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| February 8, 2008 | Washington Post | "Much Ado About Manilow" by Richard Harrington |
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| Normally, what Barry Manilow plays in Vegas, stays in Vegas. For the past three years, he has been in residence at the Las Vegas Hilton hotel, with Elton John and old pal Bette Midler a few blocks over at Caesars Palace. Sounds like a terrific opportunity for mischief on the Strip. "Me and Elton and Bette -- it's the three of us and a lot of magicians," Manilow says, laughing. He does occasional out-of-Vegas concerts, including a Saturday show at Verizon Center. "Somehow we had nights free, and we decided we would do this," Manilow says from his home in Palm Springs, Calif. "It's not a tour; we just drop these little one-nighters. We do one show in Vegas and we do another one for the arenas, and it's just great, keeps us all on our toes. I forgot how exciting arenas are." The difference, Manilow says, is that "in Vegas they want the audiences back out there to throw their money away, so they ask us to bring the curtain down at a certain time, between 80 and 85 minutes. But on these arena tours, we're back to my time schedule. I can go as long as I want and as long as the audience wants. "My band is the orchestra that accompanies me in Vegas [and] knows everything. After 30-some-odd years, I have enough songs to keep 'em on that stage for two months." Barry Manilow Appearing Saturday at Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW. Show starts at 8. Tickets: $49.99-$250. 202-397-7328 or http://www.ticketmaster.com. |
| February 7, 2008 | The Columbus Dispatch | "Manilow: Looks like he remade it: Pop star covers '70s hits for latest album" by Aaron Beck |
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| "I Write the Songs," "Mandy," "Copacabana" -- no one can do those staples of pop music the way Barry Manilow can. In recent years, though, the singer has taken on songs equally familiar to anyone who has spent a few minutes next to a radio. Late last year, Manilow released "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies," including his takes on Christopher Cross' "Sailing," Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," Barbra Streisand's "The Way We Were" and other songs that reached the top of the charts around that decade. Since 2005, he has performed "Manilow: Music and Passion" in the Las Vegas Hilton, but between the Sin City gigs he plays the heartland. Manilow will begin a nine-concert tour Friday in Nationwide Arena. He spoke recently by phone: Columbus Dispatch: What do you remember about playing any show in Columbus or anywhere in Ohio?
Barry Manilow: Blossom Music Center (in Cuyahoga Falls) and places like that -- those were the moments for me that were major, major stepping stones in my career. ... Those were the years that I broke out into the pop-music world. CD: What was the transition like for you -- moving from clubs to places such as Blossom?
BM: It happens to everybody, and for me it seemed like it was overnight. One night I was struggling with my band with half a house in some little dinky club, and it seemed like the next night it was a sold-out big place like the Blossom Music Center. It was a really, really scary and confusing time. It wasn't fun ... It was just crazy. CD: Were you always able to get in front of people and do what you do?
BM: Oh, no, never. The last 10 years I think I've kind of made friends with this world of standing up on a stage and performing. But, geez, I'm a musician. I'm very comfortable being a musician at a piano arranging my music or producing someone else or songwriting, but standing up in front of an audience and singing, kibitzing, talking -- that was not my thing. It was not my favorite experience. But people seemed to connect with something, so I kept doing it. CD: Were you forced to do the TV specials in the late '70s? I'm staring at you on the cover of the recently released "First Television Specials" DVD boxed set, which is on my desk.
BM: Everybody was doing TV specials, and they offered me (the opportunity) and we kept winning Emmys. I'm pretty good at the creating part, but the performing part -- I looked like a moron there with the Copacabana jacket. Back then I thought they wouldn't release this until I was dead. But now I have to go through this humiliating experience of watching myself in that jacket again. CD: You've released "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties," "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties" and now "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies." How do you pare a decade's worth of songs for one album?
BM: It was a collaboration with the genius of (record producer and chief executive of the RCA Music Group) Clive Davis. His rules were they all had to be No. 1 records (singles). It didn't matter whether they were great No. 1 records; it didn't matter whether there were greater songs out there in my opinion; if they weren't No. 1 records, they didn't make the cut. CD: A song such as Christopher Cross' "Sailing," which everyone is very familiar with -- how do you reinvent that?
