Novelty and fad dances are dances which are typically characterized by a short burst of popularity. Some of them, like the Twist, Y.M.C.A. and the Hokey Pokey, have shown much longer-lasting popularity. They are also called dance fads or dance crazes.
Fad dances As the pop music market exploded in the late 1950s, dance fads were commercialized and exploited. From the 1950s to the 1970s, new dance fads appeared almost every week. Many were popularized (or commercialized) versions of new styles or steps created by African-American dancers who frequented the clubs and discothèques in major U.S. cities like New York, Philadelphia and Detroit. Among these were the Madison, "The Swim", the "Mashed Potato", "The Twist", "The Frug" (pronounced ), "The Watusi", "The Shake" and "The Hitch hike". Many 1950s and 1960s dance crazes had animal names, including "The Chicken" (not to be confused with the Chicken Dance), "The Pony" and "The Dog".
In 1965, Latin group Cannibal and the Headhunters had a hit with the 1962 Chris Kenner song "Land of a Thousand Dances" which included the names of such dances. One list of Fad Dances compiled in 1971 named over ninety dances.Encyclopedia of Social Dance. Albert and Josephine Butler. 1971 & 1975. Albert Butler Ballroom Dance Service. New York, NY. Table of Contents in 1971 edition. Standardized versions of dance moves were published in dance and teen magazines, often choreographed to popular songs. Songs such as "The Loco-Motion" were specifically written with the intention of creating a new dance and many more pop hits, such as "Mashed Potato Time" by Dee Dee Sharp, were written to cash in recent successful novelties.
In the early 1970s, disco spawned a succession of dance fads including the Bump, the Hustle, and the Y.M.C.A. This continued in the 1980s with the popular song "Walk like an Egyptian", in the 1990s with the "Macarena", in the 2000s with "The Ketchup Song" and in the 2010s with "Gangnam Style". Contemporary sources for dance crazes include music videos and movies.
There are fad dances which are meant to be danced individually as solo, others are partner dances, and yet others are danced in groups. Some of them were of freestyle type, i.e., there were no particular step patterns and they were distinguished by the style of the dance movement (Twist, Shake, Swim, Pony, Hitch hike). Only some have remained to the modern day-era, sometimes only as the name of a step (Suzie Q, Shimmy) or of a style (Mashed Potato) in a recognized dance. Fad dances are in fashion at the time of their popularity. They come to be associated with a specific time period, and can evoke particular forms of nostalgia when revived.
Notable novelty and fad dances
Pre-1950s Year Dance1909The Grizzly Bear1926Charleston1930sDuckwalk1933Carioca1936Suzie Q1937The Lambeth Walk1940Thunder Clap1941Congamid-1940sHokey Pokey
1950s Year Dance1950sThe Chicken1952Bunny Hop1957Sock Hop1958Madison1958The Stroll1959Hully Gully
1960s Year Dance1960Shimmy1960Twist1961The Chicken Walk1961The Pony1962The Loco-Motion1962Martian Hop1962Mashed Potato1962The Monster Mash1962The Swim1962Watusi1962Popeye Dance1963Hitch Hike1963Monkey1963-1965Letkajenkka (aka Letkajenka, Letkiss, Letka-Enka)1964The Frug1964Jerk1965The Freddie1965The Mouse1965Limbo1966Batusi1966The Shake
1970s Year Dance1970sSprinkler1971Penguin1972Hustle1973Time Warp1975Bump1975Tragedymid-1970sGrinding1976Car Wash1976Electric Slide1976Robot1977The Running Man1978Y.M.C.A.
1980s Year Dance1980sMoonwalk1980sChicken Dance1980Cotton-Eyed Joe1981Harlem Shake1981Agadoo (aka Agadou)1981Superman (aka Gioca Jouer)1982The Safety1983Thriller1986The Hunch1986Wig Wam Bam1987Cabbage Patch1988Da Butt1989Lambada
1990s Years Dance1990sCarlton dance (Alfonso Riberio)1990Hammertime (MC Hammer)1990The Humpty Dance (Digital Underground)1990Vogue (Madonna)1991The Stonk (Hale & Pace)1991The Urkel (Jaleel White)1992Achy Breaky (Line dance)1994Saturday Night1996Tic, Tic Tac1996Macarena (Los Del Rio)1998La Bomba (not to be confused with Bomba)1998The Roger Rabbit
2000s Year Dance2000Cha Cha Slide2002Algorithm March2002The Ketchup Song (Las Ketchup)2003Dutty Wine2005Caramelldansen2006Chicken Noodle Soup (Webstar)2006Daggering2006Laffy Taffy2006Lean wit It, Rock wit It (aka Snap dance)2006Shoulder Lean2007Crank That (Soulja Boy)2007Cupid Shuffle2008Single Ladies (Beyoncé)2009Jerkin' (brought to mainstream by New Boyz and Audio Push)2009Stanky Legg2009Hoedown Throwdown (Miley Cyrus)
2010s
Year Dance2010Dougie2011The Creep (The Lonely Island)2011Wobble (VIC)2012Gangnam Style (PSY)2012The Smurf2013Twerking2013Harlem shake2015Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)2015Hit Dem Folks2016Dab2015Hit the Quan2016Mannequin Challenge2017Shoot2017The Floss2018Kiki2018Skibidi (Little Big)2019Lottery/Renegade Dance (TikTok)
2020s Year Dance2021Griddy2023Hot to Go! (Chappell Roan)
See also Cover dance Outline of dance for a list of general dance topics. Summer hit List of specific dances for a general, noncategorized index of dances
References
External links Streetswing.com's Dance History Archives hosts a large information base about more than thousand dances. Dance Crazes of the 50s & 60s - by Dr. Frank Hoffmann sixtiescity - 60s Dance and Dance Crazes Go-Go Dancing - Fad and Novelty Dances from the 1960s at Little Miss Go-Go!