Laurence D. "Larry" Weiss (born March 25, 1941) is an American songwriter and musician. He wrote "

Rhinestone Cowboy "Rhinestone Cowboy" is a song written by Larry Weiss and recorded by American country music singer Glen Campbell. When released on May 26, 1975, as the lead single and title track from his album ''Rhinestone Cowboy'', it enjoyed huge popularity w ...

", a US no.1 hit for

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

in 1975; and co-wrote "

Bend Me, Shape Me "Bend Me, Shape Me" is a song written by Scott English and Larry Weiss. It was first recorded by The Outsiders as a track on their album '' In'' in 1966. The best-known version of the song is the 1967 single released by The American Breed that ...

", "

Hi Ho Silver Lining "Hi Ho Silver Lining" is a rock song, written by American songwriters Scott English and Larry Weiss and first released as a single in March 1967 by English band The Attack, then a few days later by Jeff Beck. The Attack's version failed to cha ...

" and several other international hits.

Biography

Weiss was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, New York. He started writing songs in his teens, and continued to do so while working in his family's textile sales business, Lizza Connor Bowen, ''Larry Weiss: Cuts and Scratches'', Nashville Arts Magazine, 3 November 2009
Retrieved April 24, 2013 before working as a freelance songwriter for

Wes Farrell Wes Farrell (December 21, 1939 – February 29, 1996) was an American musician, songwriter and record producer, who was most active in the 1960s and 1970s. Career Farrell was born in New York, United States. Farrell's catalogue includes clos ...

.Press release for ''Cuts and Scratches'', 15 February 2010
Retrieved April 24, 2013 His first break came in 1963 when Nat "King" Cole recorded "Mr. Wishing Well", a song Weiss co-wrote with Lockie Edwards Jr. (1936–2012). Weiss also wrote for R&B acts including

Baby Washington Justine Washington (born October 13, 1940), usually credited as Baby Washington, but credited on some early records as Jeanette (Baby) Washington, is an American soul music vocalist, who had 16 '' Billboard'' R&B chart entries in 15 years, mo ...

Chuck Jackson Chuck Jackson (born July 22, 1937) is an American R&B singer who was one of the first artists to record material by Burt Bacharach and Hal David successfully. He has performed with moderate success since 1961. His hits include "I Don't Want to ...

and

The Shirelles The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic, New Jersey in 1957. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens (later Shirley Alston Reeves), Doris Coley (later Doris Kenner-Jackson), Addie "Micki" Harris (later Addie Harris McFadd ...

. In the mid and late 1960s Weiss co-wrote several successful songs with lyricist

Scott English Sheldon David "Scott" English (January 10, 1937 – November 16, 2018) was an American songwriter, arranger and record producer. He is best known as the co-writer of "Brandy" which he wrote with Richard Kerr. This song became a No. 1 hit fo ...

. These included "Bend Me, Shape Me", a hit for

The American Breed The American Breed was an American rock band from Chicago in the 1960s. The band was originally called Gary & The Knight Lites before adopting the name The American Breed in 1967. The band had a number of charting songs in 1967–68, the be ...

(US no.5, UK no.24) and Amen Corner (UK no.3); "Hi Ho Silver Lining", a UK hit for

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...

(UK no.14); and "

Help Me Girl "Help Me Girl" is a song performed by Eric Burdon in 1966. It was billed to Eric Burdon Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941) is an English singer. He was previously the lead vocalist of R&B and rock band the Animals and funk band War. ...

", a hit for

Eric Burdon Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941) is an English singer. He was previously the lead vocalist of R&B and rock band the Animals and funk band War. He is regarded as one of the British Invasion's most distinctive singers with his deep, pow ...

The Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...

(US no.29, UK no.14). He also co-wrote, with Jerry Ross, "

Mr. Dream Merchant Dream Merchant is a R&B ballad written by Larry Weiss and Jerry Ross. The song was originally recorded by Jerry Butler in 1967 as "Mr. Dream Merchant". The Jerry Butler version reached #23 on the soul chart and #38 on the Hot 100. Cover v ...

", a hit for

Jerry Butler Jerry Butler Jr. (born December 8, 1939) is an American soul singer-songwriter, producer, musician, and retired politician. He was the original lead singer of the Rhythm and blues, R&B vocal group the Impressions, inducted into the Rock and Rol ...

(US no.38) and later (as "Dream Merchant") for

New Birth Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sep ...

(US no.36). In 1971, he moved with his family from New York to Los Angeles, where he worked for Famous Music. He recorded a singer-songwriter album, ''Black & Blue Suite'', in 1974 for 20th Century Records. The album's opening track, "Rhinestone Cowboy", was released as a single and rose to no.24 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

adult contemporary chart The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by sta ...

.Ed Hogan, "Rhinestone Cowboy", Allmusic.com
Retrieved April 24, 2013 Glen Campbell heard and liked the song, and recorded it; his version became an international hit, reaching no.1 in the US and several other countries, and no.4 in the UK, and was the

Country Music Association The Country Music Association (CMA) was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enha ...

's Song of the Year in 1976.Country Music Association: Songs of the Year
. Retrieved April 24, 2013
Retrieved April 24, 2013 Another track from ''Black & Blue Suite'', "Lay Me Down," was covered by

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

on his albums ''

Tryin' to Get the Feeling ''Tryin' to Get the Feeling'' is the third studio album by singer-songwriter Barry Manilow, released in 1975. It featured the title track, " Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again", with other hits including "New York City Rhythm", "Bandstand Boogie" ...

'' and ''

Barry Manilow Live ''Barry Manilow Live'' is the fifth album by the singer-songwriter Barry Manilow. The album was released in 1977, and it became Manilow's first to top the US ''Billboard'' 200. Manilow also was among 1977 Special Tony Award winners Lily Tomlin ...

'' and by Glen Campbell on his album ''

Bloodline Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic inform ...

''. During the 1980s, Weiss performed the theme song for the popular sitcom '' Who's the Boss?'' during its first two seasons, from 1984 to 1986. Weiss moved to

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

in 1992, and continued to write songs for other artists, as well as developing his idea for a musical based around "Rhinestone Cowboy". He also released an album in his own name, ''Cuts and Scratches'', in 2010.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weiss, Larry 1941 births Living people Musicians from Newark, New Jersey Songwriters from New York (state)