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''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. It aired in
syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...
from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. Across its 35-year history the show primarily featured performances by R&B,
soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
, and hip hop artists. The series was created by
Don Cornelius Donald Cortez Cornelius (September 27, 1936 – February 1, 2012) was an American television show host and producer widely known as the creator of the nationally syndicated dance and music show ''Soul Train'', which he hosted from 1971 until 1993 ...
, who also served as its first host and executive producer. Production was suspended following the 2005–2006 season, with a rerun package under the moniker ''The Best of Soul Train'' airing for two years subsequently. As a nod to ''Soul Train''s longevity, the show's opening sequence during later seasons contained a claim that it was the "longest-running first-run, nationally syndicated program in American television history", with over 1,100 episodes produced from the show's debut through the 2005–2006 season. Despite the production hiatus, ''Soul Train'' held that superlative record until 2016, when ''
Entertainment Tonight ''Entertainment Tonight'' (or simply ''ET'') is an American Broadcast syndication, first-run syndicated news broadcasting news magazine, newsmagazine program that is distributed by CBS Media Ventures throughout the United States and owned by Para ...
'' surpassed it in completing its 35th season. Among non-news programs, ''
Wheel of Fortune The Wheel of Fortune or ''Rota Fortunae'' has been a concept and metaphor since ancient times referring to the capricious nature of Fate. Wheel of Fortune may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Art * ''The Wheel of Fortune'' (Burne-Jo ...
'' surpassed that mark in 2018. As of 2016, the rights to the Soul Train brand, library, and associated events, such as its cruises and annual awards show, the ''
Soul Train Music Awards The Soul Train Music Awards is an annual music awards show which previously aired in national broadcast syndication, and honors the best in African-American culture, music and entertainment. It is produced by the makers of '' Soul Train'', the p ...
'', are now under the ownership of
Paramount Global Paramount Global (doing business as Paramount) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate owned and operated by National Amusements (79.4%) and headquartered at One Astor Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York. I ...
, through BET Networks.


History


Chicago origins

The origins of ''Soul Train'' can be traced to 1965 when
WCIU-TV WCIU-TV (channel 26) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is the flagship television property of locally based Weigel Broadcasting, which has owned the station since its inception, and is siste ...
, an upstart UHF station in Chicago, began airing two youth-oriented dance programs: ''Kiddie-a-Go-Go'' and ''Red Hot and Blues''. These programs—specifically the latter, which featured a predominantly
African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
group of in-studio dancers—would set the stage for what was to come to the station several years later. Don Cornelius, a newsreader and backup disc jockey at Chicago radio station
WVON WVON (1690 AM "The Voice of the Nation", originally "Voice of the Negro") is a radio station serving the Chicago market, which airs an African-American-oriented talk format. WVON is owned by Midway Broadcasting Corporation, and broadcasts at 1 ...
, was hired by WCIU in 1967 as a news and sports reporter. Cornelius also was promoting and emceeing a touring series of concerts featuring local talent (sometimes called "record hops") at Chicago-area high schools, calling his traveling caravan of shows "The Soul Train". WCIU-TV took notice of Cornelius's outside work and in 1970, allowed him the opportunity to bring his road show to television. After securing a sponsorship deal with the Chicago-based retailer
Sears, Roebuck and Company Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began ...
, ''Soul Train'' premiered on WCIU-TV on August 17, 1970, as a live show airing weekday afternoons. Beginning as a low-budget affair, in black and white, the first episode of the program featured
Jerry Butler Jerry Butler Jr. (born December 8, 1939) is an American soul singer-songwriter, producer, musician, and retired politician. He was the original lead singer of the R&B vocal group the Impressions, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame i ...
,
the Chi-Lites The Chi-Lites (, ) are an American R&B/soul vocal quartet from Chicago, Illinois, United States. Forming at Chicago's Hyde Park High School in 1959, The group's original lineup consisted of singers Robert Lester, Eugene Record, Creadel Jones, ...
, and
the Emotions ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
as guests. Cornelius was assisted by Clinton Ghent, a local professional dancer who appeared on early episodes before moving behind the scenes as a producer and secondary host.


