Sanding (dance) the box of rosin before matches to improve his grip. Sims' popularity as a tap dancer and career at the Apollo certainly made him one of the most if not the most influential sand-dancer of all time. Sand dancing was also used by the popular comedic vaudeville trio, Wilson, Keppel and Betty. They spread sand over the stage in one of their most well-known numbers, "Sand Dance". In their performance, there was no allusion to African American heritage; rather to the sandy environs of Egypt, a clear inspiration for their number. In spite of this deviation from the African American
American social dancing in the 20th century to big band music, while jazz dance was done to jazz music. The 20th century brought about a change in social dances. The "old fashioned and out of step" dances such as "the waltz and polka" needed to make way "for something different and new". In the past, only upper class dances had been recorded because lower class dances were "not deemed worthy of record". However, now in the 20th century, "the Industrial Age was upon us, a new middle class was emerging and great social ... innovations were on the horizon". The upper class even became more accepting of