The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 71
only one of you turns at a time, . . . and you must meet your partner with the finish of each turn---your feet are quiet but not nailed to the floor. Again, if the feet are quiet, the girl's right foot is the main pivot point of this whole pretzel.
Now would be a good time to point out some pretzel properties: the first turn is always out (otherwise you would end up with a cradle); then any given pretzel is always two turns under the one hand, then the partners are back-to-back, then it's two more turns under the other hand; also, the person who turns first . . . always finishes, and the partner does the second and third turns. So, in the first pretzel, the right-girl-out pretzel, it's "girl, guy, guy, girl"; in the second pretzel, the left-guy-out-pretzel, it's "guy, girl, girl, guy." And another thing you might notice is this: any given pretzel is either "right, right, left, left," or it's got to be "left, left, right, right." And remember: in any given pretzel, follow through by taking each hand down completely after every turn---the four turns go "up, down, up, down, up, down, up, down."
. . . There are two more pretzels to learn yet, but they would be too much right now as they are not done from scratch in the Northern Hemisphere, and you've got plenty to keep you entertained right now with one or two. Most dance programs only teach one pretzel, and they don't teach it very well---it certainly helps to know at least these two to start seeing the recurring properties.
. . . Now let's get back to something more relaxed and less complicated. Let's go back to the cradle family and have the guy learn to get himself cradled. The right-guy-cradle is easy: just turn yourself in under your own right hand without letting go with your left---you'll end up cradled with her on your left side. After going backwards in your clockwise circle for several seconds as you savor it, get out of this one maybe by letting go with that right hand in front.
. . . Or, from that right-guy-cradle, you could go out where you came in from, and use the momentum to put yourself in under your left hand for a left-guy-cradle on the
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other side. In order to get out, let go with your left hand in front.
Now you know all four of the possible cradles, two for the guy and two for the girl; and cradles are always inside moves. And it is interesting to note: two of the four cradles are done easily from scratch, but the other two usually need to come from some other move---why?---because of the spin of the earth in this hemisphere, of course.
. . . Now, there is a grey area on my Periodic Chart of Western Swing Moves. In the cradle family, it seems there should be a fifth move---a sort of missing element---with properties of being an inside turn, and maybe you would have to bend over to get out of it, as I have found a similar move in the pretzel family. (Oh, well, we'll just have to leave this space blank for now---no one can know everything at once, I guess, even me.)
. . . Let's move on and introduce you to some cross-handed dancing, or horseshoe handling. First, we'll learn to get both our hands switched so that you can get her into the horseshoe position, where your hands are right-to-right and left-to-left and you're both facing the same direction.
With or without the first turn we ever showed you, the left-girl-in, simply transfer her right hand from your left to your right, for an easy hand-switch, and turn her a half-turn counter-clockwise to your right side, and pick up her left hand with your left---she's now in the horseshoe position.
For now, treat this horseshoe position like a cradle and just go around with it for a bit until you feel like getting back into the swing moves you're familiar with. Switch the hands back to normal by just transferring her right hand to your left---no one will ever see the switch back. Easy hand switches are funny that way: most people never see the initial hand switch, so they have no idea how you got into the horseshoe position, and then they don't see the easy switch back.
. . . There's lots to be done from that side-by-side horseshoe position. Try the roper's basic overhead throw with
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 73
your right hand going left: keeping your left hand low, raise your right hand and spin her slowly to the left counter-clockwise until you've got her kind of tied up in her own arms around her shoulders---it'll be one-n-one-half turns from the foundation horseshoe position. Savor it like a cradle for a few seconds. . . . Of course, you can get out of this one by raising your right hand again and spinning her back slowly clockwise with a sort of houlihan action until she's unwound back to the foundation horseshoe position---she should end up on your left side, and this is natural. It's easy enough to do an easy hand-switch by turning her clockwise with her left hand transferring back to your right. . . . Or: after a song or two, you'll be ready to do a left-hand overhead throw: from the horseshoe position with her on your left side, raise your left hand instead and spin her slowly clockwise to the right one-n-one-half turns until you can't turn her anymore---you'll wind up right shoulder to right shoulder. It would be one-n-one-half turns back under the left hand from the left overhead throw to your foundation horseshoe position . . . and one-n-one-half more under your right hand for the first overhead throw again; in other words, it is three full turns from one overhead throw to the other. It is important with these overhead throws to really meet your partner: if you were to walk three laps around her, that would accomplish the same thing as making her turn one-thousand-n-eighty degrees.
