Len Barry
{{Short description|American musical artist (1942–2020)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2016}}
{{More citations needed|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Len Barry
| image = Len Barry.jpg
| caption = Barry in 1990
| background = solo_singer
| birth_name = Leonard Warren Borisoff
| birth_date = {{birth date|1942|6|12}}
| birth_place = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|11|5|1942|6|12}}
| death_place = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
| genre = Blue-eyed soul{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=mn0000242573|accessdate=September 12, 2017}}
| occupation = {{hlist|Musician|songwriter|record producer}}
| instrument = Vocals
| years_active = 1958–2020
| label = {{hlist|Cameo-Parkway|Brunswick|RCA|Decca}}
| associated_acts = The Dovells
}}
Leonard Warren Borisoff (June 12, 1942 – November 5, 2020),{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/20/arts/music/len-barry-dead.html |title=Len Barry, 78, Dies; Soulful Voice of 'Bristol Stomp' and '1-2-3'|last=Sandomir|first=Richard|date=November 20, 2020|accessdate=March 20, 2021|newspaper=The New York Times}} known professionally by the stage name Len Barry, was an American singer, songwriter, lyricist, record producer, author, and poet.
Life and career
Born on June 12, 1942, and raised in Philadelphia,{{cite news |title= Today in history |publisher= ABC News |date= June 12, 2014 |url= https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/today-history-24100059?singlePage=true |agency= Associated Press}} Barry had little thought of a show business career while still in school. Instead, he aspired to become a professional basketball player upon his graduation. It was not until he entered military service and had occasion to sing with the US Coast Guard band at Cape May, New Jersey, and was so encouraged by the response of his military audiences, that he decided to make music a career.
Upon his discharge from military service, Barry returned home to Philadelphia and formed the Dovells. Barry was the lead singer, appearing on all of the group's best-selling records, such as "Bristol Stomp", "Hully Gully Baby", and "You Can't Sit Down", among others. "Bristol Stomp" sold over one million copies and was awarded a RIAA gold disc.{{cite book
| first= Joseph
| last= Murrells
| year= 1978
| title= The Book of Golden Discs
| edition= 2nd
| publisher= Barrie and Jenkins Ltd
| location= London
| page= [https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/134 134 & 186]
| isbn= 0-214-20512-6
| url-access= registration
| url= https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/134
}} As a Dovell, he also toured with James Brown. Barry also made film appearances with the Dovells in films such as Don't Knock the Twist and toured the UK with the Motown Revue. Barry also had guest appearances on US television on Bandstand and later American Bandstand, Shindig, and Hullabaloo. Soon after leaving the group, Barry recorded his first solo single, "Lip Sync".
As someone who sang rhythm and blues, he recorded hits in 1965 and 1966 for Decca Records in the US and released by Brunswick Records: "1-2-3", "Like a Baby", and "I Struck It Rich", a song he wrote with Leon Huff of the Philadelphia International Records producers, Gamble and Huff.
His first two hits also made the Top Ten of the UK Singles Chart. "1-2-3" reached number three.{{cite book
| first= David
| last= Roberts
| year= 2006
| title= British Hit Singles & Albums
| edition= 19th
| publisher= Guinness World Records Limited
| location= London
| isbn= 1-904994-10-5
| page= 43}} Those songs also peaked at number 2 and 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart respectively. "1-2-3" sold over four million copies, and gave Barry his second RIAA gold disc and a Grammy Award nomination for Contemporary Rock & Roll Male Vocal Performance. Both "1-2-3" and "Like a Baby" were composed by Barry, John Madara, and David White.
He performed at the Apollo Theatre in New York; the Howard Theatre in Washington, D.C.; The Regal Chicago, Chicago; Illinois; The Fox Theatre (Detroit) in Detroit, Michigan; and The Uptown (Philadelphia), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He also toured with Sam Cooke, The Motown Revue in the United Kingdom, and appeared on Top of the Pops.
