WCIU continues to be place for live, local soul and disco

WCIU continues to be place for live, local soul and disco
WCIU continues to be place for live, local soul and disco

WCIU continues to be place for live, local soul and disco

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Chicago’s presence on the soul music scene owes a lot to Soul Train, the venerable live performance and dance show that introduced national audiences to some of the biggest stars from the disco era. It was the place to be. It was that same local TV station-WCIU-that paved the way for a quirky, live soul music show in the early 1980s. The Chicago Party was hosted by Willie Woods and James Christopher, and every Saturday night for more than 20 weeks the co-hosts led audiences through a typical Saturday night at the club CopHerBox II. This included everything from live performances by unknown artists to swimsuit contests and even a little comedy. Numero Group has scoured the tapes to bring some of those artists and songs to light and the result is the compilation Ultra-High Frequencies: The Chicago Party. We talk with Numero Group’s Jon Kirby and The Chicago Party co-host and creator Willie Woods about the time. (Flickr/Vintage Fairytale)