Move to syndication

The program's immediate success attracted the attention of another locally based firm—the
Johnson Products Company Johnson Products Company (JPC) is a privately held American business based in Chicago, Illinois. It is best known for manufacturing a line of hair care and cosmetic products for African American consumers under the names ''Afro Sheen'' and ''Ultr ...
(manufacturers of the Afro Sheen line of hair-care products)—and they later agreed to co-sponsor the program's expansion into
broadcast syndication Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...
. Cornelius and ''Soul Train''s syndicator targeted 25 markets outside of Chicago to carry the show, but stations in only seven other cities—
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
;
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
;
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
;
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
;
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
;
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
; and
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
—purchased the program, which began airing on a weekly basis on October 2, 1971. By the end of the first season, ''Soul Train'' was on in the other eighteen markets. At the time, there were no other commercial television programs being produced by black people for a black audience; the only nationally available show by blacks for blacks at the time was the public television series ''
Soul! ''Soul!'' (also stylized in uppercaseC. Gerald Fraser January 30, 1991, ''New York Times''. Accessed online 21 April 2008.) is a performance/ variety television program that showcased African American music, dance and literature in the late 1960s ...
''Ford Foundation Annual Report 1970
p. 55 of 102
. Accessed online 20 April 2008.
When the program moved into syndication, its home base was also shifted to Los Angeles, where it remained for the duration of its run. ''Soul Train'' was part of a national trend toward syndicated music-oriented programs targeted at niche audiences; two other network series (''
Hee Haw ''Hee Haw'' is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with the fictional rural "Kornfield Kounty" as the backdrop. It aired first-run on CBS from 1969 to 1971, in syndication from 1971 to 1993, and on TNN from 1 ...
'' for country music, and ''
The Lawrence Welk Show ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' is an American televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk. The series aired locally in Los Angeles for four years, from 1951 to 1955, then nationally for another 16 years on ABC from 195 ...
'' for traditional music) also entered syndication in 1971 and would go on to have long runs. Though Don Cornelius moved his operations west, a local version of ''Soul Train'' continued in Chicago. Cornelius hosted both the local Chicago-based and national Los Angeles–based programs simultaneously, but soon focused his attention solely on the national edition. He continued to oversee production in Chicago, where Clinton Ghent hosted episodes on WCIU-TV until 1976, followed by three years of once-weekly reruns. The syndicated version was picked up in the Chicago market by
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
- owned
WBBM-TV WBBM-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, airing programming from the CBS network. Owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division, the station maintains studios on West Washington Stre ...
at its launch; the program moved to
WGN-TV WGN-TV (channel 9) is an Independent station (North America), independent television station in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States. Owned by Nexstar Media Group, it is sister station, sister to the company's sole radio property, talk ra ...
in 1977 and remained there for the rest of its Chicago run. Don Cornelius hosted every episode of ''Soul Train'' from 1971 to 1993, except for
Richard Pryor Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, and is widely regarded as on ...
, who hosted the final episode of Season 4 (1974-1975). Beginning in Season 15 (1985-1986),
Tribune Entertainment Tribune Entertainment (formerly Mid-America Video Tape Productions, WGN Continental Productions, Tribune Productions and Tribune Entertainment Company) was a television production and broadcast syndication company owned and operated by Tribune Br ...
acquired the syndication contract; Tribune Entertainment continued producing ''Soul Train'' until the end of the show's run on March 25, 2006.


