Every line dance has a home song.
Popular line dances include the Electric Slide, Cupid Shuffle, Boot Scootin' Boogie, Copperhead Road, Watermelon Crawl, Tush Push and A Bar Song. Each has a home song. The table lists counts, walls and level for 12 dances, from 18 counts for the Electric Slide up to 48 for Good Time.
Which line dances are the most popular?
Six of the dances in the table below appear, by dance or song name, on four of the five lists we read on October 4, 2026: the Electric Slide, Boot Scootin' Boogie, Watermelon Crawl, American Kids, Country Girl Shake and Good Time. The lists were 412Step's dance list, the linedancin.net library, Kevin Richards' country dance list, an iSpyTunes song guide and Billboard's list of line dance songs.
Cupid Shuffle, Copperhead Road, A Bar Song, That Honky Tonk Highway, Rock Me and Tush Push appear on three. Achy Breaky Heart appears on one, but Wikipedia says its music video led the line dance into the mainstream.
Billboard's list also includes party songs such as the Macarena and the Cha Cha Slide. The table below sticks to dances whose step sheets name the music.
What song is each line dance danced to?
The Electric Slide is danced to "Electric Boogie" by Marcia Griffiths, the Cupid Shuffle to "Cupid Shuffle" by Cupid, and Boot Scootin' Boogie to the Brooks & Dunn song of the same name. The table gives the song and artist for all 12 dances, each named on its step sheet, and every row is a four-wall dance. The table runs from the shortest sequence to the longest.
| Dance | Song and artist | Counts / walls | Level on the sheet | Credited to |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electric Slide | "Electric Boogie," Marcia Griffiths | 18 / 4 | Beginner | Ric Silver |
| Copperhead Road | "Copperhead Road," Steve Earle | 24 / 4 | Ultra Beginner | Steve Smith |
| Cupid Shuffle | "Cupid Shuffle," Cupid | 32 / 4 | Absolute Beginner | Unknown on this sheet |
| That Honky Tonk Highway | "Honky Tonk Highway," Luke Combs | 32 / 4 | Absolute Beginner | Maggie Shipley, 2023 |
| Boot Scootin' Boogie | "Boot Scootin' Boogie," Brooks & Dunn | 32 / 4 | Beginner | Tom Mattox and Skippy Blair |
| A Bar Song | "A Bar Song (Tipsy)," Shaboozey | 32 / 4 | Beginner | Ben Murphy, 2024 |
| Rock Me | "Wagon Wheel," Darius Rucker | 32 / 4 | Beginner | Donna Manning and LeAnne Lesmeister, 2013 |
| American Kids | "American Kids," Kenny Chesney | 32 / 4 | High Beginner | Randy Pelletier, 2014 |
| Country Girl Shake | "Country Girl (Shake It for Me)," Luke Bryan | 32 / 4 | Improver | Michele Adlam and Maria Hennings Hunt, 2011 |
| Watermelon Crawl | "Watermelon Crawl," Tracy Byrd | 40 / 4 | Beginner / Intermediate | Sue Lipscomb |
| Tush Push | "Chattahoochee," Alan Jackson | 40 / 4 | Beginner / Intermediate | Jim Ferrazzano |
| Good Time | "Good Time," Alan Jackson | 48 / 4 | Improver | Jenny Cain |
The sheets use different level words: Ultra Beginner, Absolute Beginner, Beginner, High Beginner, Improver and Beginner / Intermediate. Read the label as a rough guide and check the counts too.
Why does the same line dance have different counts?
Some famous dances exist in several versions, so the count depends on whose step sheet you learn. Ask which version your class or DJ expects before you memorize one.
| Dance | Versions on record | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Electric Slide | Original choreography of 22 steps; variants of 16, 24, 24 and 18 steps; Wikipedia says the 18-step version became popular in 1989 | Wikipedia |
| Boot Scootin' Boogie | At least 16 line dances carry the title | Wikipedia |
| Cotton Eye Joe | 32 counts, 4 walls, Improver (Adelaine Ade, 2021) and 48 counts, 2 walls, intermediate (Susan Brooks) | LineDance.com |
How did popular line dances start?
