When the last time I saw you, you wouldn't even kiss me? That rich guy you've been seein', must have put you down. So welcome back baby, to the poor side of town.
Can't you just feel the teenage angst dripping from every line in that song by Johnny Rivers? Can't you just imagine the oh-so-sincere but clumsy embraces between lovesick junior high students as "last dance" is called.... and alas they must part until Monday morning? Ah sweet sweaty youth!
School dances were a very popular activity in my youth and my friends and I attended them almost every weekend. But on the rare weekend there were no dances scheduled we had the next best thing; our very own dance hall. Actually it was just a modest suburban garage but over the years it has grown in legend and has come to be known as The Argyle Ballroom. It was located on Argyle Street (hence the name) and it is still there today - although the music has long since ceased to play. It belonged to a Mr. Ted Haining - a very generous and patient man who let us use his garage as a dance hall on Friday nights and his driveway as a hockey arena on Saturday mornings.
School dances were a very popular activity in my youth and my friends and I attended them almost every weekend. But on the rare weekend there were no dances scheduled we had the next best thing; our very own dance hall. Actually it was just a modest suburban garage but over the years it has grown in legend and has come to be known as The Argyle Ballroom. It was located on Argyle Street (hence the name) and it is still there today - although the music has long since ceased to play. It belonged to a Mr. Ted Haining - a very generous and patient man who let us use his garage as a dance hall on Friday nights and his driveway as a hockey arena on Saturday mornings.
I am not really sure how this arrangement came about, he had no children our age and we were just neighbourhood kids from the block. But on Friday nights the place was ours to dance the night away amidst the old furniture, yard equipment, spare tires and paint cans. I admit it doesn't sound very glamorous, but to a bunch of lovesick 14 year old kids - it was a ballroom indeed.
We played 45's which we carried around on plastic spindles that held about 50 records - sort of like an early low tech Ipod. We played them on an old, cheap mono record player - and never did music sound so sweet, especially the waltzes. Waltzes were the most popular dance at the Argyle Ballroom - particularly in winter, since Mr. Haining's garage was not heated. But we didn't mind; all the more reason to get close to a warm girl - or as close as you could get while wearing winter coats, hats and gloves.
The Argyle Ballroom had a very small and select clientele and there were many who wanted to join us as word got around - mostly other guys. Maybe they wanted in because the boy/girl ratio was usually heavily in favour of the boys. What can I say - me and my buddies were pretty good dancers.... and the garage was very small. The fact that the girls and their parents considered us basically harmless had nothing to do with it!
There was no drinking at the ballroom - unless you count Coke, Dr. Pepper or Fanta orange soda, and the menu was pretty well limited to potato chips and cheezies. But we were there mostly for the atmosphere anyway. The music featured at the ballroom was a pretty standard mix of current dance songs by the Monkees, the Dave Clark 5 and all the other Justin Beibers of the day. We all had our favorite bands and everyone got a turn to play the song of their choice whether it was by The Lovin' Spoonful, the Rolling Stones or The Supremes. Any current Top 40 song would get things off to a good start but as the evening got late it was time to queue up the slow songs like Silhouettes by Herman's Hermits or Distant Shores by Chad and Jeremy. Serious stuff indeed.
But as for those special "last dance" occasions - well those were usually reserved for Mr. Johnny Rivers himself.... and as the man said:
Oh, with you by my side,
This world can't keep us down.
Together we can make it baby,
From the poor side of town.
There was no drinking at the ballroom - unless you count Coke, Dr. Pepper or Fanta orange soda, and the menu was pretty well limited to potato chips and cheezies. But we were there mostly for the atmosphere anyway. The music featured at the ballroom was a pretty standard mix of current dance songs by the Monkees, the Dave Clark 5 and all the other Justin Beibers of the day. We all had our favorite bands and everyone got a turn to play the song of their choice whether it was by The Lovin' Spoonful, the Rolling Stones or The Supremes. Any current Top 40 song would get things off to a good start but as the evening got late it was time to queue up the slow songs like Silhouettes by Herman's Hermits or Distant Shores by Chad and Jeremy. Serious stuff indeed.
But as for those special "last dance" occasions - well those were usually reserved for Mr. Johnny Rivers himself.... and as the man said:
Oh, with you by my side,
This world can't keep us down.
Together we can make it baby,
From the poor side of town.
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