Hand Jive Basics

I have a great nostalgic love for the 1978 movie-musical Grease, and particularly for the big "Born to Hand Jive" scene at the school dance. I usually avoid analyzing my favorite movies from a dance historian's perspective -- it can be painful -- but I couldn't resist looking into the hand jive. I found a few surprises in my research, but for this post I'll just stick to the basics, with more background to follow in the future.

In its December, 1958, issue, Dance Magazine published a short article on the hand jive, calling it:

a spontaneous outburst of young people's response to R 'n' R when dancing is, for one reason or another, not feasible at the moment.

noting among its advantages that it can be done with or without a partner and does not require equal numbers of men and women.

While it was possible to hand jive to any song with a good beat, bandleader and songwriter Johnny Otis came up with the song "Willie and the Hand Jive," which reached #9 on the charts and was a big hit in the summer of 1958.  It was later covered by Eric Clapton.  Here's a short sample of Otis' original:

Willie and the Hand Jive Sample

(See the bottom of this post for links to mp3s of both "Willie and the Hand Jive" and "Born to Hand Jive.")

While there was no definitive sequence for the hand jive, with different regions and even groups or individuals having their preferred moves and orders, Dance Magazine published a sample twenty-four-count sequence seen by New Jersey resident Frances Chalif on Alan Freed's TV show Dance Party:

1,2    Both hands slap knees twice
3,4    Clap hands twice
5,6    "Hitchhiker" thumb over left shoulder
7,8    "Hitchhiker" thumb over right shoulder
1,2    Palms down, right hand over left (1); open hands to sides (2)
3,4    Palms down, left hand over right (1); open hands to sides (2)
5,6    Vertical fist bump, right over left, twice
7,8    Vertical fist bump, left over right, twice
1,2    Both arms to the left, index fingers pointing like shooting a gun, "cluck-clucking" tongue
3,4    Repeat "shooting" to the right
5,6    Palms in, circle hands around each other, starting at chest height and gradually lowering them
7,8    Continue circling hands, lowering them toward knees

The article also advises that even when sitting down, the hand jivers should add "rhythmically interspersed accompaniment" of the body: "up-and-down from the waist, shoulder shrugging, torso swaying, head shaking."  When done standing, "there can be Sugar Footing, Bopping twists, Boogie-Woofie swaying, Lindy Doubles and Triples, Digs, or whatever the 'Big Beat' brings forth."

So how did Grease choreographer Patricia Birch do with the hand jive from a historical perspective?  Quite well, actually.  The sequence shown in the movie is surprisingly close to the article's:

1,2    Both hands slap knees twice
3,4    Clap hands twice
5,6    "Hitchhiker" thumb over right shoulder twice
7,8    "Hitchhiker" thumb over left shoulder twice
1,2    Palms down, right hand over left (1); open hands to sides (&); repeat (2&)
3,4    Palms down, left hand over right (1); open hands to sides (&); repeat (2&
5,6    Vertical fist bump, right over left, twice
7,8    Vertical fist bump, left over right, twice

The only differences:

(1) the sequence is shortened to sixteen beats
(2) the "hitchhiker" thumbs are done twice on each shoulder, at double speed, and right side first
(3) the palms-down moves are likewise done twice at double speed (1 & 2 &)

All these are perfectly reasonable variations.  And just as Dance Magazine advised, the dancers are also constantly in motion -- when standing, they're bouncing up and down on their toes, and in the shots of the seated extras, they're bouncing and swaying.  Later in the scene when John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John do their spotlight solo, there are moments when you see the "shooting" hands and the circling hands as well.  While "Born to Hand Jive" was a Sha-Na-Na song written for the movie, and doing the hand jive as a big production number is a theatrical decision that's not particularly accurate, the details of the hand jiving itself are superb.

Here's a quick compilation of some of the clearest hand jive moments from Grease, with major characters as well as the extras doing the sequence:

(SORRY - VIDEO PLAYER IS TEMPORARILY BROKEN, WILL RETURN SOON)

Copyright and fair use:  This video is believed to be in compliance with the Fair Use Doctrine as defined in USC Title 17 Section 107.  It is exclusively for educational use and is presented in a low resolution format.  Grease is © Paramount, 1978.

Edited August 1, 2021 to add: and here's the marvelous Todrick Hall doing a quick round of hand jive to "Under the Sea" from Disney's The Little Mermaid in 2015:

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Everyone ready to hand jive now?

Some useful shopping links:

Comments

[Jeff]

I plan on bringing this to Marc & Ellen the next time they do a 50's sampler.

[Susan de Guardiola]

Alas, today I got the news that Johnny Otis, composer of the hit hand jive tune "Willie and the Hand Jive", as described above, has died at the age of 90 after a long career in music and social justice.

RIP Johnny, and thanks for the tunes.