Friday, December 03, 2004

Bassdance

Today I'd like to talk about a phenomenon that took place around 1988-89. This phenomenon was forever known to the world as Bassdancing or Bassercising. I was in junior high and it all started with Michael Jackson. I know, I know, you say something like that it usually ends up with the words spiked coke, bedroom and "settle out of court". This time I'm talking about his dancing. Being a strapping young lad I took it upon myself to pretend to dance like him. I remember even as a wee tike I would pretend to dance in front of the TV. We've all done that, haven't we?  Well, once junior high came around it was time for school dances. I thought to myself that this was my moment to shine. Bassdancing is a mixture of moon walking, crotch grabs, John Travolta pointing and lots of twirls. I try to imagine what it must've looked like and all I can do is laugh. It must've been ridiculous. But, it was fun. I remember the first dance I did it at. There I was in a corner doing a couple of twirls. All the other kids were just bobbing their heads and acting cool. Then someone noticed me and all of a sudden I had a group of people around me. They all got in a circle and watched me dance. Then they started to clap their hands and a familiar phrase was created," Go Bass Go! Go Bass Go!" A legend was born. It started to grow. Every school dance I would show up at and people would start chanting "Go Bass Go". It even got bigger. It turned out I didn't need music to do it as long as I could hear the chant "Go Bass Go" so I started doing it in classrooms. Teachers would walk out of the classroom to get something, the kids would chant it and I would get up on top of the table and do familiar twirls and grabs and points. Sometimes I wonder what I was thinking, but it was cool to me. I did it all throughout junior high and then when high school came around I just couldn't see a freshman getting the crowd into it so I stopped. Also, my friends always said they were all laughing at me. This could be true, but it was fun while it lasted. Fast forward to my senior year of high school. It was time to unveil my guitar skills at the local talent show. As I'm up on stage a familiar chant can be heard in the audience "Go Bass Go, Go Bass Go." They still remembered...

 

Thought of the Day

"They're all going to laugh at you. They're all going to laugh at you."

-- Adam Sandler


Comments:
As a middle school teacher, I see kids everyday that remind me of myself and of my friends. I know kids that are sitting in my classroom this year that are nearly identical to you, Peety, Josh, etc.... So it is from this perspective that I can state with all degree of certitude, that your dancing was not somthing that people were cheering to see. Their applause was mearly an act of juvinile put downs, truly weak displays of moral fortitude. / As the years progressed we all blossomed to some degree and yes, you did rock the house playing Sweet Home Alabama - Perhaps ever changing the world of guitar.
Mr. Turkentine
 
We may have been laughing at you, but none of us were doing anything outstandingly cool. When/if you dance now, do you still dance like that? Sometimes if me and wife are on the patio having a smoke, I'll do a similar dance just to get a rise out of her.
Peety
"You didn't dance did you."--Jerry to Elaine in "Seinfeld"
 
The girls always respect a man that moves.

Ron

Stephanie: Nice move, did you make that up?

Tony: Yeah..well I saw it on TV first, then I made it up.

Saturday Night Fever
 
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