15/10/24 WAIT FOR YOU (Guillaume Richard) Yes they like this one, upbeat and a relatively straightforward teach. I was also pleased to see a full floor up for the second week of Am I Okay. A good turnout (thank you) and we got through a lot of dances.
We also danced: Somebody Like You, Jealous Of The Sun, The Way, Nothing But You, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, All I Am Is You, To Know Me, Am I Okay, Straight Line, If I Don’t, My Five Boys, Hands In The Mud, In Walked You, Die With A Smile, Full Throttle, Poison On Your Lips, Five Leaf Clover, Before You Leave Me, Drop It Down, Beautiful Scars, Sin City Lights, Heartbreak Disco, Road To Hana and Dance Before You Leave Me.
08/10/24 AM I OKAY (Alison & Peter Metelnick) Currently struggling a little to find upbeat mainstream intermediate dances. Seem to be plenty of rolling count, nightclub and waltzes around plus a glut of improver dances. Had to search a bit further for this one, outside the current charts. It received a bit of a mixed response but the majority were back up for it again when I played it at the end of the night.
We also danced: Tiger Hips, Wishful Thimkin, Thunder In My Heart, Give Me Your Tempo, Space In My Heart, Breathe, Listen To My Heart, Liquor Talking, Beautiful Scars x2, Dark Side Of The Moon, Love Somebody, Tailgate 88, Die With A Smile, Hands In The Mud, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Eyes Like Diamonds, Heartbreak Disco, Full Throttle, Road To Hana, I Showed You The Door, Dance Before You Leave Me, and Poison On Your Lips.
01/10/24 BEAUTIFUL SCARS (Gary O’Reilly) Thanks to all who travelled to class after a couple of very wet days. It was good to have a couple of younger people come along to try out the class. This week’s new one was a 72 count waltz. To be honest, I wasn’t sure how much I liked the track the first time I listened to it, but I did like the dance. After practising it over the weekend and teaching it last night, the music has certainly grown on me. Think it went down pretty well with the class. We danced it three times although on the second, I manged to lose track of which wall we we were up to, and so ruined the last restart and ending -sorry!
We also danced: Pot Of Gold, Two Lane Highway, The Joker And The Queen, Country Touch, Drop It Down, A Story Told, Poison On Your Lips, Straight Line, Die With A Smile (twice), Eyes Like Diamonds, Till You Can’t/Take It, Men On A Mission, Full Throttle, Do It With Passion, Heartbreak Disco, Road To Hana, If I Don’t, Hearts On Fire, Love Somebody, Before You Leave Me, and One On One.
24/09/24 DIE WITH A SMILE (Simon Ward) Rather than teach this in the usual block of 8 counts, I broke it down a bit more into smaller chunks. It meant a longer teach but hopefully gave everyone a better chance of picking up the steps and feel of the dance. Personally I like it, but with it being advanced and with a rolling count, it may not be a dance for everyone in the class. The majority seemed to enjoy it though.
We also danced: First To Last, Heavenly Cha, Give Me Your Tempo, Homecoming, Tailgate 88, Sin City Lights, Do It With Passion, Before You Leave Me, Liquor Talking, What A Song Can Do, Heartbreak Disco, In Walked You, Poison On Your Lips, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Road To Hana, Dance Before You Leave Me, Drinkaby, Listen To My Heart, and If I Don’t.
17/09/24 HEARTBREAK DISCO (Ria Vos) Numbers were down this week with people away on holiday or feeling unwell and apologies if you had to park in a different place due to unexpected building work going on elsewhere in the village hall. The new dance seemed to go down well and I know it has already been taught elsewhere in the East Midlands.
We also danced: Space In My Heart, My Broken Heart, My Angel & Me, Straight Line, Get Moving, Eyes Like Diamonds, Dance Before You Leave Me, Ghosted, Poison On Your Lips, Dark Side Of The Moon, Road to Hana, Vibe Check, Do It All Again, Hands In The Mud, Full Throttle, Before You Leave Me, I Showed You The Door, Versions Of You, Listen To My Heart, Liquor Talking, 5 Leaf Clover and If I Don’t.
10/09/24 After teaching Before You Leave Me last week, I had a couple of requests to go over DANCE BEFORE YOU LEAVE ME (Maggie Gallagher) from 2021. It used to be one of my favourites to dance, although, I never taught it originally as it was released before I restarted classes after our lockdown break. So I did this early in the night and everyone was up for it – not always the case when you revise an oldie.
