Len Barry is one of the great forgotten blue eyed soul singers of the 60s.
Check out my other posts for biographical detail on him.
Barry’s strength comes from his voice and his ability to find the pop and soul in a song and accentuate it.
And it brought rewards …
As led a singer of The Dovells he hit it big twice, with “Bristol Stomp"(1961 #2 US Pop), and "You Can't Sit Down" (1963 #3 US Pop), before going solo in late 1963.
Solo, he had the magnificent 1965 song and big hit "1-2-3" (#2 US Pop, #11 US R&B, #3 UK, #7 Australia).
Barry then assembled The Electric Indian, a studio group, and wrote and produced the instrumental hit "Keem-O-Sabe" (# 16 US 1969).
He had gone from Parkway records where he had hits with The Dovells, to Decca where he had his solo hits, to RCA (where he did a great blue eyed soul album) to United Artists for the electric Indian.
But by 1972 he had reached a career impasse ….
Times had changed. He was too old (30) to be a pop idol and his favoured blue eyed soul, doo wop and rockin’ pop wasn’t in the charts, though there was rock ‘n’ roll revival around the corner.
Singer songwriter, country flavours, roots rock, MOR soft rock was the sound for white guys.
And the stars of the 60s had to adapt
Bobby Vee did "Nothin' Like A Sunny Day" (1972), Bobby Darin did "Commitment" (1969) Rick Nelson re-invented himself as a country rocker with some success, Felix Cavaliere )of the Young Rascals) did a series of soulful soft rock albums in the mid-70s, and Rob Grill of the Grass Roots (later) did the ”Uprooted" (1979) album.
Barry decided to sign with Buddha.
A 60s pop idol was perhaps a strange choice for a label in the early 70s but Buddha lived on the mainstream fringes and signed Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, the Flamin Groovies as well as bubblegummers Ohio Express, the 1910 Fruitgum Company, Kasenetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus and The Lemon Pipers.
So Barry puts on his sensitive singer and songwriter hat, as the album liner notes, where he talks about life's "pains and pleasures", its "ups and downs",
He looks at the big picture but only insofar as how it effects him (and us) in our interpersonal relationships. The downs (due rent, bills, hang ups, secrets that will effect your marriage and relationships) are there with the ups (digging life, beautiful days, love) though the joys are clouded with a slight melancholy air..
This is very much of its time when people realised en masse that they were part of a larger world, a small part.
Len Barry is being sincere (perhaps overly) but the problem is he can’t escape his pure pop idol, blue eyed soul and entertainment past.
Which is fine, in because he has channelled 70s black MOR soul sounds. 70s black soul was (or was, substantially, before disco came along) full of social references and "relevant" lyrics.
Barry, having been influenced by black doo wop and pop in the 50s and 60s easily (and naturally) slides into this just like the black artists did themselves did.
He sounds, not surprisingly, given he is from Philadelphia like a lot of Philadelphia Soul (Philly Soul) of the time: O'Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, The Stylistics, The Delfonics.
Just whiter.
His former big blue eyed soul pop trappings here are superimposed over singer-songwriter-ish (or otherwise impressive) low key ruminations, meaning, it becomes MOR AO (middle of the road, adult oriented) pop with an eye on middle of the road 70s black soul.
There is a lot of soulful big production soft pop.
Funky and soulful female backing voices are prominent but I have no idea who they are. They suit the style (and mood) he is aiming for.
Even when everything clicks the people might still not like the change because of your identification with other styles. The great(er) Bobby Darin had difficulty in having people accept him as a stripped down singer songwriter (they never did, despite his material being marvellous) and the same happens here
This is the trap of the pop star, and to transcend it, is the trick.
Barry didn't. This was his last album proper.
Produced by Len Barry and David White Trickner.
Trickner was a writer, singer, producer who had been in the white 50s doo wop group, Danny & the Juniors.
All songs by produced by Len Barry and David White Trickner unless otherwise noted:
Tracks (best in italics)
Side One
- Diggin' Life – (Barry – White – Vince Montana Jr) – very good. A gentle bounce through the song turns isto something funky calypso. This is not dissimilar (in lyric) to some of Ray Davies (of the Kinks) ruminations on everyday life.
- Scared To Death – another medium bounce song
- Just The 2 Of Us – a soft pop ballad about a couple, obviously.
- Smack Dab In The Middle – family dynamic are dicussed in a catchy fashion.
- Bran New Slant – (Barry – Trickner) / Loose In The Saddle – (Trickner) – (medley) –
Side Two
- I Feel She Really Doesn't Want To Do It – (Marshall-Barry) – quite catchy.
- I Tried – You Tried – a ballad.
- Ups And Downs – 70s black soul stylings with a very catchy melody
- I Promised You The World Once – (Barry – White – Vince Montana Jr) – there is a prominent female vocalist on this who sings in the black soul style of the time …and it works.
- 5 Years Ago Today – another soulful ballad, well sung.
- Diggin' Life (reprise) – a snipet of the opener.
And …
Patchy (but it grows on you). Barry is greatly undervalued and underappreciated (and you wouldn't guess he was white) … I'm keeping it.
Chart Action
Nothing nowhere
Sounds
Diggin' Life
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3e-XkckgKDY
Ups And Downs
mp3 attached
Others
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhxFKwUyGsA
Review
https://www.allmusic.com/album/ups-downs-mw0000860461
Bio
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Len_Barry
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/len-barry-mn0000242573
http://www.bigvjamboree.com/LenBarrySoulMan.htm
http://www.classicbands.com/dovells.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddah_Records
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_White_(musician)
Website
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Trivia
- Musicians "Crystal Mansion" and "Trickner's troops": Drums: Rick Morley, Paul Schwartz / Congas: Mario Sanchez / Bass: Tom Sellers, Billy Crawford, Sam Owlens / Guitar: Rock Rydell, Ronnie Gentile, James Hannah / Percussion: V. Montana, Dotty Glorn, Specs Powell / Organ: Sal Rota / Piano: D.W. Tricknet
- David White (born David White Tricker) was a member of the doo-wop quartet Danny & the Juniors before forming The Spokesmen, and The Crystal Mansion. In the mid-60s he was at Decca Records and produced and co-wrote "1-2-3” with Len Barry.
- Trickner co-wrote “Sadie (The Cleaning Lady),” recorded by Johnny Farnham, which became a #1 record in Australia in 1969.
