. The Charleston  is a jazz composition that was written to accompany the Charleston dance. It was composed in 1923, with lyrics by Cecil Mack and music by James P. Johnson, who first introduced the stride piano method of playing.n the 1946 Christmas movie It's a Wonderful Life with James Stewart and Donna Reed, the song was played during the school dance scene. In the movie Tea for Two (1950), with Doris Day and Gordon MacRae, the song was a featured production number.