Personal Recollections

Era Referenced: 1950's:
Where my feet came from
comments: I grew up in Stateway Gardens 3517 South federal (1957) that's were I got my feet from (learned how to bop) when I saw the older kids "gettin down" I had to learn so I started having sets in our apartment, the guys were eager to teach, I learned to bop, stride (my personal favorite) dance off-time (bopping to slow music) we did cha-cha, mambo cha-cha, the pershing bop, the 47th street strut, the roach, the twine (I learned from Fred Walker (twine-master) I can't recall may more. We would bop under the breezeway in stateway, then when the little kids went upstairs the little kid's playground would become our bopping set. In those days we went to parties in other projects such as the Harold Ickies on 22nd state, where my cousins lived, the Dearborn Homes at 26 and State, Ida B wells always had sets, Wentworth Gardens 35th Wentworth, summer Friday's was the back of Raymond School we were allowed to use the record player from 6pm-10pm our friends who didn't live in the projects like the Reed's the Brazil's to name the most well known ones. Soon I graduated to the Pep's 47th and St. Lawrence or Champlain. This dance hall was famous when my parents were young they met there, my Mom and her sister came from the West-side to party there. I wish it was still there it was sort of an honorary rites of passage for me. When we didn't have music the guy's who had talent would entertain us in the hallways, on the street corners during lunch at school anywhere they got an audience. Some of these guy's from Stateway in my building went on to become the "Lost Generation, "Lee Charles" was another singer; there was soooo much talent in all neighborhoods. I'm so proud to be from Stateway Gardens the projects is where I learned about Life. When I returned to bopping I learned from my younger sisters that it was now "steppin" I learned to step and started going to stepper's set 1980's, I met my now husband of 21 yrs at Mr. Rickey's he was one of the house DJ's (OJ) now my grown children who made fun of our steppin and calles it "the ole people dance" are now steppin. I go out steppin every once in a while with my husband, but now I will go out more often. I want to thank-you for giving this historic dance it's props, whether you call it jitterbug, bopping, steppin, we all do what we know how to do and will grow old doing "Our Thang" God Bless an Good Health. Monica

Era Referenced: 1960's - 1970's
BOPPIN AND STEPPIN
The Chicago Bop was the craze in all the high schools. I know, I helped take it the next level. We had dance contests throughout Chicago, at the Engineering building downtown, the Sunset Ballroom, the Concept Ballroom, The Chaparral, City College, IIT, Altgeld Gardens all the high schools such as Lindblom Tech, Dunbar, Fenger, Calumet, Harper, Simeon, CVS and many more. We innovated the dance week by week, inventing moves and turns that equaled or exceeded ANY ballroom dancing done to this day. The stuff they re talking about now concerning 6 COUNT and 8 COUNT is no big deal and nothing new... WE HAD PEOPLE DOING 12 COUNT! The objective in this case was to get as many foot movements into beat pattern as possible. Exactly like the note in a music bar... You can have 8 eighth notes, 4 quarter notes 2 half notes etc. Bottom line is that when the bar of music ends, you are on beat!

