Black History Month

Resting in Love, Peace, and Soul

It's sad that on the first day of Black History Month, one our icons, Don Cornelius, is found, dead, of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. May he finally get the peace he had been unable to get in this life. He will truly be missed.

What is your favorite Soul Train memory?

I was barely 10 when I first started diggin' "Soul Train."

Back then, I didn't know exactly what deep-voiced Don Cornelius meant when he called the show "the hippest trip in America."

But I figured any show that featured an animated graphic of a dancing train, bobbing up and down like a caterpillar on caffeine, just had to be cool.

And who could forget the opening credits, where the announcer transformed his voice into a train whistle: "Soouuuuul Train!" The show laid the rails of a cultural revolution. It was very much a part of my musical history, before cable (BET, MTV, VH1), before Solid Gold, etc.

This show was the centerpiece of my weekend. My sister and I used to get up early every saturday morning to watch cartoons and at 1130 we'd be anticipating the hippest trip in America- Soul Train, and we'd be dancing and singing the whole time. My mom never had to worry about where we were or what we were doing. she knew where we were-in the living room, in front of the tv.

Alot of singers got their start on Soul Train. Soul Train outlasted American Bandstand, showcasing acts that weren't even allowed on the show, that is until American Bandstand realized that Soul Train was filling a void ( and rising in the charts).  I remember watching Jody Watley and Jeffrey Daniels as soul train dancers before they became 2 thirds of the group Shalamar. I used to get my dances from there. They always had the newest dances. 

Thank you, Don Cornelius, for showcasing people that look like me and my sister.Thank you for  introducing hundreds of stars to the nation's multicultural TV audience.

What is your favorite Soul Train memory?