Recognizing Dance Music

Most of us are used to categorizing music by genre. That is we know how to identify music as Rock, Pop, R & B, Rap, Country, Jazz, Blues, Disco, etc.

When learning to dance, however, we must learn to identify music in a new way: by dance style. In other words, when we hear a song we want to be able to know whether we should dance a Foxtrot or a Salsa or anything else. A given Pop (or Rock, Country, etc.) song might be a Swing or a Waltz or a Rumba or a Cha Cha or any of the other dance styles. To make matters more confusing many times we can dance different dance styles to the same song, although usually a song will have one style that is dominant.

The good news is recognizing the different kinds of dance music is a learned skill. A good way to learn how to identify dance music is to hear various songs that represent a particular style. It does take some time to learn, but before long you will start to guess correctly about what kind of dance music you are listening to.

You may be surprised to learn that a lot of today’s pop music is suitable for ballroom dancing. To help you learn, below is a list of some popular songs that fit each dance style:

• Waltz
  • Open Arms – Journey
  • Take It To the Limit – The Eagles
  • Three Times a Lady – The Commodores
• Tango
  • Le Tango de Roxanne – Moulin Rouge Soundtrack
• Foxtrot
  • I’ve Got You Under My Skin – Frank Sinatra
  • Fly Me To The Moon – Frank Sinatra
  • It Had To Be You – Harry Connick, Jr.
• Viennese Waltz
  • Kiss From A Rose – Seal
  • Piano Man – Billy Joel
  • What’s New Pussycat? – Tom Jones
  • Chim Chim Cher-ee – Mary Poppins Soundtrack
  • Piano Man – Billy Joel
• Quickstep
  • It Don’t Mean A Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing) –Duke Ellington
  • Sing, Sing, Sing – Benny Goodman
• Cha Cha
  • Lets Get Loud – Jennifer Lopez
  • Get The Party Started – Pink
  • Smooth Operator – Sade
  • Lady Marmalade – Moulin Rouge Soundtrack
  • Oye Como Va – Santana
  • Smooth – Santana (featuring Rob Thomas)
• Rumba
  • Fields of Gold – Sting
  • Take My Breath Away – Berlin
  • My Cherie Amour – Stevie Wonder
  • Waiting For A Girl Like You – Foreigner
• East Coast Swing
  • Respect – Aretha Franklin
  • Heart Of Rock & Roll – Huey Lewis
  • Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Queen
  • How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You) – Marvin Gaye
• Bolero
  • I Just Can’t Stop Loving You – Michael Jackson
• Mambo
  • La Bamba – Ritchie Valens
  • Tequila – The Champs
  • Mambo #5 – Lou Bega
  • Ran Kan Kan – Tito Puente
• Hustle
  • Holiday – Madonna
  • That’s the Way (I Like It) – K.C. and the Sunshine Band
  • Stayin’ Alive – The Bee Gees
  • Can’t Get You Out of My Head – Kylie Minogue
  • Stayin’ Alive – The Bee Gees
• Samba
  • La Isla Bonita – Madonna
  • Asereje (The Ketchup Song) – Las Ketchup
• Merengue
  • Hot Hot Hot – Buster Poindexter
  • Suavemente – Elvis Crespo
• West Coast Swing
  • Mustang Sally – Wilson Pickett
  • All She Want to Do Is Dance – Don Henley
  • Something to Talk About – Bonnie Raitt
  • The Way You Make Me Feel – Michael Jackson
• Jive/Single-time Swing
  • Runaround Sue – Dion
  • Zoot Suit Riot – Cherry Poppin’ Daddies
  • Rock Around the Clock – Bill Haley and His Comets