Interesting Alan,

I call the English Barn Dance fairly regularly at party ceilidhs. Wouldn't dream of inflicting such a simple dance on club dancers. Same move as CBD but to a tune like 'Ten green bottles' or any song of that type, (people sing along with 'When I'm 64') it is fairly stately. Not really unrelenting, people can get up when they like and sit down when they like - and do. And a lot of the older dancers in Lancashire (my impression is more so than Cheshire) know it and the other couple dances.

My first outing with a band for a Church harvest festival dance (when I'd previously just called for clubs) showed how wrong I was in thinking that Club dances were slow but complicated, so this must be simple but lively. In the end the band leader got up and called the Barn Dance or the St Bernard to the relief of the crowd of pensioners. I learnt them after that!! Useful dances that will get people onto the floor who haven't danced all evening.

Mo Waddington

----- Original Message -----

From: Alan Winston winston@slac.stanford.edu [trad-dance-callers]

To: trad-dance-callers@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Sunday, December 17, 2017 11:30 PM

Subject: Re: [trad-dance-callers] AABB, or AB?

John --
I've never called "Canadian Barn Dance" but it's kinda bitty, so I'd
think landmarks in the tune would be helpful to the dancers. ......I wouldn't call it for non-dancing crowds because it's unrelenting and
because you need frame, etc, to get around in the polka bit, but I don't
have any regular ceilidh-like dancing crowds and contra

.