BM: It's very complicated. The first CD, the 1950s CD, was easier because they really weren't indelible arrangements in our heads. You kind of knew the songs, but I could play around with it. As we got to the '60s, and certainly the '70s, you can't play around. You can't play around with "Bridge Over Troubled Water." You can't play around with "Sailing." Every time I would start to try to put my own touch on it, it would hurt the song. CD: Why did people in the '70s score so big with romantic, sentimental songs?
BM: I think it was melodies. I think people like melodies. I'm not so sure about romance, I'm not sure all about that, but even the disco stuff had melody. Even the Donna Summer stuff -- you could sing back those melodies. CD: As a younger man, why did the music of the '40s strike such a chord with you?
BM: It was much more sophisticated music. As I do these decade things, they get simpler and simpler and simpler because the musicians and composers are not well-schooled. They are talented in that they can turn on their computers or they can play their four chords on their guitars and they can rock out, but that's not what happened in the '40s. CD: Do you cringe when you hear Top 40 music?
BM: Oh, hell, I've cringed for years. I mean, we all have. But there's a lot of good stuff. I'm into the Fray. I'm into Nickelback just the way we all are. CD: When you were cruising along in the '70s, did you ever see yourself destined for a Las Vegas residency?
BM: I did. The first time I played there in 1970-something, I played the MGM Grand and I didn't want to believe it, I didn't want to admit it, because certainly Vegas is so square. All the old, square singers were there. But I got it, and they got me. They got me, even though I was a young pop singer. And I said to myself, "Oh, boy. I get this and I know how to entertain these people." It was always in the back of my head that one day I would probably end up doing this, and it's fun. I'm very happy doing it. Barry Manilow will perform at 8 p.m. Friday in Nationwide Arena, 200 W. Nationwide Blvd. Tickets cost $39 to $139 at the box office (614-246-2000, 1-800-645-2657, www.nationwidearena.com) and Ticketmaster outlets (614-431-3600, www.ticketmaster.com). |
| January 18, 2008 | The Desert Sun | "Barry Manilow answers school's call for instruments" by Bruce Fessier |
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| Barry Manilow, a Palm Springs resident for more than 20 years, attended a concert by three Palm Desert Middle School ensembles Thursday to draw attention to what a school music program could do with a little help from a friend. Manilow donated $10,000 worth of musical instruments to the Palm Desert Middle School music program last month. Now the school's Band Boosters hopes to sustain itself and other school music programs with a March 1 "band-a-thon" fundraiser called Rock the House. Band Boosters President Alison Harris said school bands from around the valley will take pledges for how many hours each band can play. They're also seeking corporate and media sponsors. "I did Madison Square Garden a few months ago," Manilow told a crowd of parents at the school. "I think this was more exciting for me. You can call on me any time. I'll be there for you. Just keep going!" Manilow's donation was his second such effort in just over a decade. He and friend Suzanne Somers each donated funds to College of the Desert in 1996 when its band instruments were stolen. They performed a benefit concert for COD at the McCallum Theatre in 1997 to begin a tradition of regular benefit concerts for local charities. Manilow joined Palm Desert Middle School's cause after a school band concert in which a student's keyboard broke. The band teacher, Karen Dorn, told parents they needed a new keyboard, and one parent contacted Manilow, a personal friend. "He went out of his way to request what we needed most," Dorn said. "I didn't know how much he wanted to donate, so I sent a list. I thought he'd get one or two things on the list. He got everything and extra. I am just overwhelmed." Manilow said he hoped his effort would spur more donations. "That's why I'm talking to you," he said. "I don't need any publicity about it, but I thought if I could just make the Coachella Valley aware, it's really easy to donate instruments to these high schools and middle schools and all the schools that need them, and look what you get!" |
| January 18, 2008 | The News & Observer | "Oh, Barry, you came and you gave: Why even some cool people are Manilow fans" by David Menconi |
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| Sandi Shorter's musical taste has two potencies, enthusiastic and obsessive: "Barry Manilow has been a lasting obsession. I went to see him when I was 10 with my mom and that was it, man. I was hooked. Had the poster on the wall and everything. I used to pretend that the song 'Mandy' was actually 'Sandi.'" This obsession has lasted into adulthood, and it's strong enough for Shorter to fly her mother in from Louisville, Ky., so they can attend Manilow's Sunday night show at Raleigh's RBC Center. "He writes the songs that make the whole world sing. It's Barry Manilow! Right here in Raleigh!" For most people, putting a half-dozen of your own songs on a soft-rock covers collection called "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies" would be an