Of note was the fact that at that time, many dancers wore tailor made suits (Silk and Wool was the preferred fabric)from the likes of B&B Woolens and many other tailors. The styles were as varied as the moves. Some of the top dancers and innovators of the BOP which is now known as Steppin included''' Sylvester Baker, Dwight Hodges, Carl (Last name unknown) and the Social Groups Known as THE FELLAS and another called SUPER SMOOTH INCORPORATED. Probably the best innovators and some of the very finest dancers of the time (late 60 s to early 70 s) were Jack "HUD" Hudson, Lawrence "LARD" Gore and Anthony "FUNNY" Bailey. They were true MASTERS of the CHICAGO BOP. They established the Chicago Bop (Steppin) as an ART FORM. Their innovation and precision carried them to the top of all the dances at the places mentioned above and many more. Crowds would wait for them to start dancing because they knew they would be in for a show! Especially on a long jam like Quincy Jones' "KILLER JOE" or a super up-tempo song like "MORE TODAY THAN YESTERDAY" by Spiral Staircase. Splits, Turns, Over the arm leg kicks, syncopated steps, off beat steps where you still made the crossover in perfect timing. (see 6 count/8 count above) Amazing. Smooth, graceful with ultimate finesse. Straight up Chicago! There were thousands of people doing the BOP/Steppin. There was probably 100 - 200 more young men and women in the city, especially the South side and the West Side who were at the top of the game to the point of being innovators also. In the early 70's Soul Train, which started in Chicago, had a few episodes in which you will see the dancers performing the Chicago Bop (Steppin). By 1973 - 75 Disco became the craze and momentarily overtook the Bop/Steppin. However, the younger teenagers learned the moves from their older brothers and sisters and brought the dance back to prominence. If anyone has movies of these original movies, please contact me at BestEffects@aol.com .

Anyone who would like to know more about the Beginning of the Chicago Bop which is now called Chicago Steppin, feel free to contact me at the above email address. I know the above to be a fact because I was there. I'm Jack "HUD" Hudson an innovator of the Chicago Bop / Steppin

Bopping in the Public Housing
comments: It was 1979 and my mother moved my siblings and I to Washington Park Homes, on 41st and Lake Park. As we walked towards the gangway we saw to guys dancing together, and performing fancy footwork to "Pass The Peas" by the "JBs". I thought it was amazing and my sisters and I would mimic that style of dance whenever we had a chance. It was known to us as bopping. My cousins, Aunts and Uncles followed suit and we grew up skating and bopping. My mom would say, that if you can skate, then you could bop, BOPPERS ARE SKATERS And SKATERS ARE BOPPERS...When that gave a 50 cents set in the jets, we go just to watch the guys bop....I can remember, Smokey Robinson, "Quite Storm" was playing and two guys got up and started, bopping.....and "threw down" right at the bridge of the song...it was sooooo smooth!!! I fell in love with stepping that day!!! Andrea

Era Referenced: 1960's and 1970's

In the late 60's,I couldn't wait to learn this thing only the gang bangers were doing, Called "The Disciple Bop. It was on after that. I grew up in Englewood and Woodlawn. Went to CVS high school, from there it was The Y on 61st and Drexel ,and Circle Campus. The El Panama and The RoadRunner, Then the guys that are stepping Kings now were doing the Spank" and all that fast dancing stuff. Later on they started calling it steppin. Its one of the smoothest forms of dance I've ever seen, besides Latin dancing, and Ballroom dancing. I never knew what a six count or eight count was, we just learned the basics, and added on from that. I not taking away anything from New School steppin, Why! because for some strange reason ,Steppin is finally getting the recognition Its always deserved. To Old school and New School steppers, God Bless You All. and Keep on Steppin. Natalie.
P.S. God Bless My Best Friend George "Macaroni" Garnes and R.I.P. I love You.