He became a major singing star in the United Kingdom. Highlights of his European tour included featured performances at the London Palladium and Royal Albert Hall as well as numerous appearances throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Barry's respect for the Native American culture led him to write and produce the instrumental "Keem-O-Sabe".{{cite web|url=http://www.lenbarry.com/bio.htm |title=Len Barry's Bio Page |publisher=Lenbarry.com |access-date=January 26, 2014}} The song went to number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969 for The Electric Indian.{{cite book|title=The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits|edition=8th|publisher=Billboard Books|author=Joel Whitburn|author-link=Joel Whitburn|date=2004|isbn=9780823074990}}
He also did writing and production work with WMOT Productions.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1050984/|title=Len Barry|publisher=Internet Movie Database|access-date=January 27, 2014}} With Bobby Eli he helped write the hit singles "Zoom" for Fat Larry's Band{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/song/zoom-mt0031916942 |title=Zoom - Fat Larry's Band | Listen, Appearances, Song Review |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=January 26, 2014}} and "Love Town" for Booker Newberry III.{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/song/love-town-mt0002078594 |title=Love Town - Booker Newberry III | Listen, Appearances, Song Review |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=January 26, 2014}}
In May 2008, Barry reinvented himself as an author with the publication of the novel, Black-Like-Me. The storyline involved a pair of Caucasian siblings growing up in a largely African-American neighborhood, accepted by some, rejected by others.{{cite book|title=BLACK-LIKE-ME: Len Barry, Spencer Barry: 9781904408345: Amazon.com: Books |date=May 2, 2008 |isbn=978-1904408345 |last1=Barry |first1=Len |last2=Borisoff |first2=Spencer |last3=Borisoff |first3=Leonard |last4=Barry |first4=Spencer |publisher=Bank House Books }}
In 2011, Barry was featured in the PBS Series My Music: Rock, Pop & Doo Wop.{{Cite web|url=https://www.kpbs.org/news/2011/mar/03/rock-pop-and-doo-wop-my-music/|title=Rock, Pop And Doo Wop (My Music)|website=Kpbs.org|date=March 3, 2011 |access-date=2020-05-10}}
Len Barry died on November 5, 2020, at Nazareth Hospital in Philadelphia. The cause was myelodysplasia, or cancer of the bone marrow.{{cite news |title= Len Barry, '1-2-3' and 'Bristol Stomp' Singer, Dies |publisher= Best Classic Bands|date= November 6, 2020 |url= https://bestclassicbands.com/len-barry-obituary-123-bristol-stomp-dovells-11-6-20/ }}{{cite news |title= Len Barry, 1960s rock 'n roll recording star and lead voice of the Dovells, dies at 78 |publisher= Philadelphia Inquirer|date= November 6, 2020 |url= https://www.inquirer.com/obituaries/len-barry-singer-song-writer-record-producer-philly-teeny-boppers-dick-clark-dies-died-obituary-obituaries-20201106.html }}
Discography
=Albums=
- 1-2-3 (1965) - Decca Records
- My Kind of Soul (1967) - RCA Records
- Ups and Downs (1972) - Buddah Records
- More from the 123 Man (1982) - Bulldog{{cite web|url=http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/barry_len/albums.jhtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041127113001/http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/barry_len/albums.jhtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 27, 2004 |title=Len Barry Latest Albums | MTV |publisher=VH1 |access-date=January 26, 2014}}
=Singles=
==As lead singer with The Dovells==
(See separate Wikipedia article for The Dovells for full discography)
| class="wikitable" |
| rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Single ! colspan="2"| Chart position |
|---|
| US
! AU |
| 1961
| style="text-align:center;"|2 | style="text-align:center;"|70 |
| rowspan="3"|1962
|"The New Continental" | style="text-align:center;"|37 | style="text-align:center;"|— |
| "Bristol Twisting Annie"
| style="text-align:center;"|27 | style="text-align:center;"|— |
| "Hully Gully Baby"
| style="text-align:center;"|25 | style="text-align:center;"|— |
| 1963
| style="text-align:center;"|3 | style="text-align:center;"|— |
==Solo singles discography==
| class="wikitable" |
| rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Single (A-side, B-side) ! colspan="4"| Chart position ! rowspan="2"| Album |
|---|
| US{{cite web|url=https://www.musicvf.com/Len+Barry.art#gsc.tab=0|title=Len Barry Songs - Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography|website=musicvf.com|accessdate=April 18, 2025}}
! UK ! AU ! Can |
| rowspan="3"|1964
