NEW YORK (AP) – When the funk and disco group Skyy released its song “Skyyzoo” in 1980, the sound of kazoos being played provided some gentle backup.

But this time around the group’s female vocalists are hoping the kazoos will drown them out.

The women were preparing Thursday to lead an attempt to break the world record for the largest kazoo ensemble. Organizers were hoping to sign up 3,000 impromptu players for the evening attempt in Harlem.

The current record was set this past New Year’s Eve in Rochester, where 2,600 people gathered to play kazoos shortly before midnight. Before that, The Quincy Park Band had held the record for gathering 1,791 players in Quincy, Ill., in 2004.

The Harlem kazooers, expected to play along as The Ladies of Skyy perform “Skyyzoo,” will have to be “proficient” players, work under the direction of a conductor and play for at least five minutes, said Guinness World Records spokeswoman Laura Plunkett.

Of course, when it comes to kazoos, the ultimate egalitarian instrument, “proficient” is relative.

“While there’s skill involved, it’s not such a difficult instrument to play,” Plunkett said.

Even if the Harlem try succeeds, the new record may not hold for long: The organizers of a festival in Matthews, N.C., reportedly are planning their own attempt for Aug. 31.

With even utter amateurs able to toot one with little instruction, the kazoo has been a classic American instrument since it was invented in the 1840s. The Original American Kazoo Co., established in 1916, still produces the toy players and maintains a museum in the northwest New York community of Eden.