#CivilRights50: 50 Years of 'Dancing in the Street'

Following the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Freedom Summer demonstrations, American radio gave a voice to the youth of America in a way it hadn’t in the years after the end of World War II.

A song that summer from Detroit natives captured the feeling of the moment for many Baby Boomers in the time of the outlawing of discrimination in public accommodations nationwide.

“Dancing in the Street,” first recorded by Martha and the Vandellas of Motown Records, debuted on American airwaves July 31, 1964 – 50 years ago.

The song would eventually peak at No. 2 for two weeks in October 1964 on the Billboard Hot 100, helping to usher in an era of Motown artists whose voices made waves on American radio and whose faces wowed viewers of TV programs like “The Ed Sullivan Show” and “The Andy Williams Show.”

Released when racial tensions were at a fever pitch in Detroit and other American cities, lead singer Martha Reeves says it was just a “party song,” according to an article on Shmoop. But, ‘Dancing’ was received by many activists rioting in the streets of the Motor City as a civil rights anthem.

Reeves is commemorating the golden anniversary of the song’s release with a “Calling Out Around The World Tour” throughout America and the UK, beginning in Atlantic City August 17.

Take a look at this YouTube clip from 1964 of Martha and the Vandellas performing the hit during the fall of that year in London.