act of hubris. For Barry Manilow, it was just acknowledgment that it wouldn't be '70s soft-rock without him. Decades past his 1970s heyday, Manilow has hung around long enough to achieve elder-statesman status. It's not just his signature ballads, including "Mandy," "Looks Like We Made It" and "I Write the Songs." And it's not all the omnipresent commercial jingles he's done over the years -- "Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there," for example. It's Manilow's realization that if people are going to laugh at you anyway, playing along can be highly profitable. Stephen Colbert has made much comedic hay out of losing to Manilow at the 2006 Emmy Awards. That didn't stop Manilow from appearing in a sketch on "The Colbert Report," mocking both Colbert and his own status as Mr. Soft Rock. Of course, it helps to have fans in unexpected places. For example, Peter Blackstock, who lives in Mebane and co-edits No Depression, the successful and hip music magazine. Blackstock's tastes run mostly to Texas troubadours. But he's enough of a Manilow fan to occasionally bust out Manilow's 1974 breakthrough hit "Mandy" when he performs himself. It always gets a funny reaction. "I've always thought he was a good singer with a really good sense of melody, a talented guy ... he wrote some good songs and found some worth covering." Another unlikely Manilow enthusiast is Sean T. McMann, a sportswriter in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. A particularly harsh romantic breakup made him a fan of Manilow's pathos and passion. "I put on a tape and listened to 'Mandy' and all these other songs that were so depressing. They just spoke to me: 'My gosh, he totally understands what I'm going through.' Then when you see him in concert, he's so into the music. He gets it!" Like most Manilow fans, McMann takes a lot of ribbing from family, friends and co-workers. He has seen a dozen of Manilow's shows over the years, up and down the East Coast and as far south as Florida. When McMann was in Tampa covering the Yankees' spring training a few years back, there was a Manilow show nearby. "That was God saying he wanted me to see Barry," McMann says. So he went... Who: Barry Manilow; When: 8 p.m. Sunday; Where: RBC Center, Raleigh; Cost: $9.99-$150; Call: 861-2323; Details: rbccenter.com |
| January 14, 2008 | Chicago Tribune | "Manilow lives up to the legend" by Alison Bonaguro |
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| You expect glitter. You expect anthems. You expect grand pianos. But you don't expect Barry Manilow to put on a Nehru jacket and smoke a joint. Yet he did. Halfway through his show Saturday night at the United Center. Slight snippets of shock value such as that, even if it was faux pot, kept things interesting for the crowd at the nearly sold-out arena. That's what a Vegas-style entertainer does. He kept his 90-minute show fresh and almost hip. So that Manilow fans, or "Fanilows," think nothing of the fact that he's in his 60s. From the opening number "It's A Miracle," Manilow proved his pipes are still made of gold. And about 25 songs later, his vocals sounded flawless on belters such as "Weekend in New England" and "Even Now." And on them all, his orchestra, band and backup singers fueled him with robust melodies. They played not only from Manilow's thick songbook but paid tribute to the sounds of the 1940s, '50s, '60s and '70s. The condensed anthology was pure pop nostalgia, covering bands from the Beatles to the Supremes. Since his reign as America's Top 40 hero, song lyrics have come a long way. But simplicity has its place, and it's in the words to the songs Manilow's been singing for 33 years. In "Could It Be Magic," he begs "Baby, I love you, come, come, come into my arms/Let me know the wonder of all of you." It wasn't deep then, and it isn't deep now. Manilow's music seems to hold people captive regardless. More than a few times, he thanked the fans for being so loyal. "I'm so glad you still like these songs." In another inspired twist, Manilow sang a duet with himself on his 1974 standout "Mandy." He played a grand piano onstage while a clip of him doing the same from a 1975 episode of "The Midnight Special" played on the screen behind him. Wrapping up with "I Write the Songs" and "Copacabana," Manilow's concert was full of his unabashed sense of what it means to be a legend. |
| January 11, 2008 | Chicago Sun-Times | "Success follows Manilow wherever he performs" by Miriam Di Nunzio |
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| Barry Manilow's hugely successful show at the Las Vegas Hilton is titled "Music and Passion," and you'd be hard-pressed to find an entertainer more passionate about music. Since his headlining arrival in Vegas, Manilow has greatly curtailed his road show, opting for a handful of performances outside his Nevada comfort zone, after grueling decades on the road. Chicago will be the site for one such concert Saturday night at the United Center. "The [concert] is a blown-up version of what we do in Vegas," Manilow said. "I can only do 80 or 90 minutes in Vegas, but when I'm back in the arenas, I can add more songs, more hits, more stuff the audience would like." Manilow recently talked to the Sun-Times about all things music: Sun-Times: I just heard you've re-signed with the Hilton, so you'll be performing in Las Vegas through 2009.
