Classic Rant #667 (February 2, 2012): Soul Train Derails

I am sure you know that Don Cornelius, the affable host of the "Soul Train" dance and music show, died yesterday at 75 years of age, apparently a suicide.

Cornelius had many demons in his life, and I am not going to go into them now.

But for awhile in the 1970s and 1980s, he was to soul music what Dick Clark was to rock, pop and soul music.

I am going to take a different path than many who are eulogizing Cornelius, who I think had his heart in the right place with his show but to me, the show was the antithesis of what Clark tried to do with his show, and more importantly, what America was trying to do during the 1970s and 1980s.

"American Bandstand" was a staple on the ABC schedule for years, and while it highlighted the hit-making singers of its day, it did much, much more than that.

Clark fought to have both white and black dancers mingle among each other--and remember, the show began in the 1950s (Clark came on board after its creation), and segregation in all parts of life was the norm during that time period.

Clark didn't want an all-white show, and the guests and regulars were a mix of all races. Whatever was the hot song at the time denoted who would be a guest, not what the performer's color was.

"American Bandstand" featured a gaggle of dancers, and although blacks and whites generally danced with their own kind on the show, they still mingled out on the dance floor together.

This was a revolutionary experience back then. Blacks and whites were separated by law in many cases, so for Clark to insist that his show have both blacks and whites on it was revolutionary.

And remember, early on, "American Bandstand" was a daily show, so it was probably the first daily network show to feature such a mix of the races.

Fast forward to the late 1960s.

There was plenty of racial tension during this period, but few cared that "American Bandstand" and Clark's other shows, including "Where the Action Is," had blacks and whites on them each and every week.

There were dance shows a'plenty on the air, many of them locally produced, and few cared that black kids and white kids were dancing on the same floor.

"American Bandstand" was still hot, featuring black kids and white kids cheering on their pop heroes, and dancing to their music.

In New York, "American Bandstand" was preceded on another station by Cleveland's own "Upbeat," a similar type show on a much smaller budget, so you could generally watch at least two hours straight of this type of show in the New York area on a Saturday morning.

"Upbeat" ended, and there was a void, at least on New York television.

I am sure the same void was experienced on other stations around the country, which had their own dance shows but saw them pretty much evaporate during this period.

This void was filled by the syndicated "Soul Train."

"Soul Train" went back to the 1950s, but took it one step further.

"Soul Train" was segregated, at least in its earliest incarnation, and for many years afterward.

What Clark had fought so long and hard to have on his show--both blacks and whites dancing to the hit sounds of black and white artists--was turned upside down by "Soul Train."

With few exceptions during a large chunk of its run, the show featured an almost entirely black cast of dancers grooving to the sounds of an almost entirely black cadre of artists.

Sure, you might see one or two white dancers on the show--and you might see a white performer, but in a supplementary role, not as a group leader, such as with an act like Sly and the Family Stone--but generally, the dancers and artists were black.

This is the one bone I had to pick with the show. "American Bandstand" was integrated; "Soul Train" was pretty much segregated.

I am sure Cornelius--who was the show's host during most, but not all, of its run--and others associated with the show had their reasons for doing this, and I guess it had largely to do with their desire to make the show a showcase for black soul acts.

But why take a step backward when Clark's show represented a step forward?

Cornelius once said something to the affect that when Clark zigged, he zagged, and vice versa, so "Soul Train" was done as kind of the opposite to "American Bandstand" purposely.

But to Cornelius' credit, he did see that America was changing, and later on in the show's history, white acts and more white dancers were featured.

If I remember correctly, David Bowie even appeared on "Soul Train."

But as a chronicle of the times, I have always thought the show completely missed the point that Clark made with his show, that exclusion leads to hate and misunderstanding.

In his own way, Clark more closely followed the world that Martin Luther King wanted than Cornelius did.

But that aside, you can't beat the lineup of guests that "Soul Train" had, everybody from Al Green to the Jackson Five to later funk creations like Earth, Wind and Fire.

And if you want to see a selection of some of the greatest Afros and outfits and dance moves in TV history, you had to watch "Soul Train."

And Cornelius was one of the snappiest dressers ever on TV. He made Clark look like a hobo.

Like most of us, I was sorry to hear of Cornelius' untimely passion, but I have to think that "Soul Train" was a show that meant well, but missed the boat, at least early on, on the changing times we were experiencing in this country.

You probably won't find that viewpoint anywhere else, but that is just how I feel about the show.

Certainly, growing up in a mixed-race neighborhood has something to do with the way I feel, but to this day, I do think that "Soul Train" was pretty much misguided, although incredibly successful.

So R.I.P., Don, it's too bad you had to go so soon.