You know what’s hip and happenin’? Soul Train. Feel the funk of the music of today when you switch your TV channel to Soul Train.
The show watched by millions started out in Chicago as the love child
of Don Cornelius, a disc jockey from the same city. Thanks to the
financial support of Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Johnson Products
Company, the show was expanded for the rest of the nation to watch. Don
Cornelius hosts the one-hour show, and opens up a window to black
culture some have not seen before. The show consists of a showcase of
popular black music artists; there’s disco, jazz, soul and R&B
played throughout the hour. Moreover, the hippest dance moves right now
are displayed by the dancers in the show. Meanwhile the latest fashion
trends are also in display. The people in the audience are not paid
dancers, instead they are guests of the show who have shown up to have
fun. The audience at home can enjoy watching people play the Soul Train
Scramble Board. A scramble of letters is set up for two guest dancers to
decipher the name of that night’s performer or a notable person in the
black history in sixty seconds. Another signature of the show is the
Soul Train Line. The Soul Train Line is perhaps one of the best reasons
to watch Soul Train.
Guests of the show line up in two lines opposite one another. Then when
it is a couple’s turn, the couple “meets up” in the center of the line
and dances down the aisle. This is where the guests can show the nation
their groovy dance moves and talent. Although couples often try to outdo
one another during the Soul Train Line, the show gives an aura of fun
and not of competition. The show is now being broad cast to 8 cities
nationwide: Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, Philadelphia,
Houston, Cleveland and Detroit. Catch Soul Train on the TV set and join
in the excitement until Don Cornelius ends the show with "...and as
always in parting, we wish you love, peace...and SOUL!"
This seems like such an interesting show. It's almost like it has a game show vibe to it. I love the ending line; it seems so fitting for the time and the show. What is interesting to me is the sudden swing of civil rights in the country during this time. In the 50s and 60s, there was a ton of discrimination against black people in the country. Now in the 70s, it almost seems like you aren't cool unless you're a black person. The show also features R&B and Jazz, which is definitely a staple of black culture. What do you think? What brought on the sudden change in the civil rights to now black culture being cool and more mainstream than the past 10 and 20 years?
This idea of a television show seems interesting. It must have had an influence on show in the 1980’s as well because you see a lot of shows where the entire cast is African-American. The Cosby Show is one example that I can think of. I wonder if it was still difficult to have a place as a black person in society at this time especially in Hollywood because the Civil Rights Act and desegregating was still so fresh. I feel like this also gave opportunity for the black people because it was an industry that could make money. Black people were probably waiting for this type of show. The show must have done well because there was an audience for it and also less competition in the industry.
Man, if only the soul train was still on today! This sounds like a pretty gnarly show and fits the 70's pretty well. The 70's seemed like a pretty funky decade and I could totally see this show being real popular then. It is crazy to see that a decade earlier the civil rights movement was occurring and now the soul train was airing on tv! Bet the south did not watch the soul train! It is also very encouraging to see that the soul train was very popular. If you had the opportunity to go watch the soul train live would you go?!
This seems like such an interesting show. It's almost like it has a game show vibe to it. I love the ending line; it seems so fitting for the time and the show. What is interesting to me is the sudden swing of civil rights in the country during this time. In the 50s and 60s, there was a ton of discrimination against black people in the country. Now in the 70s, it almost seems like you aren't cool unless you're a black person. The show also features R&B and Jazz, which is definitely a staple of black culture. What do you think? What brought on the sudden change in the civil rights to now black culture being cool and more mainstream than the past 10 and 20 years?
ReplyDeleteThis idea of a television show seems interesting. It must have had an influence on show in the 1980’s as well because you see a lot of shows where the entire cast is African-American. The Cosby Show is one example that I can think of. I wonder if it was still difficult to have a place as a black person in society at this time especially in Hollywood because the Civil Rights Act and desegregating was still so fresh. I feel like this also gave opportunity for the black people because it was an industry that could make money. Black people were probably waiting for this type of show. The show must have done well because there was an audience for it and also less competition in the industry.
ReplyDeleteMan, if only the soul train was still on today! This sounds like a pretty gnarly show and fits the 70's pretty well. The 70's seemed like a pretty funky decade and I could totally see this show being real popular then. It is crazy to see that a decade earlier the civil rights movement was occurring and now the soul train was airing on tv! Bet the south did not watch the soul train! It is also very encouraging to see that the soul train was very popular. If you had the opportunity to go watch the soul train live would you go?!
ReplyDelete