Barry Manilow: I just assume I'm gonna be there for a while. I really love it so much. It's so great now. I don't want to go on the road. I think I've said that a million times. I don't have to live out of hotel rooms and do all that [full-out touring] stuff ever again. I've been home for two years. I've created so much [music]. Here, I've got friends. I got my life back. ST: You've released one of the most successful "series albums," starting with "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties" up to your most recent, "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies." Did you know this series would be so successful?
BM: I did not ... But Clive [Davis, of RCA Music Group] has this incredible laser beam to what the public is gonna like and I'm so grateful to be part of his world. This [series] was all his idea. He knew it would go beyond the "Fifties." ST: You chose a very interesting mix for the "Seventies" album. Can you talk about how you approached a Beatles song, in this case, "The Long and Winding Road"?
BM: (Laughing) I just closed my eyes and prayed that something would come out that wouldn't make me [feel] humiliated. The song is beautiful, but to try to do a song that the Beatles did, or a song that Simon and Garfunkel did ... The "Seventies" had these titles and songs that were very challenging to do. ST: Can we expect "The Greatest Songs of the Eighties" any time soon?
BM: Very soon. Clive and I are talking about it. ST: Will you again include your own songs, like you did on the "Seventies"?
BM: I haven't had a conversation with him about leaving my stuff off or putting it in. I'm also creating an original album, and that's a whole other kind of thing. But when it comes to this stuff, I just follow [Clive's] lead. Frankly, I thought [it] was kind of confusing on the "Seventies" album, making it half [my songs] and half cover songs. When it came to the '70s, I mean, I was such a big part of the '70s. I just thought it was confusing to [listeners] as to why I was doing anything other than my own stuff. ST: With the new album, where do you want to go musically?
BM: I just go where the spirit moves me. This year, I decided to go a little edgier, a little more rock-oriented. I can't go toward real rock 'n' roll, but I have done songs in the past where I attempted to be a little more edgy, less Adult Contemporary, no strings, lots of guitars. I'm having good time writing this album. It has a concept very much like "[2:00 A.M.] Paradise Cafe" or "[Here at the] Mayflower." It's got an idea to it. Those are my favorite kind of albums to do. It's not just 12 or 16 pop songs. ST: How much did you enjoy performing again on "Dancing with the Stars"?
BM: I really did love it. This time I really understood how much work these people do. They just kill themselves. ST: So will we see you competing on "Dancing" in the near future?
BM: (Laughing) It would be awful. Oh, God, no. I think I should just stand in the middle of the room and have them all dance around me. Barry Manilow: An Evening of Music and Passion; 8 p.m. Saturday; United Center, 1901 W. Madison Tickets, $9.99-$250; (312) 559-1212; www.ticketmaster.com. |
| January 11, 2008 | Deseret Morning News | Manilow PBS concert special available on DVD: BARRY MANILOW, "Songs from the Seventies" (Rhino, 2007, two discs) |
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| Barry Manilow is loving the Top 10. Back in 2006, he released "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties" and it shot straight up to No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200. A few months later, he released "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties," which reached No. 2. Late last year, he released "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies," which debuted at No. 4. Well, the man who first hit the charts back in 1974 with the No. 1 hit, "Mandy," decided to celebrate. Actually, it was a three-way partnership between Stiletto Television, PBS and Manilow that brought the one-hour TV special, "Barry Manilow: Songs from the Seventies," to PBS last month. The concert, which was taped live in the Old Navy Yard studio in Brooklyn, N. Y., just a few blocks from Manilow's childhood neighborhood, featured the singer serenading the audience from an intimate array of stages and walkways. The songs performed include Manilow hit-makers "Mandy," "I Am Your Child," "Could It Be Magic?" "Looks Like We Made It," an acoustic version of "Copacabana," an abbreviated "New York City Rhythm" and a medley of "Can't Smile Without You," "Even Now," "It's a Miracle," "I Made It Through the Rain," "Daybreak," "This One's for You," "I Write the Songs," and a full vocal solo of "One Voice." The '70s cover tunes he performs (and are also on the album) include Frankie Valli's "My Eyes Adored You," Barbra Streisand's "The Way We Were," the Hollies' "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" and Albert Hammond's "It Never Rains in Southern