Len Barry - Black Like Me - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Grammy-nominated vocalist, songwriter and producer Len Barry was born Leonard Borisoff in West Philadelphia, PA in 1942. As a young man, Len dreamed of a career in professional basketball, but after enlisting in the service and a successful stint singing with the U.S. Coast Guard band in Cape May, NJ, he wisely switched his focus to music. After his enlistment was up, Barry returned to the City of Brotherly Love and formed The Dovells, who hit the charts with the likes of InchHully Gully Baby,Inch InchYou Can't Sit Down,Inch and the million-seller, InchBristol Stomp.Inch The latter two songs were co-written by Kal Mann, who penned the lyrics for Elvis Presley's InchTeddy BearInch and Chubby Checker's InchLet's Twist Again.Inch The Dovells toured the U.S. with James Brown and the U.K. with the Motown Revue and made appearances on popular television programs The Dick Clark Show, Hullabaloo and Shindig. Len eventually left the group and soon hit pay dirt as a solo act, charting a total of seven songs in 1965 and 1966, with the smash title track of his debut album, Inch1-2-3,Inch climbing all the way to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and garnering a Grammy nomination. Barry became a huge star in England, performing at London's Palladium and Royal Albert Hall, and continued touring in America as well, with standout stops at Harlem's world-famous Apollo Theatre; the Howard Theatre in D.C.; The Regal Chicago; The Fox Theatre in Detroit and The Uptown in his native Philadelphia. After joining forces with the WMOT tag, Barry turned his attention to writing and producing for other artists. Two highly-noted examples of his hit-making ability are Fat Larry's Band's InchZoomInch and Booker Newberry III's InchLove Town,Inch which Len co-wrote with the great Bobby Eli. Another standout from this period was Philly Cream's InchMotown Review,Inch a track written with Butch Ingram that was