Dance Before You Leave Me step sheet
Having started with the above dance, I wanted something on the easier side of intermediate for this week’s new dance. I went with ROAD TO HANA (Glyn Rodgers & Teresa Lawrence) which is such a catchy track. Must admit when I first saw the video, I wasn’t completely sure about the section with the pocket slaps and hip grinds but it does fit the song well, and at the end of the day it’s a bit of fun with an alternative for those who might not fully buy into it! Numbers were down this week, mainly due to people going to warmer places now that the kids are back at school, but those present seemed to give it a thumbs up.
We also danced: 3 Tequila Floor, Jealous Of The Sun, Shivers, Tailgate 88, Men On A Mission, What A Song Can Do, To Be Blunt, If I Don’t, Before You Leave Me, Thunder In My Heart, Full Throttle, Drop It Down, 5 Leaf Clover, One On One, Wreckage, Listen To My Heart, In Walked You, Liquor Talking, Posion On Your Lips, Sin City Lights, and Breathe.
03/09/24 BEFORE YOU LEAVE ME (Jef Camps & Grace David) Not to be confused with the Maggie G dance from a few years back that was called Dance Before You Leave Me! We saw this one danced at a local social last weekend and Kate mentioned she liked the music and encouraged me to teach the dance. As I always do exactly what I’m told, I went with it.
Must admit I hadn’t picked up on this dance when it was first released a bit earlier in the year. But it was the right decision to cover it, as it seemed to go down well with a lot in the class. In our fairly narrow hall, we did notice that after the first four counts, the dance travels a long way across the room from right to left – so much so that some people were ending up against the side wall. The three restarts didn’t seem to cause any issues when we came to dance it.
Before You Leave Me step sheet
We also danced: Bad Habits, Two Lane Highway, Five Leaf Clover, Do It With Passion, Jealousy, My Five Boys, Eyes Like Diamons, I Showed You The Door, Hands In The Mud, Drinkaby, Posion On Your Lips, Do It All Again, Liquor Talking, Love Somebody, One On One, If I Don’t, Full Throttle, Breathe, Tailgate 88, Vibe Check, Listen To My Heart, Dark Side Of The Moon, My Roots and Marakaibo.
27/08/24 Two new dances this week. The first was IF I DON’T (Gary O’Reilly) a 24 count rolling count dance, although it feels a lot more than 24! Nice mix of slower and faster steps and seemed to go down well.
Also taught LISTEN TO MY HEART (Maggie Gallagher & Gary O’Reilly) which seemed to take a bit more getting than I’d anticipated. Possibly as I taught a little later into the night. But I think the general view was that most would like it after some more practice.
We also danced: Homecoming, Little Heartbreak, I Got Music, Memory Lane, Men On A Mission, Ghosted, Dark SIde Of The Moon, One On One, Posion On Your Lips, In Walked You, Get Moving, Breathe, Can’t Stop Loving You, Liquor Talking, My Roots, Do It With Passion, Sin City Lights, Love Somebody, Drop It Down, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Wreckage and Next Big Swing.
20/08/24 POISON ON YOUR LIPS (Ria Vos & Gregory Danvoie) A bit of a tricky one to start back with after a week off. It was a longer teach than normal to give everyone a better chance of picking it up. We also did the first wall to music a couple of times before tackling the back wall and explaining the tag and restart. Seemed to go down pretty well.
Poison On Your Lips step sheet
We also danced: Bittersweet Memory, Stop It, Till You Can’t/Take It, Space In My Heart, Human Dancer, Seasons Over, Eyes Like Diamonds, A Story Told, Breathe, To Be Blunt, Straight Line, Liquor Talking, Next Big Swing, Full Throttle, Do It With Passion, 11.45, My Roots, Vibe Check, Tailgate 88, Card You Gamble, Do It All Again, Love Somebody and Hands In The Mud.
13/08/24 No class
06/08/24 One of those weeks where I was struggling a bit to find a new dance I really liked. Then I saw a video of Ryan teaching one of his dances at an event over the weekend, so I went with NEXT BIG SWING! (Ryan Hunt). He certainly captures the Charleston feel in the dance but it’s a fast one in places. I think one or two in the class would have liked a bit more thinking time when the music first went on! But it’s certainly a little different to anything we’ve been doing just lately.
