"Pony Time" is a song written by

Don Covay Donald James Randolph (March 24, 1936 – January 31, 2015), better known by the stage name Don Covay, was an American R&B, rock and roll, and soul singer-songwriter most active from the 1950s to the 1970s. His most successful recordings incl ...

and John Berry (a member of Covay's earlier

vocal group A vocal group is a performing ensemble of vocalists who sing and harmonize together. The first well-known vocals groups emerged in the 19th century, and the style had reached widespread popularity by the 1940s. Types Vocal groups can come in s ...

, "the Rainbows"), and originally recorded in 1960 by Covay with his group "the Goodtimers". The song achieved greater success when it was recorded by

Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnig ...

the following year, becoming his second US #1 (after his 1960 single " The Twist"). Chubby Checker's recording of "Pony Time" was also a number one hit on the R&B charts. The "Boogety Shoe" phrase was used in

Barry Mann Barry Mann (born Barry Imberman; February 9, 1939) is an American songwriter and musician, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil. He has written or co-written 53 hits in the UK and 98 in the US. Early lif ...

's hit song "Who Put the Bomp" (1961).

Chart performance

All-time charts

In popular culture

A reference to the new dance style is mentioned in the song "Back to the Hop" (1961) by

Danny and the Juniors Danny & the Juniors are an American doo-wop and rock and roll vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania originally consisting of Danny Rapp, David White (musician), Dave White, Frank Maffei and Joe Terranova. Formed in 1955, they are most wid ...

, and the song was featured in the 1988 film '' Hairspray''. The song introduced a new dance style, The Pony, in which the dancer tries to look like he or she is riding a horse. The beat is 1&2, 3&4, etc. In the dance the feet are kept comfortably together, while various arm and hand motions are possible. Movement around the dance floor may occur, but there is no line-of-dance. Couples, who generally face each other, do not touchSixties Dance and Dance Crazes
- Sixties City and turns and chase positions are possible. The Pony dance is mentioned in the

Wilson Pickett Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter. A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bill ...

song "

Land of a Thousand Dances "Land of a Thousand Dances" (or "Land of 1000 Dances") is a song written and first recorded by American rhythm and blues singer Chris Kenner in 1962. It later became a bigger hit in versions by Cannibal & the Headhunters and Wilson Pickett. A ve ...

", in the

Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,I Knew the Bride "I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock 'n' Roll)" is a song written by Nick Lowe and first popularized by Dave Edmunds. It was released on Edmunds's 1977 album '' Get It'' and a year later in a live version by Nick Lowe's Last Chicken in the S ...

", and in

The Go-Go's The Go-Go's are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. Except for short periods when other musicians joined briefly, the band has had a relatively stable lineup consisting of Charlotte Caffey on lead guitar and keyboards, Beli ...

song "

We Got the Beat "We Got the Beat" is a song by the American rock band the Go-Go's, written by the group's lead guitarist and keyboardist Charlotte Caffey. The band first recorded the song in 1980 for a single on UK-based Stiff Records, and later rerecorded it f ...

". Cindy Wilson of

The B-52's The B-52's, also styled as The B-52s, are an American new wave band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, keyboards, synth bass), Cindy Wilson (vocals, ...

can be seen performing the Pony in the video for their 1980 song, " Give Me Back My Man", as well as in other films of the band performing between 1978 and 1980 (including their 1980 appearance on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serve ...

''). The band completed the period effect by wearing early 60s-style outfits and hairstyles.

References

1961 singles Chubby Checker songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Songs written by Don Covay Cameo-Parkway Records singles 1961 songs Don Covay songs {{1960s-single-stub

Chart performance

All-time charts

In popular culture

See also

References