Era Referenced: 1970's

Dian Davney
The Dungeon and the 70's

I was Bopping coming out of grade school going into high school the year was 1970. I grew up on the south side of Chicago (79th Ridgeland). A group of us teenagers started dancing in the candy store on the block. We would put our money in the juke box and step. My first dancing partner was Mr. Donnie Davis we were the two shortest ones on the block dancing, so we just sort of paired up. We all went to the house parties and school hops and did the fast dances also, but there was nothing like bopping or stepping. Back then stepping had a g on the end of the word. We started going out of the neighborhood to other places. The Midland hotel was the ultimate experience for me; I was basically a wallflower the girl the guys would get to practice with. The one place I remember was the The Dungeon, back then it was the place to go for young adults that could not get into the the clubs. We would get on the 78th street bus to the Dan Ryan El and take that to 95th and transfer to the Michigan bus. . My girlfriends would take the El from the Westside to get there. Now tell me we did not want to step. Back then we did not have a car if you were lucky to get a car you would have everyone trying to ride with you. We went out in groups back then. Mr. Sam Chatman along with Cousin Danny and Terrible Ted were the Dj we followed. We would line up on the steps going into the basement to go in to dance. They did not sell alcohol because we were not of age to drink. We would be down there dancing and sweating, the walls and floor would be sweating also. Sam was the dj that played stepping music while everybody else was into disco, so we followed Sam. Wherever he went, we followed Sam would have big poster like the ones you see for street cleaning plaster all over the city advertising his sets.
My favorite person to watch on the dance floor was Linda Foster and Little Tommy, and Slim and Nicky. Linda was such a dancer that when she was on the floor doing double and triple spins and turns you just had to sit back and watch because not many ladies back then could dance like she did. Slim had fast feet and he and Nicky would really put on a show on the floor. There was also Raymond and Baby 2. My husband likes to watch Michael keys and Michael Madden dance back then. I met my husband and my three girlfriends Linda, Mary, Pat (formerly the Foxetts) back then and we still continue to go out stepping with each other.
There are so many places that we went to too step, like the Ridgeland Club on 73rd Ridgeland, the Budland on 64th Cottage Grove, The Roadrunner 75th off exchange, the East of the Ryan on 79th street but back then it was the Colonial House, then Perrv s House and now the East of the Ryan, the Copper Box 1on 89th Ashland and the Copperbox 2 on 116th Halsted which into the 69club. The Keymans club on the Westside, the safari room the High Chaparral on 78th Stony Island, the Concept Ballroom on 79th Halsted, who can forget Loyola and Circle campus parties. These are just some of the places we remember the more we talk about them the more names we remember.
When we started bopping in the 70,s we danced at sets with Alice of the Dancetts, Black Mary, Lonnie Clark, Clinton Gent, Ronnie Paul, Jackson at the Budland. These people were bopping when we came in and changed bopping to stepping. They never stopped doing the way the dance and continue to dance the same way now. I am glad I started stepping at a young age (teenager). We did not learn from counting we learned from doing the dance, like at the candy store. We went from steppin fast in the 70 s to stepping smooth in the 80 s. Those of us that started dancing back in the 70 s and are still dancing now know that steppers stay in the middle of the floor and walkers on the outside. We know that any walking song that comes on we can slow bop or slow step or walk around the floor, I think we came dance like that because of the music that we came up dancing to the people we danced with and dancing to the music no counting steps. I had a chance of going to my friend class (Donnie Davis) in 1998 because I wanted to learn more turns, he taught a 6 count, and I always danced without counting. I also had the pleasure of going to Claudel s class. He and Swan gave me more confidence. Thank you Guys. So it s been over 30 years I still hang with the same 3 girlfriend, same husband and we still step.
Dungeoneer-Dian Davney

Marvin Wooten (Columbus, GA):

'member the steppers club "The Dungeon" used to be located on 110th and Michigan Ave. actually, between 110th place and 111th Street on Michigan Ave. That place was popping with steppers. I used to go there back in the early 70's, say between Oct '73 and the summer of '75. There was this one couple there....man they could "turn it out!" Sorry I don't remember the names, but I seen one move that I've never seen since. I myself, learned to step on the "block", we used to step to AWB-School Boy Crush, David Bowie-Fame and Kool & The Gang-Summer Madness, to name a few...! Man those were the days. Thanks for letting me share my memories.

Natalie (Chicago):
"I have been steppin since 1970,when I started in the Englewood area of Chicago, It was no such count as 6 or 8 we just learned it, followed it and adlibbed from the basic step. There is nothing like it. it soothes my soul being on that dance floor."