We also danced: Dim The Lights, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, Clickety Clack, Little Heartbreak, Slam Goes The Door, Broken Soul, To Be Blunt, Do It With Passion, My Roots, Full Throttle, Drop It Down, What’s The Point, Liquor Talking, Seasons Over, Eyes Like Diamonds, Do It All Again, Vibe Check, In Walked You, Ain’t No Angels, Love Somebody, Hands In The Mud, Dark Side Of The Moon, Tailgate 88, One On One and Ghosted.
30/07/24 Another hot night at class despite having all the doors and windows open and some fans on, so thanks to all who decided to come out dancing. I taught two new ones, the first was a last minute addition that had only just been released earlier that day DO IT ALL AGAIN (Gary O’Reilly & Maggie Gallagher), a straightforward improver level dance with a nice summer and samba feel to it.
The main dance was MY ROOTS (Kim Ray). There are several dances to this popular track from Callum Scott including an improver level dance. I went with Kim’s dance as it was more suitable for an intermediate class. Although this one is labelled as high intermediate on the sheet, it is really not that hard. Certainly no more than a normal intermediate dance, but there is a sequence of doing a full wall of 48 counts followed by 2 subsequent restart walls after 32 counts to remember as well.
We also danced: Backroad Nation, Have Fun Go Mad, Willpower, Everyone Needs A Hero, Full Throttle, Straight Line, Wage A War, Eyes Like Diamonds, Made Of Gold, Love Somebody, Tailgate 88, Versions Of You, Breathe, Don’t Think Twice, Do It With Passion, Memory Lane, Hands In The Mud, I Showed You The Door, Seasons Over, Vibe Check, Liquor Talking and 3 Tequila Floor.
23/07/24 HANDS INTHE MUD (Niels Poulsen) Good to be back to another busy class and this week I was feeling 100% fit again. Thanks to all who came out dancing. The music for this one didn’t really grab me when I first heard it, but it’s good to dance to as the steps fit the track well and keep you thinking. One or two in the class weren’t so keen but went down quite well. Think it will be one we see played out and about at socials too.
I had a request from someone in the class to do EYES LIKE DIAMONDS (Glynn Rodgers & Michelle Risley) which I taught over a month ago at my Monday Improver class. I did a fairly quick teach as wasn’t quite sure how many already knew it. It provided a total contrast to the other new dance.
We also danced: Faithful Soul, Broken Soul, Men On A Mission, Another One Bites The Dust, The Card You Gamble, Sin CIty Lights, Ain’t No Angels, One On One, When You’re Drunk, Do It With Passion, To Know Me, Tailgate 88, A Story Told, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Good Rocking Daddy, Seasons Over, Give Me Your Tempo, Liquor Talking, Vibe Check, Love Somebody, and Full Throttle.
16/07/24 Having been unwell for several days after picking up some kind of gastric bug, my Monday classes were cancelled and Tuesday was the first day back on my feet. I decided to go ahead with the class, but my energy levels weren’t quite back to a 100%.
I did have a harder dance planned but switched to something easier that would be a quicker teach for this week. I went with TAILGATE 88 (Karl-Harry Winson). This might look a bit more daunting than what it actually is, with several tags and an ending to remember, but once you’ve done the sequence a couple of times, it soon falls into place. I’d say the dance is correctly labelled as being on the easier side of intermediate. The class picked it up quickly and the bonus is that it’s to a country- style version of a well-known track.
We also danced: 3 Tequila Floor, 45 Degrees, 5 Leaf Clover, Get Moving, Jesse James, Straight Line, Ain’t No Angels, Full Throttle, Liquor Talking (twice), Drinkaby, Breathe, Drop It Down, Ghosted, Thunder In My Heart, Wage A War, Marakaibo, I’m Haunted, Islands In The Stream (to Cake By The Ocean), I Showed You The Door, One On One, Seasons Over, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, Love Somebody, In Walked You, Vibe Check, and Do It With Passion.
09/07/24 LIQUOR TALKING (Maddison Glover) After doing 2 new dances last week, I didn’t want anything too hard this week so went with this 48 count, 2 wall dance. Although it still has a restart, one wall where you only dance the last 16 counts, a little ending and a slight step change on walls 2, 4 and 6! But once you’ve done it a couple of times, it’s not as hard as it might first appear. I think this went down pretty well.
