi
s
Official MIDI Homepage:
A nice collection of downloadable standards by such artists as Count Basie, Louis Prima, Duke Ellington, and Tommy Dorsey.
Alt.music.swing:
A swing scene discussion forum.
Rec.arts.dance:
Chat group with postings about swing dancing.
Barflies:
Royal Crown Revue’s discussion list for all things swing.
Swing Foundation:
An organization promoting the heritage of swing. It also runs a newsy swing list.
Twists, Slugs, and Roscoes: A Glossy of Hardboiled Slang:
William Denton’s lingo list, derived from pulp and detective novels.
Lee Press-on and the Nails:
This band’s Web site includes slang, from the jive of Cab Calloway to the lingo of the Rat Pack.
http://www.angelfire.com/il/SgrDdyBoogie
SugarDaddy’s Rockabilly and Swing:
A portal to many wonderful swing and rockabilly links.
http://members.tripod.com/swing_time
It’s Swing Time:
Not only links but also advice on swing etiquette and recipes for the best cocktails.
Get into the Swing:
Features listings of the best swing records, nightspots, swing history, and links to important swing sites.
Bleyer:
A source for stylish and comfortable spectators, developed by and for Lindy Hoppers.
Daddy-O’s:
Collectibles inspired by fervent fifties nostalgia, including two-tone wingtips, bowling shirts, crinoline petticoats, and
Betty Page Zippo lighters.
El Pachuco Zoot Suits:
A virtual zoot frenzy, this site out of Fullerton, California, offers custom-made elegant suits with all the trimmings.
www.geocities.com/wellesley/2457
Marci’s Retro Style:
This page features information on hair styling and setting techniques from a bygone era.
Katstyle:
Shoes, clothing, and collectibles, including a “white trash belt buckle” and “rearview mirror shrunken head.”
Starre Designs:
In addition to dressing Michael Andrew, the lead singer of Swingerhead, Starre boasts a colorful collection of bloomers,
ties, and adorable women’s dresses.
www.murrayontravel.com/carolnolan
Men’s Vintage Fashions:
Designer Carol Nolan offers custom-tailored “accurate reproductions of the fashions of the 20s, 30s and 40s.”
Stacy Adams Swing:
One of the premier manufacturers of quality spectators; their “Dayton” style is a favorite of Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and Royal
Crown Revue members.
Zoots by Suavecito:
This Denver-based zoot suit designer offers sales and rentals of zoot suits, swing dresses, and accessories.
Tumblin’Dice Creations:
Retro-style shirts in leopard, zebra, two-tone, and flame designs.
Zoot Suit Store:
The name doesn’t lie. This site, presented by Siegel’s Clothing Superstore, offers scores of zoot suits, in custom fabrics,
and lots of accessories.
http://www.panix.com/~tontoi/darrow/darrow2.html
www.geocities.com/~ avintagec/
A virtual mall of on-line vintage clothing stores.
Anything Swing:
Selling reproduction clothing (zoot suits, seamed stockings), notecards, music, videos, and books.
Dance Store:
Clothes, Bleyer shoes, Frankie Manning videos, and Sears thirties and forties fashion books.
eBay:
Sit back, put on some swing, and prepare to empty your wallet. Thousands of vintage items for sale by auction.
The Jazz Store:
A huge selection of books, CDs, posters, and more.
SavoyStyle:
Featuring everything from Lindy Hop instructional videos to T-shirts, books, and shoes. Also includes the Archives of Early
Lindy Hop, with bios and information on Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers.
Flashback Video:
Sales of soundie compilations; one features Jean Veloz’s
Groovy Movie.
John Cooper’s Starlight Roof:
Rare and classic videos specializing in such genres as swing dancing and Christmas movies.
Movies Unlimited:
Hard-to-find movies, including
Killer Diller
and
Hellzapoppin’.
Atomic: Living in the Age of Cool.
Glossy, well written, and stylish, a great new guide to the swing life. $16.00 a year, four issues. 350 Third Avenue, Suite
255, New York, NY 10010. 212-448-9877.
www.atomicmag.com
Blue Martini Pages: The Who’s Who and the What’s What of the Swing Revolution.
