The Frug
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The Frug (pronounced "froog") was a dance craze from the 1960s that evolved from another dance of the era, The Chicken. The Chicken, which featured lateral body movements, was used primarily as a change of pace step while doing The Twist. As young dancers grew more tired they would do less work, moving only their hips while standing in place. They then started making up arm movements for the dance, which prompted the birth of The Swim, The Monkey, The Dog, The Watusi, and The Jerk. The Frug is sometimes referred to as The Surf, Big Bea and The Thunderbird.
A good example of a frug is found in the movie Sweet Charity, which contains a number called "The Rich Man's Frug", a wildly energetic dance number comprising three "movements" ("The Aloof", "The Heavyweight" and "The Big Finish") that showcases director Bob Fosse's distinctive choreography style, particularly his creative use of unusual poses, gestures, and arm movements.
The Frug is mentioned prominently in Allan Sherman's 1965 song "Crazy Downtown," a parody of Petula Clark's Downtown.
The B-52's 1978 song of 1960s beach party film references, "Rock Lobster", contains the line, "Everybody's rockin'; Everybody's fruggin' ".
In a song of the same name, "The Frug" is referenced by the band Rilo Kiley. It appeared on both their debut album The Initial Friend E.P. and on the soundtrack to the movie Desert Blue.
The Frug is one of the dances demonstrated in the Blues Brothers movie during the "Shake a Tail Feather" segment featuring Ray Charles.[citation needed]
