Len Barry: 1 – 2 – 3

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Len Barry wrote this with John Madara and David White, co-writers of At the Hop (Danny and Juniors, 1957). It was released in 1965 and got to No 2 in the US and No 3 in Britain.

Motown Records claimed the song was plagiarised from Ask Any Girl by Holland-Dozier-Holland, the B-side of the Supremes’ 1964 hit Baby Love. After two years of legal wrangling Barry and his co-writers agreed to give the Motown writers 15 per cent of the song’s royalties. I don’t think it is much like the Supremes’ number but judge for yourself:

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