One of the biggest hits of the 80s was "The Safety Dance" by Men Without Hats. This song brings a smile to any fan of the 80s almost instantly. For years I thought that the band was made up of a Rennasaince Fair hippie, a spastic female and a little person who played the mandolin. This was, of course, thanks to the video. Since realizing just who made up the band, I have become a huge fan of MWH. Still, "The Safety Dance" is my favorite of all of their songs. The song was a protest against bouncers stopping dancers from pogoing in clubs when Disco was dying and New Wave was up and coming. Bouncers didn't like pogoing so they would tell pogoers to stop or be kicked out of the club. Thus, the song is a protest against a particular form of repression, more widely a call for freedom of expression. Lyrics in the song include references to the way pogoing looked to bouncers, especially "And you can act real rude and totally removed/And I can act like an imbecile". Here now is that great protest song of the 80s. Here is "The Safety Dance". Enjoy!
Men Without Hats-The Safety Dance
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