As a person you will always remember certain things about your childhood, things you grew up on and will be a staple in your memory, Soul Train was one of those. I remember watching Soul Train EVERY Saturday; Soul Train was like an institution, it was as common to the Black Diaspora as Sunday Dinner and Big Momma!
Everybody who was anybody who wanted to reach out to the Black market went on Soul Train. God rest his soul, James Brown appeared in 1972 and could not believe that Don Cornelius was the man behind the Train!!! Often called the "the black Dick Clark," Don Cornelius was somewhat of an introvert with very few real friends. He came from a humble background in the Southside of Chicago, a Vietnam vet, he went into broadcasting and then founded Soul Train. The Rev Jesse Jackson said "Don gave people a chance to feel good about themselves...He's right up there with any civil rights leader of our generation..."
Soul Train changed the landscape of music and expanded the fanbase of a lot of musicians. Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder, regulars on the Soul Train, talked about how their record sales exploded after making appearances. Simply put, Don "had a burning desire to see black people depicted on television in a positive light."
Much like most of the TV shows, organizations, Hollywood, etc that neglected Blacks throughout the 20th Century, Soul Train was modeled after the very popular American Bandstand but promoted artists like James Brown, Jackson Five, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and Smokey Robinson. Don understood the importance of ownership within the Black community and wanted something for Blacks that no one could take away!
Despite the difficulty in securing advertising, even into its last days, its popularity grew in each of its 35 years in syndication (the longest running syndicated show ever on TV). The artists that appeared on Soul Train and those that got their big break there (O'Jays, Destiny's Child, etc) were only a small part of what made Soul Train a permanent staple in the Black culture for years to come.
When you are at a wedding, outside of the Electric Slide, what HAS to happen before the wedding is officially over? That is right, you guessed it (you better had!), a Soul Train Line!!! The famous Soul Train line where 2 lines were formed, one for the males and the other for the females, and they would "dance" their way down the line. As a kid, I learned all the latest dance moves like the crazy penguin, the robot and this is where Michael Jackson learned how to the the moonwalk. That is right, Michael Jackson learned the moonwalk from the Soul Train dancers. Click here for a Soul Train line sample featuring a song by Whitney Houston!
Speaking of the soul train dancers, people like Rosie Perez, Darnell Williams, Carmen Electra, Nick Cannon, MC Hammer, Jermaine Stewart, Fred "Rerun" Berry, Pebbles, and Walter Payton started off, lived on, or appeared at least once as a Soul Train dancer and went on to other endeavors as a result of being on the show. The famous R&B group Shalamar was formed by Soul Train dancers Jody Watley, Jeffery Daniel and another crooner by the name of Howard Hewitt.
And what about the Soul Train Scramble Board!!! Now I am not saying the dancers were not smart, but they NEVER misspelled a name on the scramble board in all 35 years!!! You know what else Soul Train did no one really talks about, Soul Train was one of the very few shows that had commercials for Black-owned businesses like AfroSheen and Ebony magazine.
Here is Whitney Houston on Soul Train performing "How Will I Know" I think one of my favorite performances on Soul Train (and I do have many) was when New Edition performed "If It Isn't Love" and they were in all black!!!
As the last Soul Train pulled into the station, I want to say thank you Don for providing a voice and a vehicle for Black artists at a time when Black artists were not getting the play or recognition for the wonderful music they were putting out. Thank you Don for providing a lane for Black-owned businesses to advertise their products. Thank you Don for providing opportunities outside of your show for people who appeared on your show and made it what it was. Thank you Don for being a resource for new fashion, fads, and the hottest new dance moves. Thank you Don for being a Gentleman, an entrepreneur, and a role model that lived out your dreams and showed the rest of Black America they could live out theirs without selling out, being someone they are not, or acting a fool and doing anything for a dollar. Thank you Don Cornelius and I want to do one more thing...
I WISH YOU LOVE, PEACE, AND SOOUULLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!
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