California." In addition, Manilow zapped out a medley of his TV jingles -- "Band-Aids," "State Farm Insurance," "McDonald's" and a previously unreleased ad, "Vicks." Well, for you Manilow fans, the PBS special is now available on DVD. And not only does it contain the full broadcast, the package also has a bonus DVD with outtakes of "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed," "All the Time" and "The Way We Were" medley featuring "It Never Rains in Southern California" and "You've Got a Friend." Amazingly, Manilow, who will be 65 this year, still has the voice and the penchant for performance. He seems more comfortable with his audience than he has in the past and he performs the songs -- most of them backed by a full band -- with vigor. In fact, "Mandy" sounds as fresh today as it did when it was first released 34 years ago. Love him or hate him, there is no denying Manilow is an artistic entertainer who still has some kick in his performance. And "Barry Manilow: Songs of the Seventies" is proof. |
| January 11, 2008 | TwinCities.com | "Barry Manilow is right on the money: Go ahead and roll your eyes, but Barry Manilow has a fierce following, and he still writes the songs that make bank managers sing" by Ross Raihala |
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| Say what you wish about Barry Manilow as a performer - and be prepared to deal with his rabid 'fanilows' if it's negative. But as a marketer, the guy's a genius. Even though it has been 25 years since his last significant radio hit, the '70s superstar has remained a major moneymaker. And in recent years, he has returned to the mainstream spotlight with a series of deft moves that include a long-term residency at the Las Vegas Hilton and a series of best-selling cover albums tied to the '50s, '60s and, most recently, the '70s. Each has entered the Billboard charts in the top five, with the most recent, "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies," setting a single-hour record for most records sold on the shopping network QVC. Clearly, this is a man who knows his fanilows. During breaks from his Vegas gig, Manilow books one-off shows across the country, including his stop in St. Paul tonight. Tickets range from the bargain price of $7.99 for nosebleed seats all the way up to deluxe, online-only fan packages for $410. We spoke to the Brooklyn native last month from his home in Palm Springs. On selecting the songs for "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies": "(Producer/label head) Clive (Davis) wanted these songs to be so well-known that nobody had to think twice when the melody started. We whittled them down to 12 or 13 based on whether I could handle them as an arranger, producer and performer. These were difficult songs to do, by the way. They were so well-known that I had trouble trying to figure out how I could put my own stamp on them. Every time I would change anything, it would hurt the song. And then, on the other hand, I didn't want to just do a carbon copy. Trying to figure out how I could make them my own was a big challenge." On adding acoustic versions of some of his own hits to the album: "I couldn't ignore my own songs, because they were such a big part of the '70s. But I didn't want to just put the old records on there and do another greatest hits. So I came up with the idea of doing unplugged, acoustic renditions. It sounded pretty easy, but boy, it was real difficult to redo 'Mandy' and to redo 'I Write the Songs.' The only one I think we really hit a home run with was the rearrangement of 'Copacabana.' I think that one is a real winner. We kept the integrity and excitement of the song and really turned it on its ear." On the prospect of doing "The Greatest Songs of the Eighties": "It all depends on Clive. This whole concept is all Clive Davis. I'm just the grateful recipient of this man's brilliance. It's his decision. If he wants an '80s album, I'll be happy to work with him on it." On how tonight's concert differs from Vegas: "It's a blown-up version of the Vegas show. We could only do 85 minutes in Las Vegas, because that's all they want you to do there. (On the road), I can do more songs and stay on the stage longer." On how he has seen Vegas change: "I started playing there with Bette Midler in the '70s, then I headlined there on my own. It was a smaller city and the big headliners were the older guys - Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, all those guys. The town was older and it was calmer. It was gamblers and hookers, you know? Now it's a family city. It's gamblers and hookers and their kids. And it's very young now, it's the youngest city I've ever seen. Everyone ODs there now, from Lindsay Lohan to Britney Spears. Everybody ODs in Vegas. (pause) I'm kidding." On how he has seen his audience change: "My audiences have always been a very wide demographic. Even when I started off, I'd look out and see young people and middle-aged people and old people, and guys and girls. And that's never changed. Every night I look out into the audience and see the same kind of people. Thank goodness they're still there." Who: Barry Manilow, with Brian Culbertson; When: 8 p.m. today; Where: Xcel Energy Center, 175 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul; Tickets: $248-$7.99; Call: 651-989-5151. |