. . . Okay, now wouldn't be a bad time to learn our third pretzel, the right-guy-pretzel, which is actually just the reverse of the left-guy-pretzel. It starts out with the guy going out under his own right hand---see if you can figure the rest out. Again, this pretzel is a Southern Hemisphere phenomenon, so it isn't something to would do from scratch, from the foundation swing rhythm-step; it will be from other swing moves that you see the daylight out under your right-hand to get this pretzel started. Remember, once you have your pretzel properties ingrained in your body, about all you need to remember about a pretzel is its first turn out.
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You might understand by now there are four possible pretzels, and a pretzel is always an outside turn to begin with. In its purest sense, remember, a pretzel always goes either "left, left, right, right" or "right, right, left, left"; and it always goes either "girl, guy, guy, girl" or "guy, girl, girl, guy." In other words, any pretzel, in its purest sense, can never go "left, right, left, right," nor can it go "boy, girl, boy, girl"---a bit about the polarities of western swing, I guess.
the sleeping dance teacher, never considering how many pretzels there might be, will make it a big deal by not having something like a right-couple-turn as a first foundation:
"Okay, folks, now we are going to do The Pretzel! Don't be afraid!" ---That's not a good way to ride a colt, and it's not a good way to take your kid to the barber for his first hair-cut.
. . . The fourth and last pretzel on the agenda would be the left-girl-pretzel, which is just the right-girl-pretzel re-wound. Again, this one is not done from scratch, unless you want her first turn to be about a cruel five-hundred degrees, so you'll need to watch for opportunities to present themselves.
You might ask by now, "Why do we need so many pretzels? Wouldn't one guy-pretzel and one girl-pretzel be enough?" Well, the thing is, you do a pretzel when the music sounds like it wants one, and you might not be in a position to do one of the two you know; so, having the other two gives you twice as much opportunity to have a pretzel when you want one. Those poor folks who only know one pretzel
. . . don't have near the bag of tricks of us who know four times as much. And you don't have to memorize all this stuff, especially the pretzels. As long as you know the first outside turn of a pretzel, you'll remember to give it definition by going slow and meeting your partner and bringing the hands down after each turn.
Beware of those people who know only one pretzel: for more than fifty or sixty years now, there's been a dysfunctional dance lesson out there called cowboy jitterbug, and it's been teaching on abbreviated or inebriated pretzel-cradle
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 75
combination that is downright obnoxious and dangerous that's way too fast and furious. The mandatory memorization and conditioned reflex behind it is totally stupid, and the ones who don't have it down pat . . . routinely knock each other's glasses off, they knock each other's teeth out, they break arms, and then they more-often-than-not go flying off the handle into innocent bystanders. Occasionally I come across a partner with this in their repertoire, and it can be a fight to get them to slow down and follow something slow-n-smooth and different---it's as dangerous as getting on a horse that's been programmed to run full-gallop back to the barn at the slightest cue.
. . . Now, for my favorite swing move. During the pretzels, you may have noticed that people's arms get twisted behind their backs---we are going to take advantage of that.
Let's do a left-guy-lariat---the name stems from the left-guy-pretzel, which twists the guy's right arm, and the left-guy-out, where you don't actually use your left hand. From scratch, letting go with your left hand, veer left so that your right arm starts to twist behind your back, bend over going left until you duck under her arm, come up, and continue with a natural residual turn: with the momentum you've got, it will be natural now to turn her under your right hand to the inside---
Then, since we are here, bring your right hand down, but have her keep going for a second turn with her left arm twisted behind her back, where she'll bend over to duck under your arm---this is a right-girl-lariat, and the name stems from the right-girl-pretzel. Her bend-over is like a mirror image of your initial bend-over, and it's good to know you only bend over just enough to duck under the partner's arm-
--so you don't have to do a full turn bent-over. When you are dancing with a stranger, this right-girl-lariat is not something she'll follow with the snap of a finger, so it is not mandatory, and the music might not want it anyway. But, if a guy is a really good lead, he can get even a stranger who's never seen it before to do it---it is the ultimate in leading and
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following.
A lariat is one of our more athletic maneuvers, and the woman will have some say in how easy it can be. If you force a lariat on the wrong woman, you could end up with a noose instead of just an innocent lariat. Be careful: we don't want anyone getting any rope burns.
Time-out for a minute to let some things sink in. What we have in western swing is five families of moves: simple turns, cradles, pretzels, horseshoe handling, and some soon-to-come eggbeater ideas---all this as identified by yours truly after years of doing research with thousands of strangers till 2-in-the-morning.