|"Don't Come Back" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"|Len Barry Sings with the Dovells |
| "Hearts Are Trump" b/w "Little White House" Original release on Cameo | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| "Let's Do It Again" b/w "Happy Days" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| align="left"|Non-album singles |
| rowspan="2"|1965
|"Lip Sync" | style="text-align:center;"|84 | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="3"|1-2-3 |
| "1-2-3" b/w "Bullseye" | style="text-align:center;"|2 | style="text-align:center;"|3 | style="text-align:center;"|7 | style="text-align:center;"|3 |
| rowspan="6"|1966
|"Like a Baby" | style="text-align:center;"|27 | style="text-align:center;"|10 | style="text-align:center;"|31 | style="text-align:center;" |
| "Hearts Are Trump" b/w "Little White House" Second release on Parkway | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| align="left"|Len Barry Sings with the Dovells |
| "Somewhere" b/w "It's a Crying Shame" | style="text-align:center;"|26 | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;"|52
| style="text-align:center;"|28 | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="3"|Non-album singles |
| "It's That Time of The Year" b/w "Happily Ever After" | style="text-align:center;"|91 | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;"|82
| style="text-align:center;"|84 |
| "I Struck It Rich" b/w "Love Is" | style="text-align:center;"|98 | style="text-align:center;"|55{{Efn|Chart position is from the official UK "Breakers List".|name=fn2|group=upper-alpha}} | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| "You Baby" b/w "Would I Love You" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| align="left"|1-2-3 |
| rowspan="3"|1967
|"The Moving Finger Writes" | style="text-align:center;"|124 | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| align="left"|My Kind of Soul |
| "All Those Memories" b/w "Rainy Side of the Street" (from My Kind of Soul) | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="9"|Non-album singles |
| "Come Rain or Shine" b/w "The ABC'S of Love" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| rowspan="4"|1968
|"Sweet and Funky" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| "456 (Now I'm Alone)" b/w "Funky Night" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| "Christopher Columbus" b/w "You're My Picasso Baby" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| "A Child Is Born" b/w "Wouldn't It Be Beautiful" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| rowspan="2"|1969
|"Put Out the Fire" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| "Keem-O-Sabe" b/w "This Old World" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| 1970
|"Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| rowspan="2"|1972
|"Diggin' Life" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| align="left"|Ups and Downs |
| "1-2-3" b/w "You Baby" Chart reentry in UK | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;"|52
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| align="left"|1-2-3 |
| 1973
|"Heaven + Earth" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"|Non-album singles |
| 2006
|"I'm in Love" | style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
| style="text-align:center;" |
See also
References
{{notelist-ua}}
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=mn0000242573}}
- {{discogs artist}}
- [https://www.billboard.com/music/len-barry Billboard: Len Barry Chart History]
- [http://www.45cat.com/artist/len-barry/all Entry at 45cat.com]
- [http://www.oldies.com/artist-biography/Len-Barry.html Oldies.com biography]
- [http://www.bigvjamboree.com/LenBarrySoulMan.htm BIG V JAMBOREE site] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110919092942/http://www.bigvjamboree.com/LenBarrySoulMan.htm |date=September 19, 2011 }}
- [http://www.awardsandshows.com/features/grammy-awards-1966-241.html Grammy Awards 1966]
- [https://www.amazon.com/Prose-Cons-Len-Barry/dp/1950729060 Len Barry's 'Prose & Cons: Advice From a Music Legend Who's Seen It All: Question Everything']
- [https://www.facebook.com/pg/OfficialLenBarry/ Facebook: The Official Len Barry Page]
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GEhNEQoErw YouTube: 'The Len Barry Story' (documentary - full movie)]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barry, Len}}
Category:American male singers
Category:Jewish American songwriters
Category:Jewish American singers
Category:Military personnel from Philadelphia
Category:Singers from Philadelphia
Category:Decca Records artists
Category:Songwriters from Pennsylvania
Category:American rhythm and blues singers