So what's up! It's been a little while since I had a chance to talk to my Tokyo soulmates. But have no fear, I am still here.

Some people might remember about a year ago, I wrote several articles about the first bootleg Soul Train Cafe that opened up in Shibaura. Since then, after a long legal battle with Don Cornelius Productions (DCP) and as much bad press as I (among others) could put out, the producers of the club, Star Maker Japan Co. Ltd., changed the name to the Soul Star Cafe.

Now what they did was foul, this is true. But they did eventually come clean, and since then as far as I know, have been keeping their noses clean. So, I have no beefs with them now and I don't mean them any harm by bringing up this story. It's just part of the history that finally lead to the creation of the real Don Cornelius' Soul Train Cafe in Odaiba, and I didn't think the story would be complete without bringing it up.

When I first stepped into Star Maker's version of the Soul Train Cafe I had a feeling that something was not right. It seemed makeshift, fake. Still, the brothers I knew there were happy to be associated with what they thought was a legit Soul Train Cafe. Tokyo needed something like that, and we all were happy to see it. No one wanted to believe that it was not kosher, that Don C had nothing to do with it and was actually ticked off about the entire thing. I did my best to overlook the bad service and the ill manners of the Japanese staff.

But at one point it just went too far and I had to admit to myself that something was rotten in Shibaura. After seeing a letter from Don Cornelius himself, dated April 30, 1998, the real ugly truth finally came to the surface.

I should have known that any real Don C Production would not have been so shoddy. It wasn't long before the word was out, and in a bid to salvage the club and their reputations the owners decided to do the right thing and officially change the name -- and I respect them for it.

When I heard that Don C Productions had finally taken the steps to create a real Soul Train Cafe and clothing store in Tokyo's Odaiba, I had a slight feeling of accomplishment. This Soul Train Cafe Tokyo is the first one -- and I hear they have plans to build the next one in Vegas. Eventually they plan to spread out worldwide, like the Hard Rock Cafe. I think that's a great idea.

DJ Masako had the music going just right the night I checked the place out. She played hits from the late '70s and early '80s that included groups like Sun, The Barkays and a whole lot of others that brought back memories.

To add to the fun, Shameless DD and I ran into our old friends Brother Korn from the Bubble Gum Brothers and Toshinobu Kubota, who just happened to show up with their friend DJ Akasaka while we were stuffing our faces to the max from the soul food menu. (Mind-blowin' barbecue chicken wings, pork chops, mashed potatoes, corn bread and turnip greens. I will have to go back for the gumbo. We ran out of space on the table, as well as in our stomachs. But let me tell you, the food was gooood! And they are open for lunch!)

The Soul Train Cafe is a joint venture with Sumikin Bussan Corporation, one of Japan's largest and most successful global manufacturing, marketing and distributing conglomerates, so there is no messing with them now. The entire line of Soul Train clothing, currently being marketed through the Soul Train boutique right next door, was designed by Spanky H. Ando of Kowloon and Tokyo.

The official grand opening of both the Soul Train Cafe and the Soul Train boutique took place Aug. 23 and was officially hosted by Ryuhei Otsuka, managing director of Sumikin Bussan Corporation's Apparel Division, along with Cornelius, who was accompanied by several members of Soul Train's Los Angeles-based production team. Stevie Wonder just happened to be in town that night and stopped in to pay his respects, to everyone's surprise and delight.

The new place is located in the trendy Venus Fort shopping mall in Palette Town 1 Aomi, Koto-ku, Tokyo. Better known as Odaiba, the area is on its way to becoming a major entertainment spot.

One area of the mall is designed like a Hollywood movie set: Shops and restaurants lined up on either side of a large indoor street, with the ceiling painted to resemble a natural sky. During the day the lights are slowly adjusted to make it appear that the sun is going down; then the process is reversed. I've been to the original mall in Vegas, and they hired the same designers that made that one, so this place is an exact replica.

You got to check it out.

For information, call (03) 3599-2121.

Also, tomorrow, Oct. 9, 8 p.m.-5 a.m. at Yokohama Bay Hall, Dope Daddy presents Tight's CD release party. This event is dedicated to all those who support gangsta muzik and lowriding in Japan. They are going to have a lowrider show, murder dog rap battle, sexy lady contest and a fashion show. With DJs Ty, Ike, AV, TC, Ram Squad and more, this should be the bomb!