part 19
Many songs and new local artist appeared at our club we debuted and hosted the song Fever with Jeff More. I taught the dance that night and did it to his live performance. That dance and song are still done in the clubs today.
Also guest singer of Buff Little Girls, Pete Andrews came to sing his hit song and we debut line dance to his song, which is also still being done in the clubs today. Pure Country was the beginning of many dances and music that we played there that became long lasting hits. Another example was a song called Swamp Thing, anyone who line dances today will know of this song and do a dance to it. I taught the dance by Max Perry and played a song Old Weakness a Country Cha song but did not have the song Swamp Thing which I found out was Techno music by a band called Grid from Germany. So I asked my brother Charles in England who is a music fanatic to get it for me which he did. When it arrived in my mail box I was so excited and could not wait to do the dance that night at the club to this song. But when I got to the club they refused to play it because they said it was not Country and back in those days the Country bars would only play Country music.
Though the definition was confusing at times and I think was more about what the DJs liked (approved of or disapproved of) anyway I was disappointed. I went to another very well know C/W club not naming names the next night and they refused to play it. I loved the music so the next week I was teaching at Pure Country Swamp Thing and I gave to the DJ that night told him it was Hillbilly Swamp music and he played it they loved it and of course the rest is history. Which brings me to my next chapter a need for change and diversity in the music for line dancers I was about to embark on a new and challenging goal here in the South Florida line dance scene.
In those days we had many C/W clubs and bars lots of competition to fill those venues and be profitable. There were many live bands and musicians and aspiring young C//W singers. We danced to only country music the exception being the Electric Slide. Country music was popular in the States at that time so we constantly had places opening in South Florida. Unfortunately many of them also closed and there was a battle for business which actually gave my career a boost as the promotions of clubs through videos, radio advertising with Kiss Country and live music events put my name out there constantly.
I worked in many of the clubs and always filled the dance floor but not always the bar which is where they made their profits. It was at this time, I decided to start giving line dance classes outside of the bars and clubs realizing many dancers wanted to learn new dances and couples wanted to learn how to Two Step
Then they could go to bars and dance with what they were learning in the classes. I also wanted to teach professionally and be one of the few people to make a living doing this .Everyone said no one could make a living just teaching CW dance but I was about to prove them wrong.
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