Barry Ryan

Artist: Barry Ryan

LP: 7" single

Song: "Eloise" 
[ listen ]

This 1968 Barry Ryan single is just the sort of "symphonic rock" uplift I need on this grey and rainy Saturday morning in Seattle. Barry used to perform with his identical twin brother, Paul, but Paul couldn't handle the pressures of stardom, so he took to the backstage shadows with pen and notebook in hand, scribbling out smash singles like "Eloise" to keep his brother at the top of the European pop charts. It's weird; you'd think that, as twins, Paul and Barry would be equally adept at handling the three-ring circus called fame. In any case, the hits kept coming for another few years, finally tapering off in 1972. Now Barry's a photographer, but he still pops up every now and again to perform. You can read more about him here.