Soul Train

It's a shame that the Soul Train of yesteryear is gone. But that is no reason to desperately keep the current show that bears its name on the air.

With every lipsynched performance, this show grows more pitiful.

With every painfully easy Scramble Board (what could ARMY J LBGEI possibly spell?!), the intelligence of all parties involved is insulted. With every phony host who conducts a even phonier interview, I feel more and more like I'm watching an infomercial.

That show is a mere husk of what it once was. It has no cultural significance whatsoever and should be laid to rest in order to preserve the integrity of its namesake, the REAL "Soul Train" - the one with REAL singers, REAL dancers, and true artistic merit.

I totally agree with the poster below. Lately they've been showing "The Best of Soul Train" which I'm so excited about because I've been wondering if they were ever going to re-air the classic episodes again. Well, I'm happy to say that they are and it's great! They show the '70s and the '80s. The '80s was my time growing up and I absolutely loved the show as a little kid. The dancers, the music, Don Cornelius, and of course that animated train during the opening sequence and before commercials :p. Awesome times! Big question for anyone who could help me out, WHEN IS SOUL TRAIN '70S AND '80S COMING TO DVD, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. ;) Thanks

Soul Train was a long running syndication show that featured the top names in R & B and later rap music as well as the top hits for the Soul Train Dancers to dance to. Don Cornelius. the show's creator, host and packager was the key to the show's success. He was cool, calm and classy and was very knowledgeable about the genre and it showed in his interviews with the guests. There were also two best known features on Soul Train, The Scramble Board and the Soul Train Line, which gave the dancers an opportunity to showcase their talent. Also worth mentioning is the show's announcer, Sid McCoy, who also had some small roles in TV shows.

Unfortunately, the show went downhill after Cornelius decided to step down as host, turning things over to a weekly guest host before Mystro Clark, Shemar Moore and Dorian Gregory became permanent hosts. They weren't as good as Cornelius but there were plenty of talented guest stars and dancers. I'll close by quoting Cornelius' traditional closing "We wish you love, peace, and soul."

I was only able to catch episodes of "Soul Train" sporadically throughout the '70s and '80s. It was broadcast CBC, channel 5, here in Toronto for about a season on Saturday mornings, then disappeared. It wasn't until the early '90s that I was able to catch this show on WPIX-New York, and WGN-Chicago, that were available on cable here. One thing is for sure, the energy of this show dropped off a lot after the '80s. It was still enjoyable to watch, but didn't have the same electricity that the show had throughout the '70s and '80s. When Don Cornelius left the show and guest hosts appeared, it was not bad, but it further lost it's energy. For the current shows, it only looks like there is about a handful of people in the studio. In the '70s & '80s, the main dance-floor was packed, and there were dancers on the stage, which gave it a real club feel. Presently, it's just the dancers on the catwalks that are shown. When an artist is performing, that is when you see the main population of dancers on the dance-floor. They don't dance anymore. Everyone just stands and watches the artist that is on the stage. Lately, CW23, out of Buffalo is playing "The Best Of Soul Train" on Sundays at midnight. This is great to see and experience the show all over again from the '70s and '80s. The great thing about "Soul Train" was that is showed R&B, Hip Hop and Pop acts that you wouldn't see on other shows like "American Bandstand", or here in Toronto, it was "Boogie" and later on, "Electric Circus". I have been a fan of R&B and Hip Hop for years, and always enjoyed seeing the acts that you wouldn't see anywhere else, except for maybe on BET. Even with this, there were artists showcased on "Soul Train" that never saw their videos broadcast on BET. It's too bad that the show has not maintained the same energy, but then again, the music biz, and Hip Hop/R&B have changed drastically over the years. I am glad to see that "The Best Of Soul Train" is airing once again. It's a great blast from the past, when it was all about the music, and not so much about how much money could be made from an artist or song.

This show used to knock American Bandstand off the block all through the seventies. The clothes, music, dancing, and general all round energy were here when this show started. But when Don Cornelius cut off his afro and the girls started doing bump and grind moves in hoochie mama spandex you knew the party was over.