Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America on VH1 Rock Docs Review

One night as I was channel surfing to see what was good on TV I came across a re-broadcast of a music documentary special. It was on VH1 as part of their Rock Docs series. They were commemorating the 40^th anniversary of 'Soul Train.' Now it has become the longest running syndicated television show that aired from 1970 to 2006. For thirty-five years Soul Train has been innovative and influential, even affecting the music and dance of today's generation. The show was inspired by American Bandstand, yet it was radically different ethnically, culturally and of course musically. I remembered watching Soul Train, because I thought American Bandstand was too boring, bland, and conservative. On the other hand, Soul Train was exciting, colorful and fun. I absolutely loved the dancing. The musical guests were always great, especially when they had the Jackson 5 and Barry White.

The Early Years in Chicago and LA

"Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America" is that and more. You are taken on a 90-minute journey back into time from its early beginnings with its creator, executive producer and host, Don Cornelius. He wanted a show much like American Bandstand for the black audience. There was nothing for them on TV at the time. Soul Train aired "live" on WCIU in Chicago. It was an instant hit. One year later the show relocated to Los Angeles with a bigger studio and more syndicated television stations in major metropolitan cities with a significant black population such as Oakland, California; Washington D.C., Detroit, Baltimore, and others. One of the most popular features of Soul Train has always been their dancers. The ones from Los Angeles were recruited from recreational centers throughout the area. Some of the dancers became famous as a result of the show.

The Soul Train Dancers

Throughout the documentary there is featured commentary from music luminaries such as Aretha Franklin, Smokey Robinson, Chaka Khan, Sly Stone to the more current Snoop Dogg. The actor Terrence Howard narrates in between the interviews and various film clips. One of the best features in this program is when some of the former Soul Train dancers speak of their experiences. The actress Rosie Perez was a Soul Train dancer. There was an interesting clip where she is showing her unique style of East Coast dancing. Don Cornelius wasn't too keen on it. Jodie Watley got her start on Soul Train at the age of 14. She and fellow Soul Train dancer, Jeffrey Daniel, would later become the hit singing group Shalamar. According to Watley the dancers did not get paid to be on the show. They merely did it for the mass exposure and the love of dance. The shows were taped on a weekend from 9 a.m. until the evening. All the dancers had to provide their own fashions, hairstyle and make-up. There were no choreographers or stylists on the set. What you saw from these dancers strictly came from them.

Musical Guest Stars

Soul Train is credited with the creation of the disco era music group Shalamar. Shalamar's Jeffrey Daniels introduced a dance on the show called the "backslide" that would catapult Michael Jackson into another stratosphere of superstardom. This dance would also become known as the famous "moonwalk." I was amazed to see a lot of dance moves now be commonly incorporated into hip hop and other contemporary dance styles. Yet, all of these dance moves came from the 70s and 80s, thanks to these Soul Train dancers. Speaking of Michael Jackson, there was a stellar film clip shown with him doing "the robot" when he was performing with the Jackson 5. It was great to see Barry White conduct the Love Unlimited Orchestra while he performed one of his hit songs. Unlike American Bandstand, Soul Train did have live performances from time to time. Otherwise, the performers usually had to lip-synch their hit song, because it was too expensive at the time to go "live".

Soul Train Line and the Show's End of the Line

By far the most famous feature of all on Soul Train was the ever popular "Soul Train Line". This was a favorite of mine. You see this type of line dance from other cultures and eras. However, this one had its own special flavor. It was a great way to see the dancers showcased in a solo performance. One thing some of the dancers stated was how they fought to get in front of the camera when the red light was on. That meant they would be shown in living rooms and TV rooms across the country.

As the ride on the Soul Train express went into further time periods hip hop and rap were coming onto the music scene. Don Cornelius was and is a purist at heart with traditional soul and R&B music. He was not very welcoming to these new brash artists. Eventually they were featured on the show. Cornelius stepped down from hosting in the mid 90s. A variety of other hosts came and went. The show ended its syndication in 2006 as Soul Train pulled into the station for its last time. One of the signature phrases from Don Cornelius at the end of every show was "Wishing you Peace, Love and Soul!" Thanks for a great ride.

SOURCES:

VH1 Rock Docs - Ep. 126 "Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America", VH1

Steve Jones, "It's the 'Sooouuuullll Train' documentary! On VH1, honey!", USA TODAY

The Jackson 5 - Dancing Machine - Soul Train 1973, Google Videos