Martha & The Vandellas "Dancing in the Streets"

Martha Reeves and the Vandellas "Dancing in the Streets"
Since we at last about to roll over into Summer north of the Equator, and its been unusually rainy and a bit chilly in the Pacific Northwest, I thought I'd play a hit song from the Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, my favorite "girl group" of that era. I have fond memories of listening to this one on "Motown Weekend" radio shows that a station in San Francisco freguently had in the 70's and 80's. You couldn't help but drive a little faster or move about in some way when this one came on the air!


From Wikipedia:
Dancing in the Street" peaked at number two on the U.S. Billboard Pop Singles chart when it was originally released as the group's third album Dance Party's first single in 1964 (see 1964 in music), with "There He Is (at My Door)" included as a B-side. The song also reached the top 5 on the UK pop charts peaking at #4 in a 1969 release after initially peaking at #28 on the chart and helped to revive the Vandellas' success in England.

On April 12, 2006, it was announced that Martha and the Vandellas' version of "Dancing in the Street" would be one of 50 sound recordings preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry. Lead singer Martha Reeves said she was thrilled about the song's perseverance, saying "It's a song that just makes you want to get up and dance".


This one always makes me think of Summer and that brief carefree time of youth when the school term ended and we had a chance to be free.