Sixties Songs Of Summer: Dancing In The Street by Martha & The Vandellas (1964)

In conjunction with this weeks Retro Reels on Hairspray, I figured that Dancing In The Steet would be more than appropriate for today's Sixties Songs Of Summer. This Motown staple and ultimate 60's dance classic was written by William "Micky" Stevenson and the great Marvin Gaye (who also played drums on this track!)

According to Wikipedia, Stevenson was inspired to write the song while watching people cool off in the hot Detroit Streets as they seemed to be dancing in the waters of the fire hydrants.The song was written with the intent of having Kim Weston sing it, but she wasn't interested. It was then, history was made as it was then passed onto Martha and theVandellas. It reached #2 on Billboard's Pop charts in 1964 and #4 in the UK in 1969!

However, with rising racial tension and riots/demonstrators, the song began to gain different kinds of attention. But it has always been remembered and will always be treasured as a Motown classic that got all walks of life on the dance floor. As long as there is Summer, the time is always right for dancing in the street!

Love,

Neah B