Thursday July 21, 2022 “1-2-3” Len Barry
Just a quick review with today’s song "1-2-3", a number two hit, as a reminder to us all that we have already covered rock & roll numbers one, number two and number three…way too many numbers there.
“The kids in Bristol are sharp as a pistol, when they do the Bristol stomp…” was Len Barry’s first experience with hit records when he was the lead singer for the Dovels who would have a top ten hit with their “Bristol Stomp”, which I’m sure got a great rating on American Bandstand.
“It’s a great song, Dick, has a good beat and you can really dance to it.”
For all of us old-timers “1-2-3” was co-written by John Madara who was an early member of Danny & the Juniors and wrote their hit song “At the Hop” and in a strange world of juxtaposition he would also co-write the Leslie Gore feminist anthem “You Don’t Own Me”. Think about that for a minute…”At the Hop” to “You Don’t Own Me”, seems like a reach.
Len Barry and the other “1-2-3” writers were sued by Motown Records at the time, claiming that the song is a reworking of Holland-Dozier-Holland's "Ask Any Girl" released by The Supremes…ever hear that song?...me neither. However I checked the Supremes tune out on YouTube and there is a certain similarity to “1-2-3” but I would be willing to suggest that “Ask Any Girl” sounds like a “Lover’s Concerto” by The Toys which was lifted from Christian Petzold’s 18th century “Minuet in G Major”. They have all been written before.
Stay safe and well…and that lawsuit tied up the royalties for Barry’s number two, multi-million selling record for years.