| January 4, 2008 | Star Tribune | "Music: Barry's bonds - Manilow talks about his connections with Clive Davis, rock 'n' roll, Bob Dylan and the Twin Cities" by Jon Bream |
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| After three best-selling collections of cover songs from the 1950s, '60s and '70s, Barry Manilow is back writing the songs. Maybe not the songs that the whole world will sing. "It's more of a rock 'n' roll album than I've ever done," said the once and future King of the Middle of the Road, who will perform Friday at Xcel Energy Center ... "It's got a real concept to it, like my 'Paradise Cafe' and '[Here] at the Mayflower,' which kind of tell a story, or each song is set in some situation," he said. Of course, it's up to Clive Davis, the record mogul who signed Manilow in 1974, to decide whether this project will be the singer's next release. "Clive Davis warns me that every artist of my ilk has not sold very many albums when they've tried to release their own original albums -- from Elton John to Paul McCartney to Joni Mitchell," Manilow said. "Frankly, I've never done it for the sales. It never dawns on me unless Clive tells me about it. He came up with these ideas about the greatest songs of the '50s, '60s and '70s. He has the greatest commercial ideas in the history of pop music. I just follow his lead. I love arranging these songs, I love producing them and singing them. But I really do miss the songwriting." To be sure, he and Davis have talked about a 1980s collection, and the singer has started to look at songs. Would he consider another kind of project, say, a duets album with Bette Midler, for whom he was music director in the early '70s? "We did two songs, one on each of those albums I produced for her," he said, referring to her recent tributes to Rosemary Clooney and Peggy Lee. "They were fun. I think she's a little busy now." Next month, Midler will launch a Las Vegas residency, replacing Celine Dion at Caesars Palace. Manilow has been ensconced at Vegas' Hilton Hotel since February 2005, and he's booked through at least the end of 2008. "I think they're talking about a couple years more," he said. "I haven't been involved in that yet." After having huge success last year with a few concerts in his hometown, New York City, Manilow has been sneaking away for occasional non-Vegas performances. The road shows are different from what he does in Sin City. "It's kind of a blown-up version of the Vegas show," he explained. "They only let you do 85 minutes in Vegas and then they want the audience out there throwing their money away [in the casino]. So I've added a lot more songs and more hits that I usually don't do in Vegas." In Vegas, he plays five consecutive nights a week, which must be a challenge for someone who'll turn 65 in June. "Thanks for reminding me I'm in my 60s," he joked. "I feel like I'm in my 30s. I have a 29-inch waist, and I weigh 144 pounds, and I work out every day. I've got lots of energy." In concert, Manilow is quite the entertainer, but he said he's clueless where his sense of showmanship comes from. "It was the last thing I ever thought I was going to do, being onstage," he said. "I am a musician and an arranger and a songwriter and a producer. Being onstage, first of all, was the wildest thing that ever happened to me back in the '70s. And now being considered a showman is even crazier. I just never really thought about that." Manilow's idea of a stage show is more than standing there "unless it's Neil Young or James Taylor or John Denver playing his guitar. I put my background singers in silly outfits, and I tell corny old jokes, and I put medleys together that go from here to there. I have a good time. If I just sat down at the piano and played 'Mandy' through 'Read Em and Weep' or whatever, I would be bored." Manilow's 2006 resurgence was boosted by his second appearance on "American Idol." He hadn't even seen the show when he was first asked to appear on it in 2004. "That was a big deal," he said. "I don't do things for the publicity or the money. I know that sounds odd. I can say that now that I've got all the money in the world." Things didn't go as smoothly for Manilow when he was scheduled to appear on TV's "The View" last September. He backed out because he refused to be interviewed by Elizabeth Hasselback, who is known for her conservative views. "I just do things the way I feel I've got to do them," he said. "And that was one that I felt like I had to do." Manilow's Minnesota fans will vividly recall his three-day stand in 1991 to open the newly remodeled State Theatre. The first night was Halloween, when the snowstorm of the