How to Skank video from 1964

Here's a fun skanking lesson from 1964. It's at the legendary Sombrero Club in Jamaica. On stage are Byron Lee and the Dragonaires.

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

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John Markos O’Neill

The establishment? Billionaire ukulele ska!
mdh

I think Paris Hilton’s been doing it wrong.
ryane

the beatles were fans of the ska. see obla di obla da.

Now that I know how to skank, bring on Sonseed!
artomatic

Are we sure the announcer isn’t a young Joe Strummer before he got his groove?

Remember, without original Jamaican Ska, there’s no Reggae, no Bob Marley, no Specials, no DJ sound systems, no Dub and no Clash singing “Police & Thieves.”
Rick York

So, I was 20 in 1964. This was as dumb then as it is now.
skatanic

Um, this is amazing.
Anonymous

fantastic! my mom traveled to Jamaica in the 60s, before I was born, and always had great Ska records that I’d listen to growing up. Plus, I think I could actually do this dance! How fun.
Gilbert Wham

It’s nearly midnight here, I am STILL waiting for the asshole plumber to turn up & fix my boiler, yet this managed to make me smile anyway. And since when was Ska dumb?
Gemma

Wow. Before autocues. Where if you didn’t know the script by heart you have to look awkwardly off to the right at regular intervals.
Anonymous

Ah yes. A “rowing” motion.
Anonymous

Steve Buscemi gained like 30 pounds for this part
sswaan

MDH, well, you know how these things evolve over time. In the 60s apparently pelvic thrusts were called “rowing.”
brem

The song is a cover of “Last Night” by the Mar-Keys
sswaan

At the veeeery end, you see the woman just to the right (our right) of the MC finally just break into actual dancing, rather than the nonsense he’s been telling them to do.
jstueart

Ohhhhh….that’s called ROWING….. right…..
Rindan

Ska was good then and it is good now. Too bad it is dead. Alas, these days when it comes to music you only get to pick from wallowing in your own misery or mindless industrial grade pop. This world needs more music with trumpets and trombones.

Bah. Excuse me while I go back to pretending to like indie music and Garden State.
minTphresh

easy skankin! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJsGzEEO6rg&feature=related
alphagirl

I like how the pelvic thrusts are described as “throwing back the upper half of the body.” It’s not sexual if you are moving the upper half, right?
resista

Here is the 2nd part of that video with more music , different singers and actual dancing in it. I like the 2 microphone thing he has going on. One is for the stage and one for the Camera I guess.

If you don’t like this kind of music or it doesn’t make you nostalgic then ok but this music was really innocent and fun. It brought blacks and whites together in the UK and it was a stepping stone for the Blue beat, Red Beat and Reggae artists later on in the decade.

There are no set dances anymore everyone just stumbles around vogueing. (Thanks Hippies!) I think this was more fun. I am glad someone saved this video and thanks for posting it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_pCLw7ONtU
Joe on the Beach

Ahhh! So this must be where Bob Marley got his title for “Easy Skanking*” from. Cool!
franko

wow, he really sucked the joy of out of it with his dry, clinical description, didn’t he? at least all the dancers were having fun.
Miss Jess

This and the 2nd part were just what I needed this morning – how awesome. Takes me straight back to high school basement shows. Thanks for posting!

P.S. – like this? You’ll like them –> http://www.myspace.com/greenroomrockers
Hamish MacDonald

Gosh, that word doesn’t seem to mean what I thought it meant at all.
Anonymous

Little known fact, Salt Lake City had a HUGE ska scene in the 90′s and early 2000′s. There was a documentary that was recently released about it, and it definitely brings on the nostalgia:

http://www.theupbeatmovie.com/
dwdyer

This guy reminds me of 50′s educational films.

Here he is again:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zA9bZgfr86Y

Throbbed.

Surging.

Pulsating.

Yeah, that’s the “rowing” bit, right?
KoreanAbdulJabbar

Little known fact: Salt Lake City, Utah had a HUGE ska scene in the 90′s and early 2000′s. There was a film released last summer that documents ska, and how it took a hold of the state (and the Mormons). It definitely hits you with some nostalgia.

http://www.theupbeatmovie.com/trailer.php
CapnMarrrrk

Come one everybody! Let’s do the Pussycat

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-wt4VWQxEE
FrankensteinsMonster

now me see why music world then need Beatles, and new generation who make own minds, not listen to the man say how make music or dance.
AJ

I love you forever for putting this up….
jahknow

“Yes, this is Ska…”
GoldMatenes

Serious hilarity at all the comments claiming skanking as the ‘dance of the establishment’.

Since when are a bunch of punks, reggae heads, and big band daddies establishment?