Monica (Detroit):
"Good morning, I would like to piggyback off of what the young lady said in the (SteppersUSA.Com) newsletter about stepping in the 1970's. Although I am no longer living in Chicago I was born and raised there. I now reside in Detroit, Michigan.
I remember back in the mid-70's when the fellows used to step in the corner restaurants doing lunch break while I was in my early years of high school in Chicago. I do not recall stepping being a lane dance back then as was stated previously the brothers and sisters just stepped. Whatever they were doing they made it look so smooth. I just recently became interested in stepping again during a return home visit to Chicago. (My sister attends Donnie Davis class there) You know Detroit is known for the Hustle (Line-Dance) and Ballroom dancing. Although Chicago steppin has become a very hot dance here and it seems everyone is interested in learning the new style of steppin . I guess because I remember Chicago steppin from back in the day when I first returned to class and did what I thought was steppin, they thought I was out of order. But now that I think about it back in the day when I first encountered steppin there was no lane, no count. So I say us old-timers are not out of line. The new school of steppin has taken over. It's cool though. I'm enjoying learning. Back then there were no classes. I guess in order to market the dance there had to be a change. It's a good change and I'm enjoying it."

Old School Steppin/New School imitators 04/10/09 (From John aka ChiTownJab)

Greetings fellow steppers,

Reading the postings here really put a smile on my face and brought back some fond memories. I grew up on the west side of Chicago right there on 16Th & Hamlin in the 60's. We were there when Dr. Martin L. King moved right on the corner of 15Th and Hamlin.

Back then steppin was referred to as boppin. I remember struggling to learn the dance, it seemed that everyone had a different method of teaching the steps. The way that I learned was really incredible. One night I went to a set, stood like a wall flower for most of the night and watched this one couple, they were smooth as silk.

Later that night I went home, told my brother about the set and went to bed. Some how while sleeping I managed to recall the set in my dream. It was in total detail but in the dream, I switched places with the young man that I watched and he took my place standing on the wall. In the dream I did everything that he did. When I woke up the next morning, I jumped out of my bed and started steppin.

Steppin was first brought to TV via Soul Train, which I danced on twice 11/70. If you are lucky enough to find a episode of one of the shows while it was still being filmed here in Chicago at the Board of Trade's building on the 22ND floor in the "attic", I'd love to see it.

Don Cornelius was a total snob and cold as ice, Clinton Gent., was the man, he was warm and funny, he was the person who greeted us teens when we arrived at the show. We were stepping our ass's off and did free style dances "the cold duck" down the dance line.

If you can remember back to when your parents and grand parents danced, you can clearly see the dance "pattern-steppin", they called it swing dance back then. Steppin by today's standards is not true steppin in that the pattern is not true. Let me explain... See, true stepping would sit in the same place as the Cha c\Cha, and other couples dance.

There is a set pattern that is universal, and when you do spins and turns, the pattern is never broken. What these people do today is a fractured version of steppin, the pattern is constantly being broken. Notice when they try to teach you with a count, the count never really makes sense, "does it"? They count one thing but their feet actually does a different count. Steppin is like the black version of the Cha Cha, the Cha Cha is like the Spanish version of steppin, just watch closely and you'll agree, there are only a few steps that separate the two dances.

I went to many of the same places that Dian Davney mentioned, the Ridgeland Club on 73rd Ridgeland, the Budland on 64Th Cottage Grove, The Roadrunner 75Th off exchange, the East of the Ryan on 79Th street but back then it was the Colonial House, then Perrv s House and now the East of the Ryan, the Copper Box 1on 89Th Ashland and the Copperbox 2 on 116Th Halsted which into the 69club. The Keymans club on the West side, the safari room the High Chaparral on 78Th Stony Island, the Concept Ballroom on 79Th Halsted, Percel hall on Washington, who can forget Loyola and Circle campus parties.

Those who know what I'm talking about would agree, there are four sides of this great city west, south, north, east. All sides stepped, we use to compete, the only difference is that the styles of each side of the city was different but the pattern was never broken. What I mean is this for example, west siders took the pattern forward, north siders did the same steps but they took the pattern side to side. You could watch someone step and tell what side of the city they came from. Same number of steps, same count, just different directions, so if you were doing the pattern correctly then you could dance with anyone no matter what side of the city they came from.

