Shim Sham
Encyclopedia
The Shim Sham Shimmy, Shim Sham or just Sham originally is a particular tap dance
routine. It is credited to Leonard Reed
, who originally called it Goofus, or to Willie Bryant
. For swing
dancers, today it is kind of line dance
that recalls the roots of swing.
- there are several variations. When a group of people do the Shim Sham (especially a group of people from different cities), their steps will be largely similar with some variation and even some improvisation. One particular routine is quite common, and can be learned by intermediate dancers in a social setting. There are at least alternative choreographies—one developed by Frankie Manning
, another by Al Minns
and Leon James (also called the "Savoy Shim Sham"), and a third by Dean Collins
.
The Shim Sham routine created by Leonard Reed
and Willie Bryant
in 1927 uses four popular steps of the period: the Shim Sham, the Pushbeat and Crossover, the Tackie Annie or Tack Annie, and the Half Break. Originally called “Goofus” and done as a comedic farm dance to the song “Turkey in the Straw,” the dance was performed by Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant around the South while they were touring with the Whitman Sisters Troupe. The dance was then taken to the Shim Sham Club in New York, where the farm theme was dropped and chorus girls were added to the dance. The chorus girls further varied the dance by shaking their shoulders while doing the first step, and soon the dance became known as the Shim Sham Shimmy.
THE LEONARD REED SHIM SHAMS:
Today in the Lindy Hop scene, once the Shim Sham choreography is over, dancers typically grab a partner and break into lindy hop
for the remainder of the song. During this portion of the song, the band or a DJ may call out "Freeze!" or "Slow!" instructing the dancers to either stop where they are or dance slowly, then call out "Dance!" to tell everyone to resumes normal dancing. The Frankie Manning version adds a Boogie Back/Boogie Forward phrase and Boogie Back/Shorty George phrase to the end of the basic choreography, then repeats the basic choreography before the Lindy break—but in repeating adds a pause or break at the end of each 8-beat phrase/dance move. Only after the repeats are ended do the dancers break into free Lindy Hop with swing-outs.
The Shim Sham goes best with swing songs whose melody lines start on beat eight, as does the choreography. An obvious choice is The Shim Sham Song (Bill Elliot Swing Orchestra), which was written specifically for this dance and has musical effects (e.g., breaks
) in all the right places. However, today the Shim Sham—particularly the Frankie Manning version—is danced more often to "'Tain't What You Do (It's The Way That Cha Do It)" by Jimmie Lunceford
and His Orchestra, or "Tuxedo Junction" by Erskine Hawkins. In fact, it is typical now at a Lindy dance party for dancers to start up a Shim Sham whenever "'Tain't What You Do" is played. There is also a recording "Stompin' at the Savoy" with the George Gee band where Manning himself calls out the moves.
Tap dance
Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sound of one's tap shoes hitting the floor as a percussive instrument. As such, it is also commonly considered to be a form of music. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses more on the...
routine. It is credited to Leonard Reed
Leonard Reed
Leonard Reed was an American tap dancer, co-creator with his partner, Willie Bryant, of the famous Shim Sham Shimmy dance routine.-Early life and career:...
, who originally called it Goofus, or to Willie Bryant
Willie Bryant
Willie Bryant was an American jazz bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey.Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Bryant grew up in Chicago and took trumpet lessons to little success. His first job in entertainment was dancing in the Whitman Sisters Show in 1926...
. For swing
Swing (dance)
"Swing dance" is a group of dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s-1950s, although the earliest of these dances predate swing jazz music. The best known of these dances is the Lindy Hop, a popular partner dance that originated in Harlem and is still danced today...
dancers, today it is kind of line dance
Line dance
A line dance is a choreographed dance with a repeated sequence of steps in which a group of people dance in one or more lines or rows without regard for the gender of the individuals, all facing the same direction, and executing the steps at the same time. Line dancers are not in physical contact...
that recalls the roots of swing.
History
In the late 1920s and the 1930s, at the end of many performances, all of the musicians, singers, and dancers would get together on stage and do one last routine: the Shim Sham Shimmy. Tap dancers would perform technical variations, while singers and musicians would shuffle along as they were able.Variations
As a result of this conglomerate background, there is not one universal "shim sham" choreographyChoreography
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
- there are several variations. When a group of people do the Shim Sham (especially a group of people from different cities), their steps will be largely similar with some variation and even some improvisation. One particular routine is quite common, and can be learned by intermediate dancers in a social setting. There are at least alternative choreographies—one developed by Frankie Manning
Frankie Manning
Frankie Manning was an American dancer, instructor and choreographer. Manning is considered one of the founding fathers of the Lindy Hop.-Early years:...
, another by Al Minns
Al Minns
Al Minns , was a prominent American Lindy Hop and jazz dancer. Most famous for his film and stage performances in the 1930s and 1940s with the Harlem-based Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, Minns worked throughout his life to promote the dances that he and his cohorts helped to pioneer at New York's Savoy...
and Leon James (also called the "Savoy Shim Sham"), and a third by Dean Collins
Dean Collins
Dean Collins was an American dancer, instructor, choreographer, and innovator of swing. He is often credited with bringing swing dance, or Lindy Hop, from New York to Southern California...
.
