Although dancers no longer touched when dancing
the Twist, it was still usual to dance with a
partner while dancing it socially; and the basic
twisting of the hips technique came straight out
of the Lindy Hop. Chubby Checker released the song
"The Twist" in 1959 and its world debut on
Dick Clark's American Bandstand in August 1960,
It set the world a twisten'.
The twist is so easy to do.... Just pretend to
drop a cigarette and twist it to and fro as if
putting it out. At the same time, place an
imaginary bath towel behind your back and pull
it from side to side as though drying your
'butt'. Presto!! You're doing the twist!
It was because the Twist was so simple, that
it became a worldwide dance craze - even across
generation gaps. It caused people to dance alone
with no partner contact and a whole generation
effectively either forgot or never learned how to
Jive.
