Monday February 8, 1999

From: Elizabeth Weaver Engel ewengel@apsanet.org

Yet another roaring success in Tom and Debra's Parade o' Bands! Air Mail Special, comprised of several members of Rockin' Bonz and a few other guys, combines all of the Bonz musical skill and ability to play to and with the crowd with traditional swing (as opposed to rockabilly) tunes. IOW, they were fabulous, playing Goodman, Ellington, some Ruth Brown tunes - it was another terrific evening of dancing at Chevy Chase.

In addition, during the band break, we celebrated Cameron's birthday, with a really stupid line dance performed by the Cameron Sellers Dancers (not to be confused with the Solid Gold Dancers or the Fly Girls), a traditional birthday lineup dance, including several traditional Cameron pratfalls, and a really great, really silly cake crafted by Morra and Berghers, Lindy Bakers.

In the Photo (l. to r.) Bruce Katsu (guitar), Lance LeBeau (drums), Seth Kibel (clarinet, sax), Ben Pape (bass), Charlie Allen (vibraphone). If you RUSH, you can book Air Mail Special by calling Bruce Katsu at:(301)-929-2490

We were privileged to attend Cameron Sellers' thirtieth birthday party at Chevy Chase Ballroom. Cameron has been writing for Lindy Week in Review practically since we started it and has come a long way in the Lindy world. These days, Cameron is so polished that nobody gets the jokes about him falling on his butt. For the occasion, we prepared another one of our zany cakes. This one had camouflage icing and featured a "Ken" doll that my partner spent the day dressing up like a paratrooper. (complete with a briefcase and saddle shoes...)

For those of you who haven't heard, Captain Cameron Sellers is a paratrooper with a Civil Affairs unit of the Army Reserves when he is not Lindy Hopping.

The band was Air Mail Special, a great new group that features guitar, drums, vibraphone, bass and clarinet. They were just spectacular and we hope to follow them wherever they play.

From: Sue Fedor deevoo@mci2000.com

It's not everyday that Tom Koerner passes off a pesky beginner on one of his more advanced students... ok, it is everyday. But it's not everyday that that pesky person is...so...pesky. But it was one day, about two years ago at Dancers, when Cameron Sellers first entered our lives. Steve and I were to show him and his partner how to get in and out of tandem Charleston. We knew about 3-4 ways. We showed him two. He thought we were gods. He now knows 45 ways.

So how do you celebrate the first year of a man's third decade?

With a line dance, of course! So much thanks to Steve Bailey, Jim and Elizabeth Engel, Ellen Werther, and, of course, the queen of all jazz steps, Lizzie Hess, for helping me put the "Cameron" together. Steve played the part of Busby Berkley during practice. Believe it or not, this masterpeice took an hour and 1/2 to create--from start to finish, with 3 practice run-throughs.

Thanks to all you who pitched in and a special thanks to Bernstein for remembering #12 on Disk 6... something best left to a professional DJ. Thank goodness one was available during the band break.

Because of the confusion of teaching the steps to the Cameron Sellers Dancers, I did not get a real good chance to listen to "Air Mail Special." I danced one of their long, slow numbers with Cameron, who had to hoist up his saggy pants halfway through--it was so long. Cameron, welcome to the world of GEEZERDOM where we all have to hike up our pants every once in a while. Of course, some GEEZERS who will remain nameless, keep their pants hiked up all the time.

In such a frighteningly short period of time, Cameron has managed to worm his way into everyone's lives. Thank goodness most beginners aren't that extroverted...or else I'd have to take up another hobby. We can't do this next year because unlike songs about Asians, Jazz musicians never wrote songs about Republicans [Editor's Note: Not True -- check out "Looking for Yesterday" by Gene Krupa, OKeh 5747]. And if they did, they must not have been very good. I'm not sure if there are any Jazz songs about people who jump out of planes [Editor's Note: Try Woody Herman's "Jumpin' Blues", Decca 2664].

Special Extra Bonus

Here is the choreography [sic] for the special dance performed for Cameron. This deserves a double red-flag Politically Incorrect rating. All nasty notes should be sent to Sue Fedor deevoo@mci2000.com or any of the 20 or so folks who participated, or the 100 or so who rolled on the floor laughing.

Dress code: Gals, try and wear something obviously Oriental. Chopsticks in your hair is always in style. Guys-- go Oriental, get that karate gee out of storage, or wear cammoflage (you can get a cammo t-shirt at Sunny's for just a few bucks).

Song: Sing Song Swing, by Ella Fitzgerald, Decca 8136 (1940), flip side of If It Weren't For You

It's so EASY, even Cameron could do it! We're only doing the first part of the song, then we let Cameron dance it out.

The song has three distinct sections, which repeat.

• We begin with a nice SA-LUTE.
• Section 1--"Choppity chop, chop" is the lyric line 4 eight beat bars of Charlestons with kung fu kicks This section ends with everyone freezing in a "crane" move (remember the scene from the Karate Kid?)
• Section 2--Horn interlude (plays an obvious Oriental theme) during which we bow reverently and turn around. This one ends with everyone standing in place. This is two bars of eight beats.
• Section 3--Verse (6 bars of 8 beats) The next two bars of eight beats are spent doing "Tick tocks" (a la jitterbug stroll) Tick tocks are done by starting with your toes out and heels in and moving your heels out and toes in. You move in one direction. This is accompanied by palms up and out, moving in and out with your feet (like Minnie Mouse). We tick tock eight beats to the left and then eight beats to the right. We spend the next two bars getting together with a partner. The guys are on their knees (to recreate Cameron's height). The next bar is dancing. The last bar, a horn break, the guys fall (they may take their partner with them).
• At this point, the song continues, but we invite Cameron to dance.