- The Frug
The Frug (pronounced "froog") was a
dance craze from the 1960s that evolved from another dance of the era,The Chicken . The Chicken, which featured lateral body movements, was used primarily as a change of pace step while doing The Twist. As young dancers grew more tired they would do less work, moving only their hips while standing in place. They then started making up arm movements for the dance, which prompted the birth ofThe Swim , The Monkey, The Dog,The Watusi , and The Jerk. The Frug is sometimes referred to asThe Surf ,Big Bea andThe Thunderbird .A good example of a frug is found in the movie "
Sweet Charity ", which contains a number called "The Rich Man's Frug", a wildly energetic dance number comprising three "movements" ("The Aloof", "The Heavyweight" and "The Big Finish") that showcases directorBob Fosse 's distinctivechoreography style, particularly his creative use of unusual poses, gestures, and arm movements.In a song of the same name, "The Frug" is referenced by the band
Rilo Kiley . It appeared on both their debut album "The Initial Friend E.P. " and on the soundtrack to the movie "Desert Blue ".Singer
Beyoncé Knowles uses the dance craze as inspiration for the music video of her Dance track,Get Me Bodied from her 2006 albumB'Day . Similarly, this style was featured in the music video for Emma Bunton's track Maybe'The Frug is also mentioned prominently in Allan Sherman's song "Crazy Downtown," a parody of Petula Clark's Downtown.
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