I've had the honor and privilege of studying under the legendary swing dancer Frankie Manning, the octogenarian ambassador for Lindy Hop. I'm super-excited to announce that Frankie Manning's long awaited autobiography is finally hitting the shelves in April. Entitled Frankie Manning: Ambassador of Lindy Hop, the book chronicles the life and times of this…
Category: Dancing / Music
Tomo and me swingin at the Dance Marathon
Here's a quick little video clip of Tomo and me lindy hopping at the Dance Marathon on Friday done by Anna, another local lindy hopper. Yes, I know, I need to stop pointing. You can also see my friends Jerry and ShortyJul swing dancing at the end of the video on the Gothamist website. Thanks,…
A lucky lead at the Dance Marathon yesterday
Here’s a fun picture of me dancing with my friends Devona and ShortyJul at the Dance Marathon event held yesterday to today in Madison Square Park. The picture was taken by Jerry, who’s flickr gallery from the event is here. I couldn’t make the evening shift of swing dancers, but it looks like a fun…
Dance Marathon today and tomorrow in Madison Square Park
I did my little bit for the cause of dancing today, heading out in the freezing cold to dance for an hour with a hardy dozen lindy hoppers in Madison Square Park this afternoon. The cause was an effort to fight the ridiculous Cabaret Laws in New York that restrict public dancing to only a…
Breakin’ it down
I’m in my fourth week of breakdance classes at PMT Studios. It’s a lot of fun and very physically and mentally demanding, as you can imagine. The instructor Pavan Thimmaiah (that’s him on the left) has a gift for taking even the most daunting of dance moves and making them seem do-able for beginners like…
Cindy is in a music video!!! (By a band called “!!!”.)
My girl Cindy finally got around to blogging about her experiences dancing in a music video last weekend. It was for an up-and-coming indie band that we had not heard of, with the Prince-like name of "!!!" (which apparently is pronounced "chk! chk! chk!") Read about her trippy adventure in video making. IMO, if a…
Groovin’ and shakin’ to save the Net
Here’s Josh Silver of Free Press revving up the crowd at the Save the Internet Party tonight in Memphis at the Gibson Guitar Factory. Later they charge onto the dance floor for the filming of a new viral video on Net Neutrality.
Yehoodi VIDEO Talk Show now available!
I’m super-thrilled to announce that my buddy Spuds and I have just released the first video version of the Yehoodi Talk Show, the swing-related podcast we have been doing for a number of years together. In this episode we offer insightful commentary (mostly us laughing) alongside several choice swing dance-related videos. Yes, I know, I…
Cindy and Rik’s Second Life (video)
Here’s a silly holiday video I created in Second Life to go along with a greeting card Cindy and I have been sending around to our friends. It’s pretty much our entire life re-created virtually, including our various crafts, food obsession, dancing, and lots and lots of cats. You can download a higher res version…
Swingin Holiday Music that doesn’t suck
Around this time, the holiday music starts invading every public space, from elevators to restaurants to dance clubs. At swing dance clubs around the country, DJs are making innocent dancers have to endure countless "holiday mixes" of jazzy versions of "Here Comes Santa Claus," "Frosty the Snowman," and worst of all "Jingle Bells." Shudder. So…