Hustle Songs at Amazon Mp3

Hustle music generally refers to the disco beats of the 1970's in the United States. With similarities to swing dance music, early hustle was known as “Manhattan Hustle.” It was carried evenly over six beats of music. There are variations of the hustle, of course. The Latin hustle was developed with the influence of young Latins. The beat is quite different than the traditional Manhattan Hustle.

Hustle music is characterized infectious beats, popular melodies, and larger than life sound. The upbeat tempo usually includes 28-30 measures per minute. Frequently, dancers choose retro disco classics when dancing the hustle, but many pop songs have been appropriate for the hustle through the years.

Disco was what really inspired the hustle movement. With it's roots in African American, gay, and psychedelic communities of New York and Philadelphia in the 1970s, disco had something for everyone. Though men like Isaac Hayes and Barry White were arguably performing disco music in the late sixties, most people agree that women like Donna Summer and Gloria Gaynor were the true front runners of the movement.

Disco, and eventually hustle music did not feature a set standard combination of instruments. Though songs often featured African/Latin percussion, electronic drums, and bass guitar, disco focused on giving crowds something to dance, rather than producing music with a variety of instruments. Instead, the DJ movement was born. Djs could combine popular tunes to make their own versions of hits. Crowds loved this experimentation, and the ability to combine genres. Soul, funk, pop and rock all came together to form disco and hustle music.

The hustle became popular following the popular 1975 hit by Van McCoy and the Soul City Symphony's song “The Hustle.” McCoy sent his partner Charlie Kipps to the discotheques of New York to test the new song on dancers. People instantly loved it, so it's no surprise that the song reached the top of the Billboard Pop Singles that year.

Another influential hustle record was the “Continental Walk,” by Archie Bell. Released in 1976, the album produced many popular hits, including the “Bus Stop.” The tunes encouraged dancers to get creative with their dance moves, and spawned many new steps. From coast to coast, people were dancing to hustle music.

Hustle music was put in the spotlight in the 1977 movie “Saturday Night Fever.” In the movie, John Travolta epitomizes the cool, relaxed nature of the hustle. The movie features many types of hustle dancing and music, and brought the hustle movement to mainstream America. It's also the film that convinced many ballroom dancing aficionados that the hustle belonged in competitions alongside the tango, bolero and swing dancing.

Today, people still play hustle music at weddings, parties and dance clubs. One of the most popular hustle songs of all time, the “Electric Slide” remains a crowd favorite. With it's infectious beat, creative melody and unique sound, the song will likely be a wedding dance floor classic for years to come.

With it's rhythmic feel, the hustle can be danced to a wide variety of music. Retro disco music by Donna Summer and the Bee Gees are common options, but modern pop music features many appealing beats for the hustle to be danced to. Think “Material Girl” by Madonna, “Poker Face” by Lady Gaga, or “Miami” by Will Smith. Those hits, along with the classics of the 70's, like “Dancing Queen” by ABBA, “Stayin' Alive” by the Bee Gees, and “That's the Way (I Like It” by K.C. And the Sunshine Band, provide a wide variety of music for dancing the hustle.

Whether you're an old-school disco era hustler, or are just learning of the hustle movement for the first time, people across the world are entranced by the fun, infectious music. Even today, decades after the hustle movement was popularized, radio stations play the classic hits made famous by artists like Donna Summer.

Works Cited
" Hustle Music ." Learn to dance with Shawn Trautman | dance | videos | lessons | country | swing . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. .
"Hustle music examples." Ballroom dance videos & dance DVD's. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. .
Malnig, Julie. Ballroom, boogie, shimmy sham, shake: a social and popular dance reader. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2009. Print.
McCoy, Van. "The Hustle (song) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. .