Routine Rewind - Get Funky

Welcome to the Routine Rewind series on the Diamond Dolls blog!

The Diamond Dolls after performing “Get Funky” at Lindy on the Rocks 2018.

Welcome to the Routine Rewind series on the Diamond Dolls blog! We will be taking a look back at some of our past routines and giving them a historical and cultural context covering things from song inspirations, artist highlights, discussing the origins of the dance styles, and more. Join us on the first of every month right here to follow this new series.

This month we are taking a look back at our routine “Get Funky” from 2018 choreographed by Lark Mervine.

The Inspiration

Lark’s ongoing love of Soul Train, and childhood fandom of the iconic funk band, Earth, Wind and Fire led her to dream of choreographing a routine to the band’s hit song “September.” In 2018 she fulfilled that dream with the Diamond Dolls’ session, “Get Funky!”


Inspiration for the routine came easily after watching hours of Soul Train clips, which at the time were primarily found on YouTube. Through teaching and performing the routine, Lark’s vision was to create a Soul Train-like number to engage audiences and showcase the joyous sounds of funk. Check out the clip below of an episode featuring the hit song, “September!”

Soul Train

Soul Train was an American TV show that aired nationally from 1971-2006. The music variety show, similar in nature to American Bandstand, was the first to prominently feature African American musical acts and dancers, and became one of the longest-running syndicated programs in American television history. Famed Chicago radio announcer Don Cornelius initially created and aired the show in 1970 on Chicago’s television station WCIU-TV. The show depicted a dance club environment and featured not only a variety of widely known musical performers, but professional and amateur dancers as well. Soul Train quickly caught the attention of George Johnson, founder and president of Johnson Products Company (a Black-owned hair-product manufacturer), and through his support enabled the program to shift to national syndication within a year. Soul Train’s success paralleled the rise and popularity of soul and funk music artists on records and radio shows. The show presented a positive image of Black culture as upbeat, exciting, and vibrant and garnered viewers from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities, and contributed to the growing prestige of African Americans and Black culture in mainstream America. 

“While the principle of the show was simple, it’s radicalism has been somewhat forgotten with age. Beneath the dazzling lights, bewitching performances, and cascading paisley, Soul Train was revolutionary in its depictions of black identity. Its foundation was rooted in resistance against a bigoted media and a bigoted culture more broadly, and it came of age in a time of tremendous upheaval and frustration, as poor economic conditions persisted even as the Civil Rights movement made advances. Soul Train’s message of black empowerment was urgent, despite its joyful and seemingly unserious exterior.” (Dazed Digital). 

Don Cornelius hosting the television show Soul Train. (Everett Collection)

Earth, Wind and Fire

Through the 1970s, Maurice White, founder and leader of the band Earth, Wind & Fire (EWF), helped evolve and revolutionize a new era of pop music. Rooted heavily in African and African-American styles, primarily jazz and R&B, “EWF combined high-caliber musicianship, wide-ranging musical genre eclecticism, and 70s multicultural spiritualism” (earthwindandfire.com). Maurice White, born December 19, 1941 in Memphis, TN, began his musical career in his church’s gospel choir and quickly found interest in percussion. While in high school he played gigs and landed his first professional performance with Booker T. Jones, of Booker T and the MGs. After graduating high school, he studied at the prestigious Chicago Conservatory of Music while playing gigs on the side. These gigs eventually led to a studio job as a percussionist for Chess Records and the opportunity to record with legends including Etta James, Fontella Bass, Billy Stewart, Willie Dixon, Sonny Stitt, and Ramsey Lewis, whose trio he joined in 1967. During this time he learned about performance, staging, as well as the African thumb piano, known as the Kalimba. This instrument went on to become a central sound in much of his work and can be prominently heard in many EWF songs. 

Earth, Wind & Fire’s Single “September”

In 1969 White left the Ramsey Lewis Trio and started a band with his two friends, Wade Flemons and Don Whitehead. Originally named the Salty Peppers, White later changed the band’s name to Earth, Wind & Fire, after the three elements in his astrological chart. This name change also represented his spiritual approach to music that transcended genres as he wanted his (and EWF’s) music to convey messages of universal love and harmony. The band grew from a trio and later included Michael Beal (guitar), Leslie Drayton, Chester Washington, and Alex Thomas (horns), Sherry Scott (vocals), Phillard Williams (percussion), and Verdine Williams (bass). EWF went on to sell over 90 million records and are one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time. They won six Grammys out of 17 nominations and four American Music Awards of 12 nominations. EWF has been inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, the NAACP Image Award Hall of Fame, and Hollywood’s Rockwalk, in addition to their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The song “September” was released as a single in 1978 and reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot R&B songs chart and No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song remains a staple of the band’s work and has been sampled, covered, remixed, and re-recorded countless times. Guitarist Al McKay, vocalist Maurice White, and songwriter Allee Willis composed the song together. While several theories claim significance of the date September 21, White claimed he simply chose the 21st due to how it sounded when sung. 

WATCH THE DENVER DIAMOND DOLLS PERFORM GET FUNKY AT LINDY ON THE ROCKS IN SEPTEMBER, 2018