Later years

Don Cornelius stopped hosting after 22 seasons (1971–1993), though he remained the show's main creative force from behind the scenes. The following fall, ''Soul Train'' began using celebrity hosts until comedian
Mystro Clark Mystro Clark (born December 29, 1966, in Dayton, Ohio) is an American entertainer who was the second permanent American host of the syndicated version of the series '' Soul Train'' from 1997 until 1999. He went on to become a film and televisio ...
took over as the host in 1997.
Shemar Moore Shemar Franklin Moore (born April 20, 1970) is an American actor. His notable roles include Malcolm Winters on ''The Young and the Restless'' (1994–2005), Derek Morgan on ''Criminal Minds'' (2005–2016), and the lead role of Sergeant II Dani ...
took over as the host in 2000. In 2003,
Dorian Gregory Dorian Gregory (born January 26, 1971) is an American actor and television host who played Darryl Morris on the television show ''Charmed'' (1998–2005) and was the fourth and final permanent host of ''Soul Train'', replacing Shemar Moore. ...
took over as the host, and stayed until the end of the show's run in 2006.


Cancellation

Production of first-run ''Soul Train'' episodes was suspended at the conclusion of the 2005–06 season, the show's 35th. In place of new content, for two seasons starting in the 2006–2007 season, the program aired archived episodes (selected from between 1973 and 1988) under the title ''The Best of Soul Train''. This was because in later years, Nielsen ratings dropped to below 1.0; most of the stations that aired ''Soul Train'' by that point were either Fox television affiliates or independent stations that would later become affiliates of
The WB The WB Television Network (for Warner Bros., or the "Frog Network", for its former mascot, Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network launched on broadcast television on January 11, 1995, as a joint venture between the Warner Bros. ...
or
UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which pr ...
, and, in the process, some of the stations which had been airing ''Soul Train'' on Saturday afternoons started rescheduling the program to overnight time slots. The future of ''Soul Train'' was uncertain with the announced closing of Tribune Entertainment in December 2007, which left Don Cornelius Productions to seek a new distributor for the program. Cornelius soon secured a deal with
Trifecta Entertainment & Media Trifecta Entertainment & Media is an American entertainment company founded in 2006. The company's founders previously held jobs as executives at MGM Television. Trifecta is primarily a distribution company and also handles advertising sales in exc ...
.


Attempted revivals and new ownership

When Don Cornelius Productions still owned the program, clips of the show's performances and interviews were kept away from online video sites such as
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
owing to
copyright infringement Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, s ...
claims. Cornelius also frowned upon the unauthorized distribution of ''Soul Train'' episodes through the sale of third-party VHS or
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
compilations. In May 2008, Cornelius sold the rights to the ''Soul Train'' library to MadVision Entertainment, whose principal partners came from the entertainment and publishing fields. The price and terms of the deal were not disclosed. However, by the start of the 2008–09 television season, the
Tribune Broadcasting Tribune Broadcasting Company, LLC was an American media company which operated as a subsidiary of Tribune Media, a media conglomerate based in Chicago, Illinois. The group owned and operated television and radio stations throughout the United St ...
-owned stations (including national carrier
WGN America WGN America was an American subscription television network that was owned by the Nexstar Media Group, and was the company's only wholly owned, national cable-originated television channel. The channel in its final form under the WGN branding ra ...
) that had been the linchpin of the show's syndication efforts dropped the program, and many others followed suit. ''Soul Train''s website acknowledged that the program had ceased distribution on September 22, 2008. Following the purchase by MadVision, the ''Soul Train'' archives were exposed to new forms of distribution. In April 2009, MadVision launched a ''Soul Train'' channel on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
. Three months later the company entered into a licensing agreement with
Time Life Time Life, with sister subsidiaries StarVista Live and Lifestyle Products Group, a holding of Direct Holdings Global LLC, is an American production company and direct marketer conglomerate, that is known for selling books, music, video/DVD, ...
to distribute ''Soul Train'' DVD sets. MadVision then came to terms with
Paramount Global Paramount Global (doing business as Paramount) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate owned and operated by National Amusements (79.4%) and headquartered at One Astor Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York. I ...
-owned
BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...
to relaunch the ''Soul Train Music Awards'' for BET's spin-off channel, Centric, in November 2009. Centric would broadcast archived episodes of the program. Archived episodes can also be seen on Bounce TV. MadVision sold the rights to ''Soul Train'' in 2011 to a consortium led by basketball player Magic Johnson and backed by private equity firm
InterMedia Partners InterMedia Advisors, LLC (a..k.a. InterMedia Partners), is a private equity investment firm focused on leveraged buyout and growth capital investments in the media sector. The firm, which was founded in 2005 by notable private equity investor L ...
. The Johnson-InterMedia consortium planned on a potential film project that Cornelius had briefly mentioned prior to selling the franchise, as well as producing potential stage adaptations and a cruise. As part of the sale, Johnson's Aspire TV channel also began airing reruns of the series. Cornelius continued to appear for ''Soul Train'' documentaries and ceremonies until his death by suicide in February 2012. In 2013, Centric began presenting a cruise-based revival, marketed as ''Soul Train Cruise''. All rights and trademarks to the ''Soul Train'' brand including the show's extensive library, the annual cruise event, and the award shows are under the ownership of Paramount Global after its
Paramount Media Networks Paramount Media Networks (formerly known as Warner Cable Communications, Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, MTV Networks, Viacom Media Networks, and ViacomCBS Domestic Media Networks) is an American mass media division of Paramount Global tha ...
division acquired the franchise in 2016.