Sorry that the floor wasn’t perfect to dance on – I think this was caused by the high moisture levels due to the very humid weather. Thank you for another great turnout.
We also danced: Space In My Heart, Lamtarra Rumba (Here Comes My Baby by Mavericks), The Real World, Country Touch, The Way, Little Heartbreak, Full Throttle, One On One, Wage A War, Dark Side Of The Moon, Smoke Me, Till You Can’t/Take It, Right Time Wrong Girl, Seasons Over, Made Of Gold, Do It With Passion, Memory Lane, Vibe Check, Versions Of You, Love Somebody, and Tiger Hips.
02/07/24 WAGE A WAR (Lee Hamilton) It’s been a while since I’ve taught a rolling count dance. It fits the music well but they do seem to take a bit of getting used to for some. If you printed or saved the original step sheet that first came out, you may need to check that you have the updated version that includes the 2 restarts.
Towards the end of the night, I also did a quick teach of VIBE CHECK (Debbie Rushton) that is currently top of a teaching survey poll. The first half of this 32 count dance is easy, the change in direction and turns in the second half mean you might have to think a little harder. Probably won’t stay around too long but at the end of the day, it’s just a bit of slightly funky fun! (I’d been trying to remember which song had been sampled in the music, so thanks to those in the class, who confirmed it was Fireball.)
Many thanks to everyone travelling from both near and far to make it another busy night and to those who help with clearing the hall at the end of the night.
We also danced: Jai Du Boogie, In Control, Darling Hold My Hand, Shivers, Amazing Faith, My Broken Heart, Do It With Passion, What A Song Can Do, Men On A Mission, Straight Line, Wreckage, Seasons Over, Sin City Lights, Evergreen, One On One, Ghosted, Love Somebody, I Showed You The Door, A Story Told, Full Throttle and Green Green Grass.
25/06/24 Probably the hottest night so far this year so thanks to everyone who chose to come out dancing. New dance was SEASONS OVER (Willie Brown & Heather Barton). I first heard this track a couple of months back and have been waiting for a decent dance to come out to it. Being a 4 wall, 64 count dance there’s plenty to take in at first and it’s easy to get caught out with the full turn back over the right after a sailor 1/4 left in the first section. I really like this one but couldn’t quite work out how many in the class did – maybe due to me asking them at the end of a long hot night!
We also danced: 2 Lane Highway, Men On A Mission, 3 Tequila Floor, Can’t Stop Loving You, Slam Goes The Door, Give Me Your Tempo, Little Heartbreak, Marakaibo, Dark Side Of The Moon, I Showed You The Door, Love Somebody, Breathe, Legs Keep Dancing, Full Throttle, Drop It Down, Portland Dance Floor, Silverado, One On One, The Card You Gamble, Get Moving, Do It With Passion, In Walked You, To Know Me, and 2 Hearts On A Highway.
18/06/24 Great to be back after a couple of weeks away on holiday and nice to welcome another couple of new people along to the class. Had a bit of catching up to do so ended up teaching two new ones but neither were too taxing.
LOVE SOMEBODY (Maggie Gallagher) This seemed to be a dance for everyone with the catchy track and fairly straightforward nifty footwork, just a bit quick in places. We did dance it twice straight after learning it, but sorry, I forgot to play it again before leaving at the end of the night.
DO IT WITH PASSION (Niels Poulsen) Almost taught this before we went on holiday but had second thoughts after hearing that one or two people who had learnt it already weren’t particularly keen on it. But then when others saw it being danced at a local social, they asked if I’d be teaching it. I think it fits the music really well and there’s time to put a bit of styling into the dance but some in the class didn’t weren’t keen on the track, although the majority gave it the thumbs up.
We also danced: Just A Kiss, T Bone Shuffle (to the late Dario G’s Sunchyme), Changed Everything, Bittersweet Memory, 11.45, Memory Lane, Full Throttle, Telling On My Heart, To Be Blunt, Straight Line, Homecoming, One On One, My Five Boys, Versions Of You, Dark Side Of The Moon, Electric, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, Drop It Down, A Story Told, Sin City Lights, Ain’t No Angels and Ghosted.
28/05/24 FULL THROTTLE (Karl Harry Winson & Jamie Barnfield) Another dance first learnt from Karl at Whitby. A quicker teach than last week’s – this is a 48 count, 4 wall dance with two restarts. It flows quite nicely and nothing too hard.
