Larry Henley

Larry Joel Henley (June 30, 1937 – December 18, 2014) was an American singer and songwriter, best known for co-writing (with Jeff Silbar) the 1989 hit record "Wind Beneath My Wings". He is also known for his distinctive falsetto singing voice, which he used prominently when in the Newbeats, a pop trio best known for their hit song "Bread and Butter".

Early life Henley was born to Carl Henley and Helen Quinn in Odessa, Texas on June 30, 1937. Larry's mother Helen, as well as all her sisters, was a country singer who sang as "Kewpi Timms". He was a friend of Roy Orbison, who lived away from Henley, and was one of the inspirations for getting him into music. The only instrument Larry knew how to play was the violin, which he learned as a child and never played after his childhood. Henley's memorable falsetto voice came by accident: "just something I discovered I could do. I’d sing along with Ray Charles and Margie Hendricks records, and I could do the Ray Charles part and then I could do the Margie Hendricks part. Everybody thought that was cute so I’d sing a few Ray Charles songs like that, and people started saying, "You should record like that, that’s a real interesting voice,". The group's last single was released in 1974.

Later career Henley was a friend of Bobby Goldsboro and it was because of Henley's urging that Goldsboro sang the song "Honey".

Henley had a solo album, Piece a Cake, released in 1975.

He co-wrote with Red Lane "'Til I Get It Right" for Tammy Wynette, a 1973 No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles, later covered by Barbra Streisand and Kenny Rogers. Other #1 country hits were his songs "Is It Still Over?" (performed by Randy Travis), "Lizzie and the Rainman" (performed by Tanya Tucker), and "He's a Heartache (Looking for a Place to Happen)" (performed by Janie Fricke).

He was a staff songwriter for Tree International Publishing in Nashville.

The song "Wind Beneath My Wings" (written by Henley and Jeff Silbar) was a U.S. #1 hit for Bette Midler and has since totaled around 6 million radio air plays. The song earned Henley and Silbar the Grammy Award for Song of the Year for 1989, and Bette Midler the Record of the Year award. The song was originally recorded by Roger Whittaker in 1982 and has since been covered by numerous artists.

He was a 2012 inductee into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

At the time of his death, he was managed by Charlie Andrews. He had been suffering from Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. He is buried at Kelsey Cemetery in Gilmer, Texas.