Influence

Some commentators have called ''Soul Train'' a "black ''
American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...
''", another long-running program with which ''Soul Train'' shares some similarities. Cornelius acknowledged ''Bandstand'' as a model for his program; as the years advanced and ''Soul Train'' evolved into a tradition in its own right, he tended to bristle at the ''Bandstand'' comparisons. In 1973,
Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...
, host and producer of ''Bandstand'', launched ''Soul Unlimited'' — controversial for its pronounced racial overtures — to compete directly with ''Soul Train''. Cornelius, with help from Jesse Jackson, openly accused Clark of trying to undermine TV's only black-owned show. Agreeing,
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
canceled it after a few episodes. Clark later agreed to work with Cornelius on a series of network specials featuring R&B and soul artists. Cornelius was relatively conservative in his musical tastes and admitted he was not a fan of the emerging hip hop genre, believing that the genre did not reflect positively on African-American culture (one of his stated goals for the series). Even though Cornelius featured rap artists on ''Soul Train'' frequently during the 1980s, he publicly would admit (to the artists' faces such as
Kurtis Blow Kurtis Walker (born August 9, 1959), professionally known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record/film producer, b-boy, DJ, public speaker and minister. He is the first commercially successful rapper ...
) that the genre was one that he did not understand; as rap continued to move further toward
hardcore hip hop Hardcore hip hop (also hardcore rap) is a genre of hip hop music that developed through the East Coast hip hop scene in the 1980s. Pioneered by such artists as Run-DMC, Schoolly D, Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy, it is generally cha ...
, Cornelius admitted to being frightened by the antics of groups such as
Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...
. Rosie Perez testified in the 2010 VH1 documentary ''Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America'' that Cornelius also disliked seeing the show's dancers perform sexually suggestive "East Coast" dance moves. Cornelius admittedly had rap artists on the show only because the genre was becoming popular among his African-American audience, though the decision alienated middle-aged, more affluent African Americans like himself. This disconnect (which was openly mocked in an ''
In Living Color ''In Living Color'' is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions in ...
'' sketch where Cornelius and the show were lampooned as extremely old and out of touch) eventually led to Cornelius stepping down as host in the early 1990s, and the show losing its influence. Questlove, drummer for hip-hop band The Roots and a fan of the program, authored a book chronicling ''Soul Train''. Titled ''Soul Train: The Music, Dance, and Style of a Generation'' was published in 2013.


