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''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. After airing locally on WCIU-TV in
Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, for a year, it aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featured performances by R&B,
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
, and
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
artists. The series was created by Don Cornelius, who also served as its first and longest-serving 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 more than 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 Par ...
'' surpassed it in completing its 35th season. Among non-news programs, '' Wheel of Fortune'' 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, are now under the ownership of
Paramount Global Paramount Global (Trade name, d/b/a Paramount) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate controlled by National Amusements and Headquarters, headquartered at One Astor Plaza in Times Square, ...
, through BET Networks.


History


Chicago origins

The origins of ''Soul Train'' can be traced to 1965 when WCIU-TV, 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 American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
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, 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" 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, ''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, the Chi-Lites, and
the Emotions The Emotions are an American soul/ R&B vocal group from Chicago. The group started out in gospel music but transitioned into R&B and disco music. The Emotions were named by VH1 as one of the 18 most influential girl groups of all time. Hist ...
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 (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 content owners leasing the right to broadcast their content to other television stations or radio stations, without having an official broadcast network to air it on. It is common in the United States whe ...
. Cornelius and ''Soul Train''s syndicator targeted 25 markets outside of Chicago to carry the show, but stations in only seven other cities—
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;
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;
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;
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
;
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;
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; and
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
—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!''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'' for country music, and '' The Lawrence Welk Show'' 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- owned WBBM-TV at its launch; the program moved to
WGN-TV WGN-TV (channel 9) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the local outlet for The CW. It is owned and operated by the network's majority owner, Nexstar Media Group, and is sister station, sister to the company ...
in 1977 and remained there for the rest of its Chicago run. Don Cornelius hosted every episode of ''Soul Train'' from 1970 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. Known for reaching a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, he is widely regarded ...
, who hosted the final episode of Season 4 (1974-1975). Beginning in Season 15 (1985-1986), Tribune Entertainment 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 took over as the host in 1997. Shemar Moore took over as the host in 2000. In 2003, Dorian Gregory 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 Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...
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 (shortened to The WB, stylized as "THE WB", and nicknamed the "Frog Network" and/or "The Frog" for its former mascot Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network that ran from 1995 to 2006. It launched on ter ...
or UPN, 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.


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 an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
owing to
copyright infringement Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of Copyright#Scope, works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the c ...
claims. Cornelius also frowned upon the unauthorized distribution of ''Soul Train'' episodes through the sale of third-party VHS or DVD 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-owned stations (including national carrier WGN America) 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 an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
. Three months later the company entered into a licensing agreement with Time Life to distribute ''Soul Train'' DVD sets. MadVision then came to terms with
Paramount Global Paramount Global (Trade name, d/b/a Paramount) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate controlled by National Amusements and Headquarters, headquartered at One Astor Plaza in Times Square, ...
-owned BET 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 mass media, media sector. The firm, which was founded in 1992 by notable private equity ...
. 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 division acquired the franchise in 2016.


Influence

Some commentators have called ''Soul Train'' a "black ''
American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...
''", 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 television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...
, 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 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 Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
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, that the genre was one that he did not understand. As rap continued to move further toward hardcore hip hop, Cornelius admitted to being frightened by the antics of groups such as
Public Enemy Public Enemy is an American Hip-hop, hip hop group formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985 by Chuck D and Flavor Flav. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as Racism in the United States, American r ...
.See the 2010 documentary ''Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America''. 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'' sketch titled ''Old Train'', 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, Darnell Williams, Cheryl Song, Louie "Ski" Carr, Alfie Lewis, Pat Davis ("Madam Butterfly"), Alise Mekhail, Andrea N. Miles, Carmen Electra,
Nick Cannon Nicholas Scott Cannon (born October 8, 1980) is an American comedian, television presenter, actor, and rapper. In television, he began his career as a teenager on Nickelodeon's '' All That'' before going on to host '' The Nick Cannon Show'', '' ...
, Vivica A. Fox, MC Hammer, Jermaine Stewart, Heather Hunter, Fred Berry, Laurieann Gibson, Pebbles, and NFL legend Walter Payton were among those who got noticed dancing on the program over the years. Two former dancers,
Jody Watley Jody Vanessa Watley (born January 30, 1959) is an American singer, songwriter and producer whose music crosses genres including pop, R&B, jazz, dance and electronic soul.Paoletta, Michael (February 22, 2003) "Watley Relaxes In The Setting of The ...
and Jeffrey Daniel, enjoyed years of success as members of the R&B group Shalamar 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, an acronym for "Sound of Los Angeles Records". The label played a major role in developing a funk ...
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 (whom Don Cornelius knew from his time in Chicago) and Franklyn Ajaye (known in the 1970s for being a star of the hit movie '' Car Wash''), 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!" In 2019, BET selected various historic guest stars as ''Most Memorable Soul Train Performances''. The list included
Gladys Knight Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Knight recorded hits through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with her family group Gladys Knight & the Pips, which included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and cousins Will ...
and
The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5, later known as the Jacksons, are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was formed in Gary, Indiana in 1964, and originally consisted of brothers Jackie, Ti ...
, among others.


British version

In 1985, Cornelius gave permission for a version of the show in the United Kingdom. The British version, hosted by former ''Soul Train'' dancer and member of Shalamar Jeffrey Daniel, was titled ''620 Soul Train'' and ran for one series on
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
.


Spin-offs

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, before emerging again years later. 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 by the
Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the name of two American labor unions representing writers in film, television, radio, and online media: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is headquartered in New York City and is affiliated wit ...
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. In November 2023, the ''Soul Train Spirit of Soul'' presentation was resurrected; singer Janelle Monáe was cited for its ''Spirit of Soul'' award.


Homage

The 2024 fantasy-comedy film '' Beetlejuice Beetlejuice'' includes a sequence that pays direct homage to the show, including a group of people in the afterlife dancing on a train platform as they await the arrival of the "Soul Train", conducted by a entity strongly resembling Cornelius as music evocative of ''Soul Train's'' theme plays on the soundtrack.


Theme music

''Soul Train'' used various original and current music for theme songs during its run, including * 1971–1973: "Hot Potato" by the Rinkydinks, produced in 1962 by Bobby and Danny Robinson and written by King Curtis. It was later redone by The Rimshots as "Soul Train, Parts 1 & 2". * 1973–1975: " TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)", composed by Gamble and Huff and recorded by MFSB with vocals by The Three Degrees. 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, 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 1978 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only three years after it was founded with ''Soul Train'' television show host and creator Do ...
* 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, whose version appears in their 1980 album ''
Imagination Imagination is the production of sensations, feelings and thoughts informing oneself. These experiences can be re-creations of past experiences, such as vivid memories with imagined changes, or completely invented and possibly fantastic scenes ...
.'' * 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 Martin 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 ...
* 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 * 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 1978 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only three years after it was founded with ''Soul Train'' television show host and creator Do ...
* Soul Train Music Awards * '' American Soul'', a 2019 TV series on BET based on ''Soul Train'' * ''
American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...
'' * '' Showtime at the Apollo'' * '' The Midnight Special'' * '' Don Kirshner's Rock Concert'' * '' Electric Circus'' * '' The Party Machine with Nia Peeples'' * '' Sherman's Showcase'', a parody of the series and Cornelius * '' Soul!''


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 American 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 Original programming by local channels in Chicago