No disrespect meant but todays steppin is phony as hell no question about it. If you aren't old school steppin then you aren't really steppin. You are merely mimicking the dance, it's just like ballroom dancing, which means that there are certain rules applied other wise you were not doing the dance.

Back in the day our style of dress was Gouster and Ivy League. I was into the Gouster look, baggie pants with pleats, knit shirts, Stacy Adams shoes, Dobbs hats, lol lol. From there we started going to Fox Brothers to have our clothes tailor made and we wore gators and snake & lizard skin shoes, Bosalina hats yawl know what I'm talk-in bout. Most of us young men dressed better then most adult males.

Herb Kent was, is, and will always be the man. He's the Godfather of stepper sets, funny thing is that Herb never learned to step, ask him, he'll tell you, he just played the jams and still does, he still has a big set every summer out south east at the golf course. Any Westinghouse Warrior grads here? Holla at me 66"/70".

Have you every heard the terms pimp-in and simp-in, do you know what they mean, ask somebody. If you were pimp-in, you were doing it for real, if you were simp-in, then you were faking at it, going thru the motions but not really doing it. Old school steppin would be pimp-in, new school steppin would be simp-in, they are just play-in at it. Just saying it like it is. Again

I'll try to make it very very plain, the Cha Cha is the same all over the world, if you're doing it according to the pattern, then you can Cha Cha with anyone all over the world, sticking to the true pattern is what makes it universal. The same holds true with real "old-school" steppin. I can do the same steps with my grand mother "swing dance", my mother "bop", or "step" with my wife and still be in step... The pattern is clear and defined.

Peace & Love Yawl,
John aka ChiTownJab

P.O.
You can find me and my crew at BlackMary's sets, holla.

Westside the best side (from Gerald Z)
comments: It was 1959 when I did the bop in public but I had been learning it for over a year. The bop and the stroll, called the Walk. Those were the main dances of my childhood.
A lot of Southsiders posted, I am from Marshall High School. I should have dressed Gouster with my body but all my friends were Ivy Leaguers.
I have been separated from my roots for over a decade I have never seen Stepping.
The R Kelly record does not sound promising.

Exact date not Specified (1950's)
Recollections from "Bopdaddy, King of Bop" (Chicago)
Each generation feels called upon to fashion the dance to the prevailing musical trend. From Swing music came the Jitterbug Dance, from R&B (Rock n' Roll) came the Bop Dance. But, for all you Steppin historians Steppin went thru many changes of one generation before it reached the the stage we call Steppin.
Many country cousins got off the boat excitedly shouting, "teach us how to do the Chicago Bop (1955)!"
We danced to music like Rockin Robin. By the time white kids picked up on the Bop Dance (1957), The blackfolk developed a new Bop Dance called the Pershing Bop (1958-1959). Named after the famous Pershing Hotel on 64th & Cottage Grove and the dance place downstairs, in the basement was called Budland. *Originally, Cadillac Bob's Birdland (name changed in March to Budland)
Now, we move on to the Latin beat an it's influence on the music and the dance. Jazz and blues came together to form a music we begin callin 'em, Jamz.
At this time all the blues legends had played on the corner of Maxwell St. in Jew Town, for free. Eddie Harris came out with, Exodus to Jazz and we slowed our movements to what you today, call Smooth Steppin, we called the Cool Bop (1958-1960?) (south siders called Off-Time).
Oh, Yea! The Latin Beat produced that off-time. When Motown came on the scene the first Stepper's national anthem was, "My Baby Loves Me" by Martha and the Vandellas . Smokey, the Tempts, Mary Wells, Marvelettes give us some "the best music of our lives". A new step came from an unlikely source the county jail, we called this step the Jailhouse Bop (1959-1960). Today, you call it Freestyle, it is characterized by the swivelin of the heels.
We incorporated this move into our Gouster's Bop a fast paced step. Jamz like "Quicksand & LiveWire & Johnny Come Marchin' Home & Gotta Dance to Keep from Cryin' (Smokey Robinson) , etc... made it an excellence vehicle to revive semi-Jitterbug moves.
Now, we come to the Viet Nam War era, unconscientiously or conscientious the black community was beginning to feel the lose of our young black men in the Nam. We slowed the Bop down to a post WWII dance called half-step, we called it Slow Bop. In numbers black people were only 3% of America and 30% of soldiers in the Viet Nam. After the media and CIA lied black didn't look at the news until a black reporter name Max Robinson was brought on bound.
Well, gotta go.. I'll hit ya later and tell you a story almost impossible to believe.
When ya' Step all ya'llz fine
(Editor's Note: Dates are all approximate as this is a personal recollection from a person who lived in this era. If you have exact dates, or personal recollections to add, please Click Here to share that information.)
* Information from Chicago Defender archive.