Wikipedia says each line dance is usually associated with, and named for, a specific song, and the dates differ from dance to dance. Ric Silver says he created the Electric Slide in 1976 after receiving a demo of "Electric Boogie," and Wikipedia notes the claimed creation date has been disputed. The song was first released in December 1982, and a 1989 remix of it gained broader popularity.
Asleep at the Wheel first recorded "Boot Scootin' Boogie" for their 1990 album. Brooks & Dunn covered it on their 1991 debut album, and the song's success is credited with sparking renewed interest in line dancing. Tracy Byrd released "Watermelon Crawl" in July 1994, and Cupid's song arrived in 2007.
Which line dance should a beginner learn first?
Start with a dance whose sheet says Absolute Beginner or Ultra Beginner: the Cupid Shuffle, That Honky Tonk Highway or Copperhead Road. Then add the others one at a time.
- Pick the Electric Slide if you want the shortest sequence in the table, at 18 counts.
- Pick Copperhead Road if you want 24 counts and the Ultra Beginner label.
- Pick the Cupid Shuffle if you want a pattern of side steps, heel touches and one quarter turn.
- Pick That Honky Tonk Highway if you want a Luke Combs song on a sheet that says "No tags, no restarts."
- Leave A Bar Song and American Kids for later: A Bar Song's sheet adds a Step Touch tag after wall 10, and American Kids has a restart on the sixth wall.
- Leave the 40- and 48-count dances, Watermelon Crawl, Tush Push and Good Time, until the shorter ones feel automatic.
What boots work on the dance floor?
Our footwear guide says to pick a leather-soled boot with a low heel if you dance on indoor wood or vinyl and like the traditional look. Line dancing for beginners covers soles, heels and fit with sources, so this page leaves them there.
Alvies' copy for The Shoal Creek lists dancing among its uses and gives the heel height as 1.5 inches. Check the outsole in the photos and description on any boot's page before you dance in it. See how cowboy boots should fit and the cowboy boot heel types for the rest.
Quick answers
What is the number one line dance?
No single list settles it. On October 4, 2026, linedancin.net's most-viewed list for the past 30 days put A Bar Song first and the Electric Slide second. Its overall most-viewed list put Country Girl Shake first and the Electric Slide second. These are one site's page views, from a page headed "Most popular line dances in Southern California," so read them as a snapshot.
What does four wall mean?
In a four-wall dance, the dancers make a quarter turn by the end of the sequence. After four passes they have faced each of the four walls in turn, per Wikipedia.
Can you dance a line dance to a different song?
Sometimes. Wikipedia says each dance is usually associated with one song, and some sheets list alternates. The Tush Push sheet names Third Rock From The Sun by Neal McCoy and Six Days On The Road by Sawyer Brown beside Chattahoochee.
Is Tush Push a dance or a football play?
Both. The line dance runs 40 counts to "Chattahoochee." Wikipedia also describes the Tush Push as an American football play popularized by the Philadelphia Eagles.
What are tags and restarts?
They are changes some sheets make to the basic pattern at set points. A Bar Song's sheet adds a Step Touch tag after wall 10, and American Kids has the dancers dance through count 16 on the sixth wall and restart.
Bottom line
Start with the Electric Slide at 18 counts, Copperhead Road at 24, or the Cupid Shuffle or That Honky Tonk Highway at 32. Ask which version your room dances, and check each sheet for tags and restarts. Then check your boots against our footwear guide.
Where to go next
- Shop Bespoke Western boots
- The Shoal Creek
- Line dancing for beginners: what to wear on your feet
- How should cowboy boots fit?
- Cowboy boot heel types
Sources: step sheets from linedancin.net (Electric Slide, Copperhead Road, Boot Scootin' Boogie, Watermelon Crawl, Tush Push, Good Time, A Bar Song, Country Girl, American Kids, That Honky Tonk Highway, Rock Me, Another Bar Song), plus its library and most-viewed pages, read October 4, 2026; Linedancer Magazine step sheet (Cupid Shuffle); LineDance.com (Cotton Eye Joe); Wikipedia (Line dance, Electric Slide, Boot Scootin' Boogie, Achy Breaky Heart, Copperhead Road, Watermelon Crawl, Cupid Shuffle, Tush Push); 412Step; Kevin Richards; iSpyTunes; Billboard; Alvies product copy.
