In 1976, Boogie Nights was THE song to roller skate to on Dollar Night at Jonquil Skating Rink. Usually following a couples skate, you'd wait with breathless anticipation for the DJ's "All Skate" announcement and the dreamy opening harp of "Boogie Nights".
It was a free-for-all, everyone pushing for the floor like salmon swimming upstream, a human flurry of wheels and elbows. From the chaos emerged the elite . . . and woe be unto you if you stepped in the path of the satin-baseball-jacket-wearing Jonquil Speed Club, each with their custom boots and wood speed wheels.
There's no room for wall-huggers or crybabies when the mothertrucking Boogie Nights started spinning, y'all.
It was a mesmerizing choreographed drill team, taking curves in sync at 60 mph, executing perfect crossovers and death-defying backward spins on the straightaways. Combs in the back pocket of Jordache jeans, winged bangs shellacked down to withstand the hurricane-like gale force winds of their passes, round and round and round the rink, wheels and floor like ice on glass.
All skate .... everyone skate, please.
It was a call to arms, a dazzling introduction, and a sinister warning, all contained within the confines of a prefab metal warehouse with a high-gloss wood floor, carpeted mushroom seating, super sized pickles and the promise of greatness.
1 comment:
Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea...
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