Unsubstantiated Information: The Cakewalk originated in Africa. All the ol' dances are just re-creations of African themes. That includes Steppin as well. The Walk is a African Circle Dance it's movement is counter-clockwise. Why the dance moves counter-clockwise is that our ancestors determined that the universe moves in a counter-clockwise direction. The true meanings I will tell you later. But, take this in, the Steps of the Cakewalk are the steps that produce our spirituals in the Ringshout. Our freedom songs," The Lord Delivered Daniel" etc...The Cakewalk is the same steps you see the choir move to in church, as they sway side to side or move in a procession down the aisle. Yet, the Cakewalk was developed as a special event. The best of cakes were offered as the prize. To white folk the antics of the Negro was aggregated to a caricature of Sambo. Yet, the true dignity of black culture was hidden in the cabins of blackfolk. (Ex. Check out the cover of Donald Byrd's album with Flight Time on it) and you will see a photo of the intimate Cakewalk Dance that we do now. That photo was taken shortly after emancipation. The Walk has a symbol of power, when the DJ. announces Steppers on the inside Walkers on the outside that is so the circle cannot be broken. The power is in the circle. Submitted By: Bopdaddy King of Bop

Calienda, Origin of the Cakewalk
The abuse of Afro-American history is legend. The Cakewalk stereotyped black life farther on the minstrel stage and is still considered the normal existence of black people. Gin drinkin. razor tuttin', child like behavior, without sexual restrict. Out in the cotton pickin field is where hoecakes were made, for lunch, cooked on the flat side of a gardening hoe, a small pancake made from cornmeal. At the Cakewalk Contest the best cakes where awarded. (It was like a $1,000 at the World's Largest. White America (w-----dia) has never dignified black culture enough. We as a people must make this effort to give us back our true Afro beauty. As long as America can find us on TV and laugh, just like Amos n' Andy it's fine. But, to define the beauty of ourselves and the beauty of our culture is to hot to handle. Because in this beauty we see, in Steppin' and Walkin' we may find that spark of unity we search our hearts for daily. But, as I mentioned earlier the romantic aspect of the Cakewalk had been undercover, because it could not have survived any other way. The Cakewalk was called the Calienda, in the 1700's. Taken from the Dances of Versailles; the French Promenade (walking side by side) and later, the Waltz (in closed position). But, before then Egyptians walked, to African drums, around in a counter-clockwise circle and made the signs of the zodiac with their hands. As I mentioned earlier, the circle has power, a gift of the ancestors, and the true meaning of the Walk symbolizes, "Harmony in nature amongst the chaos in the stars". The battle of the sexes rages on, yet, on the Stepper's dance floor do men and women have a mutual relationship with the music. Steppers are finally in harmony with the rhythm of Life. For your dance, Love Bopdaddy Submitted By: Bopdaddy King of Bop

