Len Barry (born Leonard Borisoff, June 12, 1942, West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States) is a retired American vocalist, songwriter and record producer.
Background information
Birth name Leonard Borisoff
Born June 12, 1942 (1942-06-12) (age 69)
West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres Pop, Blue-eyed soul
Occupations Singer, songwriter
Years active 1958--82
Labels Brunswick, RCA, Decca
Associated acts The Dovells
Legacy:
The song "1-2-3" was featured on the soundtrack for the film Mr. Holland's Opus.
"1-2-3" was one of the songs that appeared in John Lennon's jukebox.
Motown Records sued the songwriters Len Barry and Dave White, claiming that "1-2-3" was a reworked copy of Holland-Dozier-Holland song "Ask Any Girl". The songwriters did admit to taking the composition (although it's this writer's opinion that the two songs DON'T sound alike) and the lawsuit led to Holland-Dozier-Holland getting equal credit for writing "1-2-3" as noted on the Billboard Top 10 official album.
In December 2005, Welsh singer-songwriter Cerys Matthews recorded a new version of "1-2-3" in Nashville, Tennessee.
In 1994, Scottish star, Edwyn Collins, sampled "1-2-3" for part of his hit "A Girl Like You".