Thanks to everyone who came out dancing last night and to all who helped at the end by stacking their chairs or putting away the tables. Next class at Canwick is on Tuesday 18th June.
We also danced: 3 Tequila Floor, Evergreen, Martha Divine, Smoke Me My First Love. Sundown Waltz (quick recap), Drop It Down, Homecoming, I Showed You The Door, One On One, In Walked You, Sin City Lights, Everyone Needs A Hero, Ain’t No Angels, Wreckage, Dark Side Of The Moon, Electric, Legs Keep Dancing, A Story Told, Breathe, Men On A Mission, One On One (again), & Portland Dance Floor.
21/05/24 ONE ON ONE (Karl Harry Winson & Jamie Barnfield) Enjoyed learning this one from Karl at Whitby and wanted to get it taught before our next holiday break. Took a bit of time to teach as it’s a 96 count, 2 wall high intermediate dance. During the teach, some struggled a bit with the step sweep turns in the last few sections so we did these quite a few times. When the music went on, it seemed to fall into place (rather than fall apart lol!) as everyone was heading to the right place.
Also dropped in a quick teach of HOMECOMING (Lee Hamilton) – a little easy one that I think some had already done but hopefully one everyone can just get up and dance after a couple of weeks without it taxing the brain too much.
We also danced: Small Town Summer, Willpower, Versions Of You, Sin City Lights, Silverado, Jealousy, Drop It Down, To Know Me, Legs (Keep Dancing), Straight Line, A Story Told, What A Song Can Do, Dark Side Of The Road, Ain’t No Angels, My Five Boys, Electric, Men On A Mission, Portland Dance Floor and Get Moving.
14/05/24 No Class
07/05/24 LEGS (KEEP DANCING) (Alison & Peter Metelnick) This has enough in it to keep most intermediate dancers occupied. A decent upbeat track from Vanessa Williams that doesn’t give a lot of thinking time and with some subtly different step patterns in places. It wasn’t a quick teach and I let them dance the first wall to music a couple of times before starting on the back wall. I think it’ll do quite well at the class.
Legs (Keep Dancing) step sheet
We also danced: Five Leaf Clover, To Be Blunt, Smoke Me, Drinkaby, Knee Deep (quick recap), I Got Music, Marakaibo, Ain’t No Angels, The Card You Gamble, Sin City Lights, Ghosted, Life With You, I Showed You The Door, Electric, Get Moving, Breathe, Dark Side Of The Moon, Men On A Mission, Portland Dance Floor, My Five Boys, Made Of Gold, Straight Line, and Drop It Down.
30/04/24 AIN’T NO ANGELS (Neville Fitzgerald & Julie Harris) We started with this one to the new song ‘No Angels’ by Justin Timberlake. One or two had already learnt it at a weekend event but no step sheet released so far. It probably suited some who felt last week’s dance was a little on the easy side, as this has a bit more to think about.
I also taught PORTLAND DANCE FLOOR (6 different choreographers) I didn’t expect everyone to like this one and had toyed with the idea of teaching it near the end of the class so those who wanted to do it could stay. But then I thought it would be better to cover it earlier, so we did it in the first half of the night. They all gave it a go but some didn’t want to dance it a second time, possibly due to the music which is a little shouty at times but for me it does feel nice to dance.
Portland Dance Floor step sheet
We also danced: Just A Kiss, Graffiti, 3 Tequila Floor, Green Green Grass, Slam Goes The Door, Give Me Your Tempo, Jealousy, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Everyone Needs A Hero, Breathe, Electric, Telling On My Heart, Get Moving, My Five Days, Silverado, Drop It Down, Dark Side Of The Moon, Sin City Lights, A Story Told, Made Of Gold, The Card You Gamble and 11.45.
23/04/2024 ELECTRIC (Neville Fitzgerald & Julie Harris) After preparing another dance ready to teach, I had a late change of mind after the sheet for this one was released the day before my class. The track has a great beat and is definitely on the easier side of intermediate.
We also danced: All Day Long (Mr Mom(, All Week Long (7 Nights To Rock), My Broken Heart, When You’re Drunk, Slam Goes The Door, Sin City Lights (to The Weeknd version), Thunder In My Heart, Straight Line, Breathe, I Showed You The Door, Made Of Gold, Memory Lane, 11.45, It’s Magic, Get Moving, My Five Boys, A Story Told, In Walked You, Drop It Down, To Know Me, 2 Hearts On A Highway , Tiger Hips and Wreckage.