Although we don't need to try to memorize every move, we should know where to find all the options; a good chemist, they tell me, doesn't have to memorize the Periodic Chart of the Elements---he just knows how to read it, he knows where to find the atomic weight of an element or whatever it is he's looking for.
keep your swing rhythm-step slow- . . . n-smooth
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 77
between turns of right-girl-pretzel
---compare with left-guy-pretzel
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between turns of left-guy-pretzel
---compare with right-girl-pretzel
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right-guy-cradle
left-guy-cradle
80 -- Heinsian WESTERN SWING
easy hand-switch to horseshoe position often from a simple left-girl-in
right-overhead throw to the left
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 81
left overhead throw to the right
first turn of right-guy-pretzel
82 -- Heinsian WESTERN SWING
first turn of left-girl-pretzel
left-guy-lariat, right-girl-lariat
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 83
Montana Two-step---II
Before we start incorporating our swing moves with the Montana two-step, it's a good idea to just review the step itself first: "quick, quick, slow, . . . quick, quick, slow, . . . ."
While you're warming up, going forward and backward counter-clockwise around the floor, a guy should make a not each time he steps on that slow right foot, as this will be the time to be thinking about any turns we're about to add.
Think about what songs you would do the Montana two-step to---I would recommend something like: "Since I Been Holdin' An Angel" by George Strait, "Followin' a Feelin'" by Moe Bandy, and "I Don't Dance With Strangers"
by Becky Hobbs.
Our first turn to do while two-stepping will be, not surprisingly, the first turn we did in basic swing, the left-girl-in---and it happens after the guy's slow right foot. to make this easy, everybody just stand on your slow right foot as if you've just hit the "pause" button on your VCR---she'll be on her slow left; then press "play" and turn her inside under you left hand as you resume the basic two-step with your left foot---she'll just slowly cross her quick right foot over her left, like a good reining horse that doesn't think about such things. As usual, even while two-stepping, it's nice if partners trade places with each other while turning: if the guy is going forward before the turn, chances are he'll be the one two-stepping backward after the turn; and vice versa---in fact, it's a good idea to have him starting backwards a couple of times while learning this turn.
. . . The next feasible turn to do while two-stepping is the left-guy-out, again after the slow right foot. Dwell on your slow right; as you resume the step, leading with your left foot and crossing over with your right, just two-step quietly out under your own left hand. As with horses again, this move is especially easy if the guy is going backward to begin with, his left hand lifting over his head and leading her around his right side on the scenic route and behind, and he
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can eventually greet her on his left side where he finds himself going forward---there's no deadline for completion of this turn, no reason for breaking into a triple-step.
. . . Now, if you're bored with what we know so far, there's no reason you can't put her into the left-girl-cradle after your slow right foot. She'll end up doing the basic two-step on you right side---she may be on the opposite foot as you, but that's fine for now. . . . Savor two-stepping beside each other for a ways, but you can get back to normal partner position just by stepping in front of her, after your slow right foot, of course.
. . . Or, further, from that left-girl-cradle, you could put her into the right-girl-cradle on your left side---I think you should know when to initiate this move, after your slow right foot. But you should not really bother with this move until you've mastered those first three, as this move is not done from scratch two-step, and it is trickier to get out of.
To get out of the right-girl-cradle while two-stepping, let go with your right hand and, after your slow right foot, unwind her a half-turn, and maybe keep going by turning her in under your left hand. Or you could opt for just unwinding back to that first familiar cradle.
That's plenty to think about for awhile. We will offer intermediate swing moves with the Montana two-step in the advanced segment.
Slow Dance---II
Don't neglect your slow-dancing, "slow, . . . slow, . . .
slow, . . . ."
Some classic slow-songs: "Not Tonight, I've Got a Heartache" by Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers, "Misery and Gin" by Merle Haggard, "12/12/84" and "When the Thought of You Catches Up With Me" by David Ball.
Don't forget you can slow dance to the first few seconds of a song you haven't figured out yet. Or whenever there's a lull in a song, toning things down can make the busy parts that much more special.
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 85
Fabulous One-step---II
Ah, the carbon atom of western swing again. Remember to take her real close, and be deliberate about your leading her---it reminds us of when a good Dad dances with his daughter's feet glued onto his. Discriminate between busy parts of the song, "quick, quick, quick, quick," . . . and quiet parts, "slow, . . . slow, . . . slow, . . . slow, . . . ." Work for the music.
Pick a classy one-step song: "Don't Mind Mind If I Do"
by George Strait, "Tumbleweed" and "Sweet Yesterday" by Sylvia, and "Dancin' 'Round and 'Round" by Olivia Newton-John.
There are no swing moves per-se to get carried away with right now while one-stepping. And, even though you are walking to the beat, it's not really a traveling mode like most of the other gaits. Don't be afraid to experiment.
Probably the most common mistake with the one-step is to not get close enough, like when walking around the heins-end of a new horse---sometimes you just make a stranger more nervous by staying away at hoof's length.