century -- OK, 31 inches -- began. "I remember walking to the rehearsal," he said. "The snow -- holy mackerel!" Twin Cities audiences have been consistently supportive, he said. "Minneapolis and St. Paul have been great to me. I'm this Jew boy from Brooklyn, and I don't know why these people from the Midwest connect with what I do. They've always been on my side." Maybe it's payback because a "Jew boy" from Hibbing, Minn. -- Bob Dylan -- had to go to New York to get discovered. Manilow encountered the Minnesota icon once, in the late 1980s. "It was an odd meeting," he recalled. It took place at a Seder, a ceremonial Passover dinner, at the home of songwriting legend Burt Bacharach. "He [Dylan] came over to me and said, 'Keep doing what you're doing, man. You're inspiring all of us.' Isn't that nice?" Nice words, indeed. But how would Manilow like to be remembered? In 1987 he answered that same question from the Star Tribune with just one word: "Goosebumps." "I was going to give you a more mature answer," he said last month. "I was going to tell you that I'd like to be remembered as a guy that made you feel something. 'Goosebumps' is a real wiseass answer, but it says the same thing. My goal is to make you feel something. After having done it for so many more years than I ever, ever thought I'd be doing it, I look out in the audience and their response is more important to me than ever. I don't mean their applause. I mean the fact that they're smiling and having the greatest time." BARRY MANILOW; When: 8 p.m. Fri.; Where: Xcel Energy Center, W. 7th St. and Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul.; Tickets: $7.99-$248. 651-989-5151. Web: www.manilow.com. |
| January 4, 2008 | Press Release
Source: Las Vegas Hilton | Manilow Closes 2007 With Top Twenty Tour and Top Ten Single: Extended Through 2009 at Las Vegas Hilton Home |
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| Barry Manilow closes out 2007 once again ranking in the Top Twenty Concert Tours and with a top ten single. "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" hit the radio charts at #7 and marks Manilow's 41st Top Forty single. "It's amazing," Manilow said, "I'm honored to still be releasing records...let alone having hits." "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" was the first single released from Manilow's recent Platinum approaching Christmas album, IN THE SWING OF CHRISTMAS. IN THE SWING OF CHRISTMAS was released exclusively by Hallmark and available only at Hallmark stores in the United States. Manilow's concert tour ranked at number 19 for the year. A good part of that was generated by Music & Passion, Manilow's long running musical extravaganza at the Las Vegas Hilton. Music & Passion just finished its third year at the Las Vegas Hilton and continues to break box-office records. According to Rudy Prieto, CEO and general manager of the Las Vegas Hilton, "Barry's show, which set a new standard for superstar headliners in Las Vegas when it debuted in 2005, has so exceeded all expectations that we've asked him to sign on for another year and perform through 2009." "Music & Passion has grown over the last few years into a major show," Manilow said. "But over the next six months we want to bring in even more new elements and focus more on the hit songs that audiences seem to love." The current revised schedule and tickets for 2008 are available at lvhilton.com and Manilow.com. |
| December 25, 2007 | Chicago Tribune | Manilow seems to be all around" by Michael H. Hodges |
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| The evergreen crooner with the fab hair, Barry Manilow, recently brought his long-running Las Vegas show, "An Evening of Music and Passion," to The Palace at Auburn Hills, for one performance only -- part of a limited nationwide tour that stops at the United Center Jan. 12. It's no small undertaking. Eleven trucks are required to freight this extravaganza across the country. Manilow's career, which first went into orbit in 1974 with "Mandy," has enjoyed a distinct uptick in recent years, bringing back old audiences and winning new ones. Manilow's latest CD, "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies," debuted in the No. 4 slot on the charts in September. And 2006's "Greatest Songs of the Fifties" was a stupendous hit, selling 3 million copies and topping the Billboard charts at No. 1 -- Manilow's first in 29 years. In a telephone interview from Palm Springs, the Brooklyn-born singer says he doesn't know where on the charts "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies" is now, "but I sing it every night, and the audience goes wild." Manilow covers 12 songs by other artists on the CD, but admits, "I couldn't leave my songs out. But these are unplugged, very intimate acoustic versions." The show he's taking on the road is an expanded version of what he's been doing for the past few years at the Las Vegas Hilton, where he's been the resident entertainer. Indeed, Manilow's career has become legend in the music world, with worldwide sales of more than 75 million records, and some 30 original albums to his credit. In fact, industry charts rank him the "No. 1 adult contemporary artist" of all time. |
