The Kennedy family had decided that an old fashioned square dance
would be fun. I was contacted, and after numerous long distance
phone calls to Washington DC, the details were set. There was
only one complication. My agency had meant to send the senator
the tape of my country dance band but had mistakenly sent a tape
of my sea shanty and traditional music of New England group. The
music was totally different on the two tapes. After finally sending
the proper tape, the agency informed me that the Kennedys liked
both recordings!
I brought a six piece contra/square dance band to the Kennedy's
beach front house on Block Island. We ended up dressing in western
attire for the job, but started out the evening singing acappella
sea shantys in our cowboy hats. It seemed a bit incongruous at
the time, but everyone was happy, so I was happy.
I've called a lot of dances for private parties, but I found that
the Kennedy's were unusually enthusiastic dancers. There were
several couples practicing steps on the dance floor even before
the band was ready to play. I called dance after dance for 4 hours
with only one short break in the middle while everyone stopped
to admire a fireworks display. At the end of our scheduled performance
time there were numerous requests for more dancing, and we obliged
with another 35 minutes of circle dances and longways sets. Needless
to say, the rest of the band and I ended up exhausted, but we
congratulated ourselves for a job well done as we rode the ferry
back to mainland Rhode Island the next day.
This article by Ryan Thomson copyright 1996