Program elements

The opening sequence showed a black animated locomotive with multicolored smoke coming out of its smokestack, and steam coming out of its sides, passing through a city, tunnel, or through outer space around the Earth. The scenery around the train changed as years went on. The Soul Train logo was featured, with a song or instrumental playing throughout. One of the most distinctive parts of the opening was when “Soul Train” was announced, stretching out the first word into a high-pitched imitation of a train whistle. Within the structure of the program, there were two enduring elements. The first was the "Soul Train Scramble Board", where two dancers are given 60 seconds to unscramble a set of letters that form the name of that show's performer or a notable person in African American history. In describing the person's renown, the host concluded their description with the phrase "...whose name you should know". Cornelius openly admitted after the series ended its run that the game was usually set up so everybody won in an effort not to cause embarrassment for the show or African Americans in general.


Soul Train line

There was also the popular "Soul Train Line" (a variant of the 1950s fad then known as The Stroll), in which all the dancers form two lines with a space in the middle for dancers to strut down and dance in consecutive order. Originally, this consisted of a couple—with men on one side and women on the other. In later years, men and women had their own individual lineups. Sometimes, new dance styles or moves were featured or introduced by particular dancers. In addition, there was an in-studio group of dancers who danced along to the music as it was being performed. Rosie Perez,
Damita Jo Freeman Damita Jo Freeman is an American dancer and actress, who started her career on the TV show ''Soul Train''. In 1973 Freeman became a featured dancer on ''Soul Train'' after only her second appearance on the show, when Joe Tex Yusuf Hazziez (bo ...
,
Darnell Williams Darnell Williams (born 3 March 1955) is a British-born soap opera actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Jesse Hubbard on the ABC soap opera '' All My Children'' from 1981 to 1988, and from 2008 to 2011, a role which has earned him two Day ...
, Cheryl Song, Louie "Ski" Carr, Alfie Lewis,
Pat Davis Pat "Madam Butterfly" Davis (b. c.1956) was an American dancer who performed on the television music show ''Soul Train'' during the 1970s. Biography Patricia Davis was born in Fort Worth, Texas, and was five years old when she moved to Los Ang ...
("Madam Butterfly"), Alise Mekhail, Andrea N. Miles,
Carmen Electra Tara Leigh Patrick (born April 20, 1972), known professionally as Carmen Electra, is an American actress, model, singer, and media personality. She began her career as a singer after moving to Minneapolis, where she met Prince, who produced h ...
,
Nick Cannon Nicholas Scott Cannon (born October 8, 1980) is an American television host, actor, rapper, and comedian. In television, Cannon began as a teenager on ''All That'' before going on to host ''The Nick Cannon Show'', ''Wild 'n Out'', ''America's G ...
,
Vivica A. Fox Vivica Anjanetta Fox (born July 30, 1964) is an American actress, producer, and television host. Fox began her career on ''Soul Train'' (19821983). She eventually continued her career with roles on the daytime television soap operas ''Days of O ...
,
MC Hammer Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), better known by his stage name MC Hammer (or simply Hammer), is an American rapper, dancer, record producer and entrepreneur. He is known for hit songs such as "U Can't Touch This", "2 Legit 2 Quit" ...
,
Jermaine Stewart William Jermaine Stewart (September 7, 1957 – March 17, 1997) was an American R&B singer, best known for his 1986 hit single "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off", which peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It also peaked wi ...
,
Heather Hunter Heather Keisha Hunter (born October 1, 1969), nicknamed Double H, is an American rapper, painter, author, and pornographic actress. She is a member of the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame. Early life Hunter was born in The Bronx, New York, to a fune ...
,
Fred Berry Fred Allen Berry (March 19, 1951 – October 21, 2003) was an American actor and street dancer. He was best known for his role as Freddie "Rerun" Stubbs on the 1970s television show '' What's Happening!!'' Career Berry was born on March 19, 195 ...
,
Laurieann Gibson Laurieann Gibson (born July 14, 1969) is a Canadian choreographer, director, television personality, singer, actress, and dancer. She has choreographed dance numbers for musical artists such as Michael Jackson, Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, and Beyo ...
, Pebbles, and NFL legend
Walter Payton Walter Jerry Payton (July 25, 1953Although most sources at the time of his death gave Payton's birth year as 1954, reliable sources subsequently state he was born in 1953. – November 1, 1999) was an American football running back who played ...
were among those who got noticed dancing on the program over the years. Two former dancers, Jody Watley and
Jeffrey Daniel Jeffrey Glen Daniel (born August 24, 1955 ) is an American dancer, singer-songwriter and choreographer, most notable for being a founding member of the R&B vocal group Shalamar. In Nigeria, he is best known as a former ''Idol'' series judge ...
, enjoyed years of success as members of the R&B group
Shalamar Shalamar () is an American R&B and soul music vocal group active since the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Shalamar's classic line-up on the SOLAR label consisted of Howard Hewett, Jody Watley, and Jeffrey Daniel, together with dancer ...
after they were chosen by ''Soul Train'' talent booker/record promoter
Dick Griffey Richard Gilbert Griffey (November 16, 1938 – September 24, 2010) was an American record producer and music promoter who founded SOLAR Records, a RAS acronym for "Sound of Los Angeles Records". The label played a major role in developing a ...
and Cornelius to replace the group's original session singers in 1978.