The Ringshout and "set de' flo"
The Ringshout is African in origin. The Ring means circle and the Shout means to sing. So it looks like Ringshout means 'singing circle'. And the 2nd generation Africans sang in a circular procession while clapping and stompin the ground with bare feet. And according to observers the thud of hundreds of bare feet striking the earth could be heard for miles, in the night air. The African drum was literally thrown into the sea. The African drum was outlawed in all states but Louisiana. AfroAmerican developed syncopated rhythms to imitated the drum. The Ringshout was a group dance, that moved in a counter-clockwise direction, symbolizing the direction of the universe and from it came our most prized possessions the captive songs (Ol' Negro Spirituals). The deeply rooted sacred songs that gave a tortured people hope. They were called 'moanin' music'. These were carefully constructed Bible stories, sometimes when sung each one, modified told a different story. Sometimes, they were sung like "All My Children" on TV and of gossip. When sung again, it might have told Aunt Phillis or Uncle Joe to get ready for the chariot meaning the underground railroad, Harriet Tubman was "comin to pick you up to take you north." It told them what time, what place, and whether to bring a coat or not. And at the same time it gave 'em a savior. How else do you think they sent the message? And their captors could be standing right there and didn't know jack. In Africa, they put yo' business on the drum. In Virginia, they put yo' business on the banjo. In the deep south they put it in the songs of the Ringshout. The Stepper's DJ like Mello Kris put it on 'The Box' in a sense he is that master drum of the tribe. The Stepper's Beat is ancient an to prove my point Bopdaddy can Step to music of Coltrane to DoWops, in time. Bebop is much more difficult. And that's the music what they named the Bop Dance after. Love all ya'll steppers, Bopdaddy

The Gouster (A Personal recollection from Bopdaddy)
The radio legend Herb Kent, the Kool Gent helped push the concept, of Gouster and Ivy Leaguer. The Gouster phenomenon was much like the Flappers of the 20's and the Zoot Suiters or Jitterbugs of the 30's & 40's. Herb's radio show helped broaden and gave essence to the pop culture that was created. Herb's weekend Sets, at the Catholic Schools, gave Gousters a platform to dance their Gousters Bop (a fast paced ten-step dance). Each week a true Gouster went thru the ritual of preparing for the Set. The Gousters baggy pants had to have a crease so sharp you could cut butter with 'em. The Gousters clean white shirt, worn with suspenders, were so heavily starched it could stand-up by itself. Some shirts were colorful and they had extra long collars and coordinated with their outfit. Sometimes, Gousters spent half the night spit-shinin' their shoes until they shined to a mirror finish. You could see the stars at night twiklin' in yo' shoe. The hats of the Gousters Stetson and Barcellino and waxed beavers, with the gangster cross folded in. But, the real trademark of the Gouster was his Barracuda trench coat (like a baggy, belted London Fog except it came in any color, even iridescent. Our signature songs were, "Lookin for a Love" by the Contours, "Dear Lady Twist" by Gary U.S. Bonds. Plus, the signature dance was the 47th St. Strut. Yet, the dance they developed was the Gousters Bop. There was a step that came from an unlikely source the county jail and they called it the Jailhouse Bop. (it is characterized by the swivelin of the heels). Today, it's movement are called Freestyle. Also, the Gouster Gals had their own dress code as well. The Gouster phenomenon lasted 1961 - 1967. It's foreal- Bopdaddy

Era Referenced 1990's
Personal Recollection  Steppin' at Club 7 By Dian Davney
I remember taping the first Stepping at Club Seven. We started at 5pm on a Friday and stopped tapping around 1am in the morning, We came back Saturday around 12 or 1 in the afternoon until around 5 that evening. I still have the episodes taped from that show. They put together about 5 shows from the original tapes. The original host was a comedian named BOB Mcdonald who first said "Stepping was a Way of Life". I think this was in 1995. There was a lot of old school dancers and new school who were just being to dance. Those are my memories.
Dian

Designed By