Waltz---II
Traveling counter-clockwise around the dance floor, review the waltz step: "big, little, little, big, little, little, big, little, little, big, little, little"---you can use your big left foot to step around each other as a clockwise-rolling couple as you take the counter-clockwise route. . . . If the waltz is not coming right and easy, don't forget your cheater's waltz, just taking big-slow steps only: "big, no-step, big, no-step, big, no-step, big, no-step"---it's a lazy man's waltz, but there are some quiet waltzes that actually want you to do this, and I do it fairly often myself.
Hey! I think I might feel more now why they call it three/quarter time: it's true that the steps are only divisible by three, but the measures seem to want to be counted by fours. Don't get bogged down in this: I'm just thinking out
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loud---still trying to learn, I guess.
Add these to your waltz list: "Houston Solution" by Ronnie Milsap, "Can I Have This Dance?" by Anne Murray,
"The Last Cowboy Song" by Ed Bruce, and "Last of the Silver Screen Cowboys" by Rex Allens Jr & Sr.
I personally don't feel there are many swing moves quiet enough you'd want to do with the waltz. In fact, the waltz even has a connotation beyond just being three/quarter time: it also means any slow dance, as Ed Bruce explains in his song, "when you're in love, Everything's a Waltz." . . .
But, if you insist, you might get away with those first two turns we ever learned, the left-girl-in and the left-guy-out---
it would be after your "right, little, little," so you can start a move with your big left foot, which is similar to two-stepping quick left foot. So: notice that the last little right is very much akin to the slow right in your two-steps. But, for God's sake, if these don't come easy, put them on the back burner and just waltz for awhile.
Polka---II
Whereas the fabulous one-step is the ballroom side of western swing, the polka may be the hee-haw side---it's okay to wear a plaid shirt here . . . and have cow-crap on your boots: ""one-two-three, one-two-three, qui-quick-slow, qui-quick-slow, triple-step, triple-step." Remember, as in the waltz, step around your partner with that outside left foot in an effort to spin clockwise as a couple . . . to travel with the heavy traffic counter-clockwise around the whole floor---and make sure you don't confuse traveling farther and faster with sooner and quicker, as the beat stays the same. . . .
Now, if the polka-step is still not working for you, you're probably going too fast or thinking too much, and you should stick with the cheater's polka, where you slowly shift your weight like a lazy man again: "left, . . . right, . . . left, . . .
right, . . . "---it's the exact same easy thing as slow-dancing to a fast song.
Put on some polkas: "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Ciga-
The Art & Science of Western Swing--II -- 87
rette" by Asleep At the Wheel, "I'm In Love All Over" by Reba McEntire, "Watcha Gonna Do With a Cowboy?" by Garth Brooks and Chris LeDeau, and "Ghost Riders In the Sky" by Johnny Cash.
Now, opposite of my opinion concerning the waltz, the polka itself can get a little redundant, so it's all right to throw in some swing moves, for maybe half of the song, especially since the polka-step is pretty much just a slightly faster swing rhythm-step. All you need to initiate the swing mode in a polka is a move like the left-girl-in or left-guy-out, the left-girl-cradle or the left-guy-pretzel, or that easy hand switch to the horseshoe position---note that these are all left-handed, Northern Hemispheric moves; and certainly you can get back into regular polka mode with a simple left-girl-in if not something else. When you swing to a polka song, the common mistake still is to go too fast or be too quick and jerky: use economy of motion and go as slow-n-smooth as you possibly can---this is how you keep the beat. ---I would be here today if I weren't so slow myself.
Texas Two-step---II
The man leading with his left foot, review the Texas two-step: "quick, quick, slow, . . . slow, . . . quick, quick, slow, . . . slow, . . . ." Texas two-step songs are somehow bigger and better than Montana two-step songs, so keep the dance step itself special---the sleeping man seems to think the Texas two-step is a panacea for all the songs he doesn't know what else to do , and this may be considered by some to be an insult to our bigger-n-better two-step, the Texas two-step. Two-step around the floor counter-clockwise, going forward and backward, and I've said this before: as in the Montana two-step, prepare for the coming turns by making a note each time you land on your slow right foot., as any swing moves we do with the Texas two-step come easiest after the slow right foot.
Here are some classic Texas two-steps: "Houston" and
"Is There Life After Denver?" by Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin
88 -- Heinsian WESTERN SWING
Brothers, and "Grazin' In Greener Pastures" and "My Shoes Keep Walking Back To You" by Ray Price.
Yes, the Texas two-step is not the same step as the Montana two-step, but the swing moves I prescribe with either two-step are pretty much the same natural moves: the left-girl-in, the left-guy-out, the left-girl-cradle, and maybe the right-girl-cradle---each of these basic swing moves happens easiest, remember, after your slow right foot. One thing about the two two-steps, that slow right foot comes around more often in the Texas two-step, giving you more opportunities to swing to its livelier music. If this doesn't come easy, you've probably skipped a step---oh,