Guest stars

Each musical guest usually performed twice on each program; after their first number, they were joined by the program host onstage for a brief interview. From time to time, stand-up comedians, such as
Tom Dreesen Tom Dreesen (born September 11, 1939) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. Life and career Dreesen grew up in Harvey, Illinois, a south suburb of Chicago.Kathy O'Malley. "Crazy white boy; Tom Dreesen does comedy about blacks in black club ...
(whom Don Cornelius knew from his time in Chicago) and
Franklyn Ajaye Franklyn Ajaye (born May 13, 1949) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. His nickname is "The Jazz Comedian" for his distinctive jazz-inflected style of delivery, timing, and astute use of silence. He released a series of comedy a ...
(known in the 1970s for being a star of the hit movie ''
Car Wash A car wash, carwash, or auto wash is a facility used to clean the exterior, and in some cases the interior of motor vehicles. Car washes can be self-service, full-service (with attendants who wash the vehicle), or fully automated (possi ...
''), would be featured on the program to perform a brief comedy routine. ''Soul Train'' was also known for two popular
catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
s, referring to itself as the "Hippest trip in America" at the beginning of the show and closing the program with "...and you can bet your last money, it's all gonna be a stone gas, honey. I'm Don Cornelius, and, as always in parting, we wish you love, peace...and SOUL!"


UK version

In 1985, Cornelius gave permission for a version of the show in the United Kingdom. The UK version, hosted by former ''Soul Train'' dancer and member of Shalamar
Jeffrey Daniel Jeffrey Glen Daniel (born August 24, 1955 ) is an American dancer, singer-songwriter and choreographer, most notable for being a founding member of the R&B vocal group Shalamar. In Nigeria, he is best known as a former ''Idol'' series judge ...
, was titled ''620 Soul Train'' and ran for one series on
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
.