The Shim Sham routine created by Leonard Reed
Leonard Reed
Leonard Reed was an American tap dancer, co-creator with his partner, Willie Bryant, of the famous Shim Sham Shimmy dance routine.-Early life and career:...
and Willie Bryant
Willie Bryant
Willie Bryant was an American jazz bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey.Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Bryant grew up in Chicago and took trumpet lessons to little success. His first job in entertainment was dancing in the Whitman Sisters Show in 1926...
in 1927 uses four popular steps of the period: the Shim Sham, the Pushbeat and Crossover, the Tackie Annie or Tack Annie, and the Half Break. Originally called “Goofus” and done as a comedic farm dance to the song “Turkey in the Straw,” the dance was performed by Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant around the South while they were touring with the Whitman Sisters Troupe. The dance was then taken to the Shim Sham Club in New York, where the farm theme was dropped and chorus girls were added to the dance. The chorus girls further varied the dance by shaking their shoulders while doing the first step, and soon the dance became known as the Shim Sham Shimmy.
THE LEONARD REED SHIM SHAMS:
- The original Shim Sham from 1927 is a 32 bar chorus composed of 4 steps and a break
- The Freeze Chorus, circa 1930’s. This dance is the same as the Shim Sham but without the breaks
- The Joe Louis Shuffle Shim Sham, 1948. This is a tap-swing dance 32 bar chorus number that Leonard Reed performed with the World Heavyweight Boxing champ Joe Louis
- The Shim Sham II, 1994. This dance is a 32 bar chorus dance based on the original Shim Sham
- The Revenge of the Shim Sham, 2002. This 32 bar chorus dance is Leonard Reed’s final Shim Sham, which builds elegantly upon his original four
The dance
The Shim Sham is 10 phrases of choreography (each phrase lasting four 8-counts), so it does not usually take up an entire song. After the Shim Sham was over, the dancers then would exit either stage left or right, depending on what was agreed upon for that show.Today in the Lindy Hop scene, once the Shim Sham choreography is over, dancers typically grab a partner and break into lindy hop
Lindy Hop
The Lindy Hop is an American social dance, from the swing dance family. It evolved in Harlem, New York City in the 1920s and '30s and originally evolved with the jazz music of that time. Lindy was a fusion of many dances that preceded it or were popular during its development but is mainly based...
for the remainder of the song. During this portion of the song, the band or a DJ may call out "Freeze!" or "Slow!" instructing the dancers to either stop where they are or dance slowly, then call out "Dance!" to tell everyone to resumes normal dancing. The Frankie Manning version adds a Boogie Back/Boogie Forward phrase and Boogie Back/Shorty George phrase to the end of the basic choreography, then repeats the basic choreography before the Lindy break—but in repeating adds a pause or break at the end of each 8-beat phrase/dance move. Only after the repeats are ended do the dancers break into free Lindy Hop with swing-outs.
The Shim Sham goes best with swing songs whose melody lines start on beat eight, as does the choreography. An obvious choice is The Shim Sham Song (Bill Elliot Swing Orchestra), which was written specifically for this dance and has musical effects (e.g., breaks
Break (music)
In popular music, a break is an instrumental or percussion section or interlude during a song derived from or related to stop-time – being a "break" from the main parts of the song or piece....
) in all the right places. However, today the Shim Sham—particularly the Frankie Manning version—is danced more often to "'Tain't What You Do (It's The Way That Cha Do It)" by Jimmie Lunceford
Jimmie Lunceford
James Melvin "Jimmie" Lunceford was an American jazz alto saxophonist and bandleader in the swing era.-Biography:...
and His Orchestra, or "Tuxedo Junction" by Erskine Hawkins. In fact, it is typical now at a Lindy dance party for dancers to start up a Shim Sham whenever "'Tain't What You Do" is played. There is also a recording "Stompin' at the Savoy" with the George Gee band where Manning himself calls out the moves.
Step 1: The shim sham
| Bar | Time | Steps | Left/Right |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8e1 | stomp brush step | RRR |
| 2e3 | stomp brush step | LLL | |
| 2 | 4e1e | stomp brush ball change | RRRL |
| 2e3 | stomp brush step | RRR | |
| 3+4 | repeat with sides reversed | ||
| 5+6 | repeat bar 1-2, ending with: | ||
| 6 | 2e3 | stomp brush touch | RRR |
The break
| Bar | Time | Steps | Left/Right |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 8 1 | stamp toe | RL |
| 2 3e | step hop step | LLR | |
| 8 | (4)e1 | hop step | RL |
| 2 3 | step step | RL |
Step 2: Push and cross
| Bar | Time | Steps | Left/Right |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 8123 | stamp step stamp step | RLRL |
| 10 | 4 1e | step heel step (crossing in front of right foot) | RRL |
| (2)e3 | heel step | LR | |
| 11+12 | repeat with sides reversed | ||
| 13+14 | repeat bars 9+10 | ||
| 15 | 4 1e | step heel step (crossing) | LLR |
| (2)e3 | heel step | RL | |
| 16 | repeat bar 15 with sides reversed |
Step 3: Tacky Annies/Tack Annies
| Bar | Time | Steps | Left/Right |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | e4e1 | stamp stamp brush touch (crossing behind) | RLRR |
| 2e3 | stamp brush touch (crossing behind) | RLL | |
| 18 | 4e1 | stamp brush touch (crossing behind) | LRR |
| 2e3 | stamp brush touch (crossing behind) | RLL | |
| 19-22 | repeat twice, ending with: | ||
| 22 | 2e3 | stamp brush step | RLL |
| 23+24 | Break as before |
Step 4: Half breaks
| Bar | Time | Steps | Left/Right |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 8 1 | stamp step | RL |
| e2e3 | shuffle ball change | RRRL | |
| 26 | repeat | ||
| 27+28 | break as before | ||
| 29-32 | repeat 25-28, ending the break with: | ||
| 32 | (4)e1 | hop step | RL |
| 2 3 | jump out, jump in | BB |