16/04/2024 I was struggling to find an intermediate dance I really like for this week so decided to do two improver level ones instead. First we did DARK SIDE OF THE MOON (Tina Argyle). I’d already introduced this to my improver class, and some others in this class already knew it, but I was asked to cover it here and it did give the others a chance to learn it, as it is being seen out and about at socials. Class as normal next Monday 29th April.
Dark Side Of The Moon step sheet
The other new one was MADE OF GOLD (Jamie Barnfield & Karl-Harry Winson). A fairly quick teach and a similar sort of level to Sin City Lights to a catchy track. There didn’t seem to be quite so many back up for it when I played it again at the end of the night, but by then we had been dancing for two and a half hours, and some people were starting to head home.
We also danced: Shouting To The Monsters, Til You Can’t/Take It, Save It For A Sunny Day, Vanotek Cha, Five Leaf Clover, Slam Goes The Door, Three Tequila Floor, What’s The Point, A Story Told, Men On A Mission, In Walked You, The Card You Gamble, Houdini, I Showed You The Door, Breathe, Silverado, It’s Magic, Can’t Stop Loving You, My FIve Boys, Drop It Down, Sin City Lights, Ghosted, Life With You and Get Moving.
09/04/2024 A late change of mind after hearing some good reports about a dance taught at an event last weekend. So the new dance was A STORY TOLD (Kate Sala), a 60 count waltz with a little tag and a couple of restarts. Must admit, I hadn’t picked up on this one when it was first released in January, but the music by Lady A is pleasant and the dance flows nicely. It got some applause afterwards so went down well. A totally different feel and style to last week’s new one, Drop It Down. It’s good to be able mix things up.
We also danced: Wave On Wave, Darling Hold My Hand, Little Heartbreak, On The Edge, 13MWZ (quickly revised), Trustfall, Give Me Your Tempo, 11.45, Straight Line, Breathe, Tiger Hips, To Be Blunt, Men On A Mission, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, Drop It Down, Wreckage, Going All The Way, Thunder In My Heart, Get Moving My Five Boys, It’s Magic, In Walked You, Sin City Lights and 2 Hearts On A Highway.
02/04/2024 DROP IT DOWN (Shane McKeever) After teaching two new ones last week, I wanted something fairly straightforward for this week. If you like the slightly more funky music, you can put a bit of attitude into this dance as it fits the track well. I had a feeling it would be a ‘marmite’ dance but was pleased with how many were back on the floor to do it again later in the night, although not everyone was.
We also danced: Telling On My Heart, Soul Shake, 2 Lane Highway, I Got Music, Bad Habits, Without The Memories, Get Moving, I Showed You The Door, Breathe, In Walked You, Houdini, The Card You Gamble, Sin City Light, Ghosted, Life With You, I’m Haunted, Men On A Mission, Drinkaby, My Five Boys, Versions Of You, 11.45, Best Friends, Straight Line and To Know Me.
26/03/2024 Numbers down a little this week with about half a dozen missing due to various reasons. I’m sure they’ll do their homework on what they missed though -well, at least they’ll take a quick look at the two new dances I taught to see if they like them!
First up was SIN CITY LIGHTS (Karl-Harry Winson). I loved the original version of this (Blinding Lights by Canadian singer The Weeknd when it was a massive pop hit in 2020). And I really like this ‘countrified’ version by Tebey too. I think this improver level dance fits well and there’s enough in it to keep most intermediates happy. Certainly seemed to be a hit with mine anyway.
I also taught BREATHE (Simon Ward) to the Faith Hill track of the same name. I’m a bit late getting round to this one although it had been in my plans to cover for a while, so a few had already had at least one go at it elsewhere. Possibly because of this, it turned out to be a slightly easier teach than I was expecting. By taking just one of the turns out for the non-turners, everyone stuck with it and seemed to have it sorted by the time we danced it again at the end of the night. Feels quite a classy dance with just one simple restart and an arm lifting ending.
We also danced: Five Leaf Clover, Here We Go, Everyone Needs A Hero, To Be Blunt, Don’t Think Twice, Marakaibo, To Know Me, 11.45, What A Song Can Do, Memory Lane, Going All The Way, Thumder In My Heart, Straight Line, It’s Magic, Impossible Love, Life With You, My Five Boys, I Showed You The Door, Men On A Mission, Get Moving and Two Hearts On A Highway.