Spinoffs

In 1987, ''Soul Train'' launched the ''Soul Train Music Awards'', which honors the top performances in R&B, hip hop, and gospel music (and, in its earlier years, jazz music) from the previous year. ''Soul Train'' then produced the short-lived ''Soul Train Comedy Awards'' in 1993, which discontinued that same year. ''Soul Train'' later created two additional annual specials: ''The Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards'', first airing in 1995, celebrated top achievements by female performers; and the ''Soul Train Christmas Starfest'', which premiered in 1998, featured holiday music performed by a variety of R&B and gospel artists. Award categories for the ''Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards'' presented to female recipients included: *Best R&B/Soul Album of the Year, Solo *Best R&B/Soul Album of the Year, Group or Duo *Best R&B/Soul Song of the Year *Best R&B/Soul Single, Solo *Best R&B/Soul Single, Group or Duo *Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist *Best Jazz Album *Best Gospel Album *Best R&B/Soul or Rap Music Video Special awards were given *Aretha Franklin Award for Entertainer of the Year and *Lena Horne Award for Outstanding Career Achievements. The ''Lady of Soul Awards'' and ''Christmas Starfest'' programs last aired in 2005. In April 2008, Don Cornelius announced that year's ''Soul Train Music Awards'' ceremony had been canceled. Cornelius cited
2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike From November 5, 2007, to February 12, 2008, all 12,000 film and television screenwriters of the American labor unions Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), and Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) went on strike. The Writers Guild of America ...
by the
Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO * The Writers Guil ...
as one of the reasons, though a main factor may have been the uncertainty surrounding ''Soul Trains future. Cornelius also announced that a motion picture based on the program was in development. Subsequent owners of the franchise have followed their own agenda for the program, which included a revival of the ''Soul Train Music Awards'' in 2009.


Theme music

''Soul Train'' used various original and current music for theme songs during its run, including * 1971–1973: "Soul Train (Hot Potato)", by
King Curtis Curtis Ousley (born Curtis Montgomery; February 7, 1934 – August 13, 1971), known professionally as King Curtis, was an American saxophonist who played rhythm and blues, jazz, and rock and roll. A bandleader, band member, and session musicia ...
(Curtis Ousley) and later redone by
The Rimshots The Rimshots were an American funk and disco band, popular in the late 1970s History The group started out as the house band for the record labels All Platinum Records and in particular, Stang Records in the early 1970s. The then nameless rh ...
as "Soul Train, Parts 1 & 2". he original 1962 version, which was used on the show, was recorded nine years before the show was named "Hot Potatoes (Piping Hot)"* 1973–1975: "
TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia) "TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)" is a 1974 hit recording by MFSB featuring vocals by The Three Degrees. A classic example of the Philadelphia soul genre, it was written by Gamble and Huff as the theme for the American musical television program ...
", composed by
Gamble and Huff Kenneth Gamble (born August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Leon A. Huff (born April 8, 1942, Camden, New Jersey) are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre (also known as ...
and recorded by
MFSB MFSB, officially standing for "Mother Father Sister Brother", was a pool of more than 30 studio musicians based at Philadelphia's Sigma Sound Studios. They worked closely with the production team of Gamble and Huff and producer/arranger Thom ...
with vocals by
The Three Degrees The Three Degrees is an American female vocal group formed circa 1963 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Although 16 women have been members over the years, the group has always been a trio. The current line-up consists of Helen Scott, Valerie Holi ...
. Released as a single, this song became a pop and R&B radio hit in 1974 and the show's best-known theme. * 1975–1976: "Soul Train '75", by
The Soul Train Gang In the early 1970s, the dancers on Don Cornelius' hit television program ''Soul Train'' were called the Soul Train Gang. But they became the Soul Train Dancers in 1975, when Cornelius and Dick Griffey co-founded Soul Train Records (later SOLAR Reco ...
, which was later released as a single for the newly formed
SOLAR Records SOLAR (acronym for Sound of Los Angeles Records) was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with '' Soul Train'' television show host and creator Don ...
* 1976–1978: "Soul Train '76 (Get On Board)", by The Soul Train Gang * 1978–1980: "Soul Train Theme '79", produced by the Hollywood Disco Jazz Band with vocals by the Waters * 1980–1983: "Up On Soul Train", first by the Waters and later by
The Whispers The Whispers is an American band (music), group from Los Angeles, California, who have scored hit records since the late 1960s. They are best known for their two number one R&B singles, "And the Beat Goes On (The Whispers song), And the Beat G ...
, whose version appears in their 1980 album ''
Imagination Imagination is the production or simulation of novel objects, sensations, and ideas in the mind without any immediate input of the senses. Stefan Szczelkun characterises it as the forming of experiences in one's mind, which can be re-creations ...
.'' * 1983–1987: " Soul Train's a Comin'", by R&B artist
O'Bryan O'Bryan McCoy Burnette II, known by his stage name O’Bryan (born December 5, 1961), is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. Early life O'Bryan McCoy Burnette II began playing the piano at 6 ye ...
O'Bryan Soul Train's A Comin' (Remix)
- 1983 - Song - MP3 Stream on IMEEM Music.
* 1987–1993: "TSOP '87", a remake of the original "TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)," composed and produced by
George Duke George M. Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as a pr ...
* 1989–1993: "TSOP '89", a remixed version of "TSOP '87", by George Duke * 1993–1999: "Soul Train '93" (Know You Like to Dance)", by Naughty by Nature with a saxophone solo by
Everette Harp Everette Harp (born August 17, 1961, in Houston, Texas) is an American jazz saxophonist who has recorded for Blue Note, Capitol and Shanachie Records. His album ''Jazz Funk Soul'', a collaboration with Chuck Loeb and Jeff Lorber, received his fi ...
* 2000–2006: "TSOP 2000", with rap vocals by Samson and music by Dr. Freeze, and again featuring an Everette Harp saxophone solo. However, a portion of "Know You Like to Dance" was still used in the show's second-half opening segment during this period, though in earlier episodes, a portion of "TSOP 2000" was played.