A passionate fanzine. $3.00 per issue. 4877 W. Berkeley Road, Phoenix, AZ 85035. 602-415-1992.
Lo-Fi: Easy Living for the Cool Moderns.
Covers swing, surf, rockabilly, and more. $3.95 per issue. P.O. Box 42, Old Chelsea Station, New York, NY 10113-0042. 212-462-3250.
www.nyc-swing.com
Modern Lounge: Fashion, Cocktails, Music, Cigars.
LA’s slick new swing scene chronicle. $2.95 per issue. 17328 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 164, Encino, CA 91316. 818-779-2100.
www.modernlounge.com
Swivel
magazine. Designed like a forties rag, with cool tips on retro living. $18.00 a year, six issues. 2695 Broadway, San Diego,
CA 92102. 619-595-0935.
www.swivelmag.com
They’ve got great clothes and unbeatable music, but what’s with the plot? Swing movies that you’ll want to rent just for the
storyline are few and far between. That’s because many films from the big band era were put together just to showcase the
musical and dance talent. “They would often just get four or five groups and throw them in a movie and hope people would want
to go see the music part,” says Claude Trenier, leader of the early rock ’n’ roll group the Treniers, who appeared in a number
of movies, including
The Girl Can’t Help It.
While most of these movies are readily available on video, some aren’t in widespread video release. Check out the Web guide
for a short list of companies that sell both hard-to-find classics and compilations of soundies (which were the music videos
of their day). So for the nights when you’re not out dancing, sit back and get a view of how Hollywood portrays the world
of swing.
Ball of Fire
(1941, ill min.)
In this early forties Howard Hawks comedy, a burlesque dancer (Barbara Stanwyck) moves in with eight professors (including
Gary Cooper) to explain the idea of “slang” to them for their new encyclopedia. Sad to say, the movie company, in order to
show the movie in the South, cut the scenes showing black trumpeter Roy Eldridge playing with the Krupa band.
The Benny Goodman Story
(1955, 116 min.)
Gene Krupa, singer Martha Tilton, and Lionel Hampton cameo in this drama about the rise to fame of the bandleader (played
by a stiff Steve Allen). The story is so-so, but watch this film for the music.
The Big Broadcast
(1932, 87 min.)
A crumbling radio station is saved and rejuvenated by a millionaire who stages an all-star show, featuring Bing Crosby, Cab
Calloway, the Boswell Sisters, and the Mills Brothers. Calloway performs “Minnie the Moocher” and “Hot Toddy.”
Big Broadcast of 1937
(1936, 102 min.)
The third installment of the Big Broadcast series, featuring Benny Goodman (in his first film role), Jack Benny, George Burns,
and Gracie Allen. The plot’s thin: a radio station owner has trouble with sponsors.
The Blues Brothers
(1980, 130 min.)
This John Belushi/Dan Aykroyd classic is about two brothers getting together their old band in an attempt
to save the orphanage in which they were raised. Great music, including appearances by Cab Calloway, Aretha Franklin, Ray
Charles, and James Brown.
Boardinghouse Blues
(1948, 90 min.)
The tenants of a troubled boardinghouse put on a show to save their home in this all-black musical. Moms Mabley and Dusty
Fletcher star, with performances by Lucky Millinder’s band, Bull Moose Jackson, Una Mae Carlisle, Stump and Stumpy, and more.
Boy! What a Girl
(1946, 70 min.)
This mid-forties musical comedy features an almost all-black cast in a story about a group of producers trying to win financial
backing for their show. Lots of titillating jitterbugging, actor Tim Moore in drag, and appearances by Gene Krupa, Slam Stewart,
and Mary Lou Williams.
Buck Privates
(1941, 84 min.)
An Abbott and Costello army comedy featuring dancer Dean Collins and the Andrews Sisters singing “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.”
Cabin in the Sky
(1943, 100 min.)
This Vincente Minnelli-directed musical (his first feature) stars a brilliant black cast including Lena Horne, Louis Armstrong,
and Duke Ellington, in a story about angels and devils duking it out for the soul of Little Joe (Eddie “Rochester” Anderson).
Although uncomfortably racist, the film includes such gems as Ethel Waters singing “Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe” and Leon
James as one of the devil’s minions.