| December 17, 2007 | The Plain Dealer | "Barry Manilow wows 'em at The Q" by John Soeder |
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| For the sake of argument, let's assume that he really has been alive forever and that he really did write the very first song. That could explain why Barry Manilow was enveloped in cryogenic mist when the pop superstar first came into view Friday night at The Q. Or was it merely theatrical fog? Either way, this consummate entertainer knows how to make an entrance. Amid flashing strobe lights and orchestral fanfare, band risers parted a la the Red Sea to reveal Manilow in all his Moses-like glory -- well, if Moses were partial to sharp black suits with silvery accents. Fittingly, the feel-good opening number was "It's a Miracle." Every time Manilow belted out the refrain -- "The miracle is you!" -- he pointed to various fans in the three-quarters-full arena. It resembled a firefly convention in there, thanks to the ushers who feverishly distributed complimentary glowsticks before showtime. "We may be here all night long," Manilow warned the audience early on. Without missing a borscht belt beat, he added: "So I hope you went to the bathroom!" They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but it didn't stop Manilow (who has done a steady gig at the Las Vegas Hilton since 2005) from successfully taking his spectacular brand of easy-listening in excelsis on the road. At 61, he still can bring down the house with a few expert wiggles of his rear end. Fun salutes to the big-band era and (in keeping with Manilow's latest albums) the music of the '50s, '60s and '70s were interwoven seamlessly with timeless Manilow hits such as "Could It Be Magic," "Weekend in New England" and "Can't Smile Without You." Manilow got into the holiday spirit, too, with a medley of "Happy Holidays" and "White Christmas." When he wasn't coaxing bittersweet chords from a baby grand piano or hamming it up with four backing singers who doubled as dancers, Manilow revealed a self-deprecating wit. "I'm so glad you still like these songs," he said. "All I can hope is they're ruined in karaoke bars for years to come." OK, so his abbreviated stab at the Beatles' "Yesterday" hit "Oy vey!" on the schmaltz-o-meter. All the same, there was no denying the heartfelt chord Manilow struck in the middle of "I Made It Through the Rain," when he reminisced about the boyhood amateur recordings he made with the loving encouragement of his grandfather. During "Moonlight Serenade," Manilow plucked a lady who introduced herself as "Karen from Ashtabula" from the front row for a slow dance and big hug. Manilow seemed to have a case of the sniffles, although his voice was none the worse for wear. It soared at the end of "Even Now" earning him one of many standing ovations. The home stretch of the 90-minute extravaganza brought multiple climactic moments, each more intense than its predecessor. Women swooned, men found their masculinity seriously threatened and everyone sang along as Manilow went for broke with "Mandy," "I Write the Songs" and "Copacabana (At the Copa)," glorious throwbacks to the days when he single-handedly used to keep the sequin industry afloat. The mellow "Forever and a Day" closed the concert, billed as "An Evening of Music and Passion." On both counts, Manilow delivered. |
| December 13, 2007 | The Flint-Journal | "Vegas on the road: Barry Manilow takes his Sin City showcase beyond the desert" by Doug Pullen |
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| Barry Manilow says he doesn't know how much longer he'll continue his residency at the Las Vegas Hilton. "They would like to have me for a couple more years, but I'm still debating if I want to do this another year. I probably will," the singer says. "I'm made for this Vegas thing, not because it's cheesy or full of neon lights. It's not that. I love connecting with the audience and this place at the Hilton is just the right size for me. I can play around with it every night. It's like my sandbox." His Sin City run started in February 2005, and he has shows scheduled there through the end of next year. But Manilow increasingly has been playing outside of that 1,700-seat theater in the Nevada desert. He performed three arena versions of his "An Evening of Passion and Music" Vegas show earlier this year, with two more on the docket for this weekend, Friday in Cleveland and Saturday at The Palace. It caps a busy, sometimes controversial period for the superstar of soft pop, who is promoting a new album, "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies" and a new DVD, "Barry Manilow: The First [Television] Specials" (from 1977-88). He recently taped a guest appearance on the "Brian Boitano Skating Spectacular