See also

* List of ''Soul Train'' episodes * List of people who appeared on ''Soul Train'' *
SOLAR Records SOLAR (acronym for Sound of Los Angeles Records) was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with '' Soul Train'' television show host and creator Don ...
*
Soul Train Music Awards The Soul Train Music Awards is an annual music awards show which previously aired in national broadcast syndication, and honors the best in African-American culture, music and entertainment. It is produced by the makers of '' Soul Train'', the p ...
* ''
American Soul ''American Soul'' is an American musical drama television series, created by Jonathan Prince and Devon Greggory, that premiered on February 5, 2019, on BET. The series tells the story of Don Cornelius and the creation of his legendary music and ...
'', a 2019 TV series on
BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...
based on ''Soul Train'' * ''
American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...
'' * ''
Showtime at the Apollo ''Showtime at the Apollo'' (formerly ''It's Showtime at the Apollo'' and ''Apollo Live'') is an American variety show that first aired in syndication from September 12, 1987 to May 24, 2008. In 2018, the series returned on Fox with Steve Harvey ...
'' * '' The Midnight Special'' * ''
Don Kirshner's Rock Concert ''Don Kirshner's Rock Concert'' is an American television music variety show that ran during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Don Kirshner and syndicated to television stations, initially through Viacom Enterprises, and later ...
'' * ''
Electric Circus ''Electric Circus '' (also known as ''EC'') was a Canadian live dance music television program that aired on MuchMusic and Citytv from September 16, 1988 to December 12, 2003. The name originated from a nightclub that once existed at Citytv's fir ...
'' * ''
The Party Machine with Nia Peeples ''The Party Machine with Nia Peeples'' is a half-hour late-night American musical variety show that aired in syndication for one season in 1991. The show was hosted by Nia Peeples and executive produced by Arsenio Hall. History Background Arseni ...
'' * '' Sherman's Showcase'', a parody of the series and Cornelius * ''
Soul! ''Soul!'' (also stylized in uppercaseC. Gerald Fraser January 30, 1991, ''New York Times''. Accessed online 21 April 2008.) is a performance/ variety television program that showcased African American music, dance and literature in the late 1960s ...
''


References


External links

*
''Soul Train'' DVD from Time-Life
* {{Authority control African-American culture African-American television 1971 American television series debuts 2006 American television series endings 1970s American music television series 1980s American music television series 1990s American music television series 2000s American music television series 1970s American variety television series 1980s American variety television series 1990s American variety television series 2000s American variety television series Dance television shows English-language television shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Television series by Metromedia Pop music television series Television series by Tribune Entertainment Chicago television shows