However, I come back with mixed emotions. I'm sorry it has to be under such sad circumstances.ĪDOLFO QUINONES: Yes. And, Adolfo Quinones, welcome back to the program. We spoke with him a couple of years ago about the show's influence on music, dance and culture. Adolfo "Shabba Doo" Quinones was one of the original "Soul Train" dancers. Email us: You can also join the conversation on our website. I'm Don Cornelius, and as always in parting, we wish you love, peace and soul.ĬONAN: What did you learn from Don Cornelius and "Soul Train?" Give us a call: 80. Cornelius changed television and America in 1970 as the creator, host and producer of "Soul Train." He left that program in 1993 with his signature sign off.Īnd you can bet your last money, it's all gonna be a stone gas, honey. But this morning, police in Los Angeles found the body of Don Cornelius. We still hope to do that at another time. It truly was a stone gas, honey.We were going to talk with Christopher Weingarten from Spin magazine today about tweeting record reviews. Nevertheless, we should be forever grateful for the man who invited us along for a ride on the hippest trip in America. Sadly, at the age of 75 and plagued by health issues, Cornelius took his own life on February 1, 2012.
#LAST SOUL TRAIN SHOE SERIES#
The series was recently renewed for a second season. Amid the country’s troubles, there was a certain innocence then - and at the end of each episode, Don Cornelius wished us all “love, peace, and soul.”Īmerican Soul, a drama series chronicling a behind-the scenes look at the life and times of Don Cornelius, the Soul Train dancers and crew members, made its debut on the BET network on February 5, 2019. A sharp dresser since high school and a born innovator, Cornelius introduced young people to a form of “social media” that focused on style, music, dance, and social awareness. To this day, people form lines at parties, receptions and family reunions to get their groove on.īefore he struck gold as the creator/producer and dapper host of Soul Train, Don Cornelius worked jobs which included: insurance salesman, liquor store clerk, Chicago police officer, news reporter, radio announcer. Each week brought a freshness, sparked conversations, prompted searches for a certain outfit and forced desperate attempts to perfect the latest dance for an upcoming party.įinally, who can forget that oh-so-famous, oh-so-anticipated Soul Train line? And then, there was that rare moment when Don Cornelius himself danced down the line with Mary Wilson of the Supremes. His giant toothbrush was a sight to see, and future NFL legend Walter Payton could be counted on to move smoothly across the dance floor. Lil Joe Chism usually broke out with a prop or two. Pat Davis, a/k/a Madam Butterfly, often donned vintage clothing. By mere observation, we learned that the energetic and limber Damita Jo Freeman favored hot pants and doing the Robot. Viewers were always anxious to know what the dancers would be wearing or what the latest dance craze would be. Watley eventually found further success as a solo artist. Jody Watley, along with dance partner Jeffrey Daniel, morphed into music hitmakers as part of R&B group Shalamar. Others, like Jermaine Stewart, moved on to a career in singing. Some, such as Damita Jo Freeman and Rosie Perez, become choreographers. Several of the show’s dancers graduated to successful professions thanks to the visibility of their gifts.
In fact, artists were just as thrilled to meet these kids as the kids were to meet them. Sure, it was always exciting to see your favorite singer or group perform, but it became quite clear that the true stars of the show were the dancers. An appearance on Soul Train could turn a virtual unknown into an overnight sensation. The show helped launch (or boost) many careers.
Soul Train was approaching, carrying entertainers you might never get to see in a live concert, along with its regular passengers of equally entertaining dancers. Back in the ’70s, everything stopped on Saturday mornings for the average teenager because of an eagerness to perch themselves in front of the family’s floor model TV. After relocating to Los Angeles one year later, a national syndication juggernaut was born, transforming the lives of music artists, setting fashion trends and teaching dance moves like “The Bump” to people from coast to coast.Īs the nation struggled to regroup from the turmoil of the sixties and eventually navigate through the Watergate scandal, Don Cornelius found a way to bring teens and popular culture into our homes with a sense of unity. On August 17, 1970, Chicago radio announcer Don Cornelius premiered his brainchild Soul Train on WCIU-TV as a low-budget, local music-dance show featuring R&B crooner Jerry Butler, The Emotions and the Chi-Lites as its first guests.
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