19/03/2024 MY FIVE BOYS (Maggie Gallagher) After learning this one ready to teach soon after last week’s class, I started to have a few doubts over the weekend how well it would be received. Fortunately I resisted the temptation to find something else instead as it ended up being a big hit with the class. An easier teach than last week’s dance despite this being 80 counts – the fact it’s a one-wall dance certainly helped. We also had a bit of a laugh when I tried to demonstrate the difference between and English and an Irish toe points!
We also danced: Nothing But You, Ghosted, Devil In A Dress, Feet Don’t Fail Me Now, Impossible Love, Houdini, If You Believe, On The Edge, To Know Me, It’s Magic, Straight Line, Wreckage, Silverado, Men On A Mission, Life With You, I Got Music, Without The Memories, I Showed You The Door, Get Moving, In Walked You, Best Friends, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass and 11.45.
12/03/2024 IT’S MAGIC (Ria Vos) For a 32 count dance this one proved a bit tricky. Needed some practice to get used to where you are heading for on a few of the turns and where you have to keep your weight. Added to this there’s not always a lot of thinking time! Not everyone liked it but a fair number did (including those who like more of a challenge) and it should be a bit easier next week.
We also danced: Islands In The Stream, We’re Good To Go, Shivers, Glass Of Wine, On The Edge, 2 Lane Highway, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Men On A Mission, In Walked You, Going All The Way, Life With You, What A Song Can Do, What’s The Point, The Card You Gamble, Get Moving, I Showed You The Door, Straight Line, 11.45, Memory Lane, Marakaibo and Right Time, Wrong Girl.
05/03/2024 We had two new 32 count dances this week and both seemed to go down well. I finally got round to doing MEN ON A MISSION (Gary O’Reilly, Guillame Richard and Niels Poulsen). Wasn’t expecting everyone to like it but the choreography fits the music so well it makes it easier to remember. We had a bit of a laugh with the salute ending too!
Also taught BEST FRIENDS (Alison & Peter Metelnick) a lovely little country track but the dance seems to have gone under the radar around here. To Know Me is a class favourite and parts of this have similar step patterns so the class soon picked it up. Remembering and perfecting the restarts took just a little bit longer!
Ran out of time to recap Going All The Way but will do this one early next week. Talking of which, there will be a football match again in the city so please allow time for extra traffic.
We also danced: Somebody Like You, Mama & Me, Clickety Clack, Sweet Ireland, Everyone Needs A Hero, Tumbling Rush, The Card You Gamble, Ghosted, Get Moving, To Know Me, Drinkaby, Have Fun Go Mad, Waterfall, Houdini, I Showed You The Door, 11.45, In Walked You, Straight Line, 2 Hearts On A Highway and Life With You.
27/02/2024 GET MOVING (Guillaume Richard & Gregory Danvoie) A phrased dance with 32 counts in both sections A and B plus a tag and a slight step change for the ending. It got a mixed response with some saying they did like it but others not giving it another go. I think at first some may feel a little overwhelmed having to remember the lengthy sequence as well as the steps (which aren’t anything complicated). Maybe more will give it another try next week.
A great class though with lots danced which made up for me having to miss out on seeing Lincoln City FC win 3-0 at home.
Looking forward I’ve had several requests from people in the class to teach Men On A Mission. The first time I had this ready to teach in January, the class was cancelled due to bad weather, the next time I was going to do it, I had to cancel due to illness so hopefully it’ll be a case of third time lucky!
We also danced: Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, Dim The Lights, Let Er Rip, To Be Blunt, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Life Without You, Give Me Your Tempo, 5 Leaf Clover, I Showed You The Door, Marakaibo, 11.45, My Broken Heart, When You’re Drunk, Thunder In My Heart, The Card You Gamble, Don’t Think Twice, Raised Like That, Without The Memories, Glass Of Wine, Going All The Way, In Walked You, Life With You Straight Line, To Know Me, I Got Music, Tiger Hips and Houdini.
20/02/24 11.45 (Neville Fitzgerald & Julie Harris) Some in the class like a challenge of a more meatier dance every now and then. Houdini still has healthy numbers up for it although it’s not danced by everyone. And like Houdini, there’s a sequence to remember as well as the steps with 11.45 so a fair bit to take in at first. For a dance where you do the whole 64 counts twice, half the dance twice, plus an easy 32 count tag twice (but not in that order!), this seemed to be pretty well received. I was very happy to see that everyone got up to give it another go at the end of the night.
