Everybody Dance Now!

Now that we’re into December, it’s time to fully embrace the holiday spirit. Snow came just in time, too - it’s shaping up to be a classic White Christmas. Eat a bowl of warm soup by the fire, put on your cozy pajamas, and lean into the inescapable omnipresence of holiday music. One of the things that gets me excited about this time of year is finding new winter/holiday inspired music. There’s lots out there to spice up your playlists - I might post my collection in the next week or two. For now, here’s a hot song for cold days, by a Canadian artist no less.

This week’s crossword pays homage to one of the most iconic songs of our time - and how can it not be with the line “It's your world and I'm just a squirrel / Tryin' to get a nut to move your butt / To the dance floor.”

Discussion (and spoilers!) below the break.

Play

Everybody Dance Now! by Brandon Cathcart

Discussion

Give me the music! What a repetitive but classic song to get the dance floor going. The video is a gem, too.

I don’t know the proper name for it, but today’s type of theme is one I call “Group of phrases/ideas connected by a distinct phrase/idea.” It’s that kind of strong, well-worded crossword knowledge you can expect to get when you sign up for my next “You Can Make A Crossword” workshop (dates should be announced mid-December).

Today’s Theme

You’ve figured it out by now - the key to this week’s theme is 37-Across, ["Gonna ___ (Everybody Dance Now)," a C+C Music Factory song that is surprisingly about none of the starred clues]. Once you know (or figure out) that the answer is “Gonna MAKE YOU SWEAT,” you’ll realize the starred clues are all other things that will make you sweat - CAUGHT IN A LIE, SPICY FOOD, and WET SAUNAS.

Behind the Clues

10A. Nothing has made me feel as young and cool as when my partner (and test solver) said “["Great," to Gen Z] is BET? I’ve never heard that before.” Luckily, I’ve been around enough Gen Zers to have heard some of the cool lingo over the last few years, and while I haven’t taken it up myself, BET is one of my favourite affirmative.

32A. What’s a good time without at least one dad joke? ["Just ___" (odd request at a barbershop)] is A HAIR, and is fun on a few levels. Is this person asking for the barber to cut off only one hair, or only leave one hair on their head? The reader may interpret as they wish.

44A. Well, if this crossword isn’t just the place for testing if you know the actual names of songs you never reference by their actual name. Not only is “Gonna Make You Sweat” what zero people call that “theme” song, but ["___ a Pirate" (Pirates of the Caribbean theme)] is HE’S a Pirate, as in Jack Sparrow I have to assume.

3D. Not overly difficult but a fun phrasing - [Hit a toe on a leg] made me chuckle and that’s always a good sign. Sure, when you STUB a toe it’s not a very fun experience, but now you can think about this clue and make it a little less bad.

15D. This one might not hit if you don’t have all the word of “All Star” memorized like I do. ["Somebody once asked / Could I spare some change for ___" (Smash Mouth about to get real philosophical)] as the full verse is:

Some clever, underrated lyricism going on there. Also, did you know that Ben Stiller is in the music video??

22D. This is one that’s worth learning if you’re trying to get better at crosswords. As someone who isn’t super familiar with Hinduism, it’s good to know for puzzles that a SWAMI is a [Hindu teacher]. It’s often a good way for constructors to clean up a rogue W.

I hope you enjoyed this puzzle!

Until next Friday,

Brandon