the power of a good dance song

I've been thinking about dance songs recently... For one thing, I'm nearly done writing the Please, Please Me's very first dance number. To help get unstuck with that last verse, I've been doing some research. I asked many of you to send me your fav dance songs and have been listening on youtube.

Reaffirmed, I hate dance music!  Soo shallow & that terrible drum sound.

Songs about dancing, however, are a different story. Mostly, I've come back to old favs -- Bruce Springsteen's Dancing in the Dark & Billy Idol's Dancing with Myself... I'm even partial to Nouvelle Vague's remake.

Also, I feel this pull -- perhaps we can blame it on how normal & stereotype-affirming a lot of music being blasted on the radio & in stores is today -- to find something that speaks to the feminist ethic. The way a woman is able to have power by claiming her own pleasure, losing herself in music, moving in a  sexual way for the mere sake of having it, owning it, showing it, but not sharing it.

Have you ever danced alone in your bedroom to your favorite song, shouting at the top of your lungs?

       How do you feel after?

                   REBORN

WATCH BRUCE -- Dancing In The Dark (1984) by GMRedskins

Of course, men can derive power or a sense of self by giving themselves to the music too. Just watch Bruce swivel his hips and beg for salvation. 


But I keep picturing it as a  scene in a 1970's Dolly Parton movie, and wonder why I can't find it any films today. 

There's that one image I'm looking for that's just out of reach. The one I need to finish this song. 


A working class woman who toils to pay rent, for her kids, parents, boyfriend, or just to keep it together -- no fancy clothes, no fancy car. But once she steps on the dance floor, the beauty and power and sexuality she possesses is undeniable.

If you asked me what the Please, Please Me is trying to convey, what makes us unique... it's this.

     We ain't rich, we ain't always beautiful, and we may not be the best at everything -- but when we do it, we own it. And rock 'n roll can lead the way.

ps-- this is why I love the Arcade Fire. they stand up for the not rich 'n beautiful.


pps-- that's totally Courtney Cox in the crowd scene. Love you Bruce!


WATCH BILLY IDOL -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG1NrQYXjLU