Currently waiting for the sheet to be released.
Another great turnout – thanks for your support.
We also danced: Small Town Summer, Memory Lane, Bad Habits, Jesse James, Changed Everything, The Joker & The Queen, Drinkaby, I’m Haunted, Ghosted, Waterfall, Wreckage, Straight Line, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Without The Memories, In Walked You, Going All The Way, Houdini, Versions Of You, I Showed You The Door, The Card You Gamble, I Got Music and To Know Me.
13/02/24 STRAIGHT LINE (Maggie Gallagher & Gary O’Reilly) Another busy class (thanks everyone) and this was a straightforward teach that seemed to go down pretty well. Personally, I’d have liked a section or two of some slightly more challenging footwork but what we’ve got fits well and it’s probably good to have a dance that people can easily remember after just a week or two.
At the very end of the class I also did a quick teach of GLASS OF WINE (Malene Jakobsen) a dance that is going well on the beginner circuit. A modern disco style re-working of the old Cry To Me song.
We also danced: I Just Want To Dance With You, Side By Side, The Real World, Poor Boy Shuffle, Shivers/Gives Me Shivers, 3 Tequila Floor, 2 Lane Highway, What’s The Point, Going All The Way, Marakaibo, Right Girl Wrong Time, Silverado, What A Song Can Do, Life With You, Houdini, Don’t Think Twice, If You Believe, In Walked You, I Got Music, To Know Me, The Card You Gamble, I Showed You The Door, Everyone Needs A Hero and Tiger Hips.
06/02/24 This week another new dance from the Crystal Boot Awards GOING ALL THE WAY (Gary O’Reilly & Maggie Gallagher). A bit fast and furious in places but with a catchy little tag. The majority liked it but it wasn’t for everyone.
A busy class once again so thanks who to all who came out dancing.
We also danced: Walk Back To Me (RIP Toby Keith), Wishful Thinking, Martha Divine, Amazing Faith, Evergreen, Give Me Your Tempo, Houdini, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Memory Lane, Life With You, I Got Music, In Walked You, I Showed You The Door, 5 Leaf Clover, Favourite Kind Of High, Ghosted, The Card You Gamble, Versions Of You, To Know Me, My Broken Heart, To Be Blunt and Wreckage.
30/01/24 No class last week due to illness. Two new dances this week, both were 32 counts and 2 walls with a couple of restarts.
LIFE WITH YOU (Jamie Barnfield & Karl-Harry Winson) A slower nightclub two-step for a change. Nothing too hard step wise but the timing took a little bit of getting used to on the first dance through. Think this will do alright though as it seemed to get a pretty good response.
The other new dance was THE CARD YOU GAMBLE (Gary O’Reilly). This has a more solid beat all the way through and filled the floor. It’s already been taught elsewhere locally.
The Card You Gamble step sheet
We also danced: Pretend, Just A Memory, Little Heartbreak, Bittersweet Memory, 2 Lane Highway, When You’re Drunk, Telling On My Heart, Without The Memories, Ghosted, Everyone Needs A Hero, Diamonds In A Whiskey Glass, I Showed You The Door, Trustfall, Thunder In My Heart, Marakaibo, Silverado, Houdini, Drinkaby, 2 Hearts On A Highway and To Know Me.
16/01/24 Sometimes when looking for new dances to teach, I know its likely that while some in the class will like it, others probably won’t and then there are occasions when I think a new dance will be just perfect for my class. This was one of those weeks when I taught I SHOWED YOU THE DOOR (Ria Vos) and it was was very well received.
I Showed You The Door step sheet
I also recapped week 2 of Dreaming (Maggie Gallagher), Week 3 of In Walked You (Maggie Gallagher) and week 4 of Houdini (Neville Fitzgerald & Julie Harris).
We also danced: Cold Heart, Train Wreck, 2 Lane Highway, 45 Degrees, What’s The Point, I Got Music, My Broken Heart, Dim The Lights, Tiger Hips, To Know Me, Til You Can’t/Take It, Wreckage, Ghosted, To Be Blunt, 2 Hearts On A Highway, Thunder In My Heart, Versions Of You and Don’t Think Twice.