Krewe of Mustang Sallies and Ryders

Mustang Sallies (Sally) Folklore:

What is a Mustang Sally?
Mustang Sallies are those women who know that there comes a time when, to succeed, they have to break from the herd despite the repercussions. We've been bred to be nurturers, to go along and get along, but sometimes a Mustang Sally just has to say, "Would you pick it up yourself?"

Meet the Author:
Fawn Germer, a former reporter and editor for the Miami Herald and the Tampa Tribune and author of Mustang Sallies: Success Secrets of Women Who Refuse to Run with the Herd.

Click for The Code of the Mustang

The date was April 17, 1964. Intermediate sized muscle cars, with big block engines were gradually replacing the fullsized muscle car. Lee Iacocca, Ford's General Manager, had always invisioned a small sports car to be the next hot item in the street wars. Ford decided that instead of improving their lackluster intermediate, they would do the competition one better and introduce a whole new breed of automobile, the pony car. Click here to view 1964 TV commercial.

Listen to Mustang Sally by Wilson Pickett

The song started out as a joke in 1965 when Mack Rice was visiting Della Reese in NYC, when he heard her band leader wanted to get a new car and Mack thought Lincoln, but the guy wanted a new Mustang. Mack laughed and started writing a song he called "Mustang Mama." He showed it to Aretha Franklin and she said change it to "Mustang Sally." Mack had the first release of the song, but the most definitive version was recorded by Wilson Pickett and made it to #23 in 1966.

Listen to Mustang Sally by The Commitments

The 1991 Movie

The 1991 Line Dance

Video Review: An irresistible, comic drama overflowing and alive with passion, humor, and music, The Commitments showcases some old R&B standards in a new light. A headstrong, fast-talking, ambitious young Dubliner (Robert Arkins) fancies himself a promoter of talent, and sets about assembling and packaging a local Irish R&B band. His group of self-absorbed, backbiting, but stunningly talented individuals begin to succeed beyond his wildest dreams, until petty jealousies and recrimination threaten to scuttle the whole deal. A moody, vivid, and soulful exploration of the Dublin club scene, the film (and its wonderful soundtrack) also features the actual band covering classic tunes like Mustang Sally. It's that combination of soul and soul music that makes The Commitments a special little film. --Robert Lane

In 1991 the line dance Mustang Sally was choreographed by Neil Hale to "Mustang Sally" by the Commitments. This song had an especially pronounced backbeat and - by this time - there were other choreographers experimenting with similar non-Country/Western, and generally more danceable, music. Mustang Sally is a spirited, two wall, 48 count, intermediate level line dance.