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Enjoy this curated selection of theme-related dances for celebrations and holidays, or find a dance associated with a special calendar day, or EVEN your own birthday!
Jul 21
Peaches Month
The Peachtree Reel
Other Scottish Country Dances for this Day
Today's Musings, History & Folklore
"This dance is peachy keen!"
This busy 32-bar reel for four couples will have you traversing the set and reeling from one end to the other! Devised by Jimmie Hill for the 40th Anniversary Celebration of the Atlanta Branch, it pays tribute to Atlanta's most famous thoroughfare—Peachtree Street—which stretches some 18 miles through the city before continuing as Peachtree Road.
Despite its name, Peachtree Street wasn't named for peaches at all. It traces its origins to the Creek settlement of Standing Peachtree, a name thought to be a corruption of "Pitch Tree," referring to the area's pine forests. Today, it forms the historic and commercial spine of Atlanta.
Regardless, the Peachtree name has become legendary and is forever linked in people's minds with Georgia's famous peaches, the state's official fruit. Atlantans like to joke that half the streets are named Peachtree, while the other half have five different names just to make up for it! Although "Peachtree" almost always refers to this main street and its continuations, there are an astonishing 71 streets in Atlanta that include some variation of "Peachtree" in their name.
Georgia's peach-growing reputation blossomed in the late 19th century and soon made the "Georgia peach" an American icon. Whether baked into a warm peach pie, bubbling peach cobbler, flaky peach turnovers, buttery peach crisp, homemade peach preserves, fresh peach ice cream, peach shortcake, grilled peaches, or simply enjoyed straight from the tree, few fruits capture the taste of summer quite like a ripe Georgia peach. Yum!
If you can master this lively dance, you've certainly earned a peachy treat! 🕺 💃 💛 🧡 ❤️ 🍑 🍑 🍑 🥧 🥧 🥧
The Peachtree Reel
Peaches have ripened into one of popular culture's sweetest symbols, representing everything from the warmth of summer and Southern hospitality to innocence, romance, temptation, and nostalgia. Perhaps the best-loved literary peach is Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach, published in 1961 and later adapted into a celebrated stop-motion Disney film. In this whimsical adventure, an ordinary peach becomes a magical vessel carrying young James and his insect companions across the Atlantic—a timeless reminder that even the most ordinary fruit can become the gateway to extraordinary adventures. The 1996 film added memorable songs by Randy Newman, including the delightfully exuberant "Eating the Peach."
Music lovers, meanwhile, have embraced peaches in every imaginable style. Southern rock fans will immediately recognize Eat a Peach, the landmark 1972 album by The Allman Brothers Band, whose title has become almost as iconic as the music itself. The jaunty 1996 hit "Peaches" by The Presidents of the United States of America ("Movin' to the country, gonna eat a lot of peaches...") remains one of the most recognizable fruit-themed songs ever recorded. Decades later, Justin Bieber's chart-topping "Peaches" celebrated Georgia—the Peach State—as part of its catchy chorus, while indie rock fans know Wolf Alice's energetic "Giant Peach," whose title tips its hat to Dahl's classic story. Together these albums and songs show that peaches can symbolize everything from Southern roots and carefree summer living to love, youth, and imagination.
For some summer peach recipes, click a picture of no-churn peach cheesecake ice-cream!
Click the dance cribs or description below to link to a printable version of the dance!
