The Guinness World Record attempt for the largest Soul Train line takes place on Monday, February 13 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 4 p.m. For more information, tune in Monday to 900Am-WURD at for LIVE updates with The Neighborhood Leader's Heshimu Jaramogi @ 7:40 a.m. & 9:40 a.m.
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Philadelphia is set to honor the man behind the “hippest trip in America” with an attempt at breaking the world record for largest Soul Train line. Organizers envision the event as a way to commemorate the passing of Soul Train creator Don Cornelius—as well as offer a time for local Soul Train fans to gather, express ‘Philadelphia love’ and honor the city’s own special place in soul music history.
The idea for a world-record commemoration was sparked on Facebook, where interest in organizing such an attempt in Philadelphia went viral. The current record – of 211 people -- is held by a group of high school students, staff and alumni in Berkley, Calif. “Considering how Philly responded to events like Live Aid, Unity Day, Million Woman March, Welcome America and our normal annual events, I thought, '211? We can do that',” said radio host Manwell Glenn, on whose Facebook page the idea took hatch. Unlike last week’s spontaneous and flash-mob Soul Train lines in Chicago and New York respectively, Philadelphia’s effort is designed and organized to make a statement: There is no better place for world-wide recognition of soul music appreciation than the City of Brotherly love.
“Don Cornelius and Soul Train is synonymous with our childhood,” recalled Glenn, 50. “It reminds me of Saturdays when all of us gathered around the TV, watching Sol Train, doing the dance steps, pointing out our favorite dancers, the going outside and try and mimic the 'Robot' (dance) and everything. Yeah, we would laugh at some of the cloths...it just makes me feel good about an era in my life and a time when I was young, happy and carefree. I was a teenager, and his death reminded me of all of those moments, and my friends who aren't here now. It made me reminisce, and I want to share that feel good moment.”
Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff recorded "TSOP" (The Sound of Philadelphia) with MFSB, the Philadelphia International Records house band, and the Three Degrees singing the vocal parts in 1974. Within months, the song hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and on the Hot Soul Singles chart—and Cornelius, according to Huff, regretted that he didn't let the duo use "Soul Train" in the tune's official title. Cornelius, 75, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Wednesday. He had suffered from health problems, a difficult divorce, and had pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor spousal battery charge in 2009.
“It’s Soul Train and Don Cornelius—everybody wants to get involved,” said Glenn. The fee to apply to Guinness World Records, which accepted the group’s application on Tue., Feb. 7, was promptly pledged by a group of sponsors and Radio One will serve as the radio host for the event.
The mass Soul Train dance event will take place on Monday, February 13 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (time pending)—the same day in which a memorial service for Cornelius is scheduled to take place in Los Angeles. For more information, listen to Radio One's 107.9 WRNB from 10am-3pm or visit Facebook: The Philly World Record Soul Train Line Gang at https://www.facebook.com/groups/169422106502134/?notif_t=group_r2j
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For the latest information, visit Facebook: The Philly World Record Soul Train Line Gang: https://www.facebook.com/groups/169422106502134/?notif_t=group_r2j
Event organizers advise the following:
Philly World Record Soul Train Participants MUST BE IN LINE BY 4:30 p.m. to be part of the World Record attempt!!! (Otherwise, party to the side and cheer us on!) Dancers should plan to stay in the Soul Train line until the end of the competition. We're not done until the first person in line gets all the way back up to the top. So plan for at least an hour's stay or longer. Dancers will go in pairs. The people in line have to keep moving, and the couple dancing have to dance all the way down the line—no running or walking. Just a few rules we have to follow to make sure THE RECORD IS OURS!!! We plan to have a CARD on hand Monday at the Art Museum that the public can sign for WHITNEY HOUSTON. If you're at World Record attempt on Monday, please be sure to stop at the card to share your memories of her and condolescenes to her family. Thank you!
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Consider taking SEPTA to the Guinness World Record for largest Soul Train line on Monday, February 13 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 4 p.m. All of the following SEPTA Bus Routes stop within a couple of city blocks of the Rocky steps in the front of Philadelphia Museum of Art:
~SEPTA Bus Route 32 to 25th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue across from the Philadelphia Museum of Art
~SEPTA Bus Route 38 to Art Museum west entrance westbound or Eakins Oval eastbound
~SEPTA Bus Route 43 to Eakins Oval (Connections: Broad Street or Market-Frankford lines at Spring Garden station)
~SEPTA Bus Route 7 (Pier 70 to 33rd Dauphin) runs along 22nd Street & Pennsylvania Ave across from the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
~SEPTA Bus Route 48 (Front-Market to 27th-Allegheny) to 22th Street/23rd Street & Pennsylvania Avenue across from the Philadelphia Museum of Art
For SEPTA information, call (215) 580-7800 or visit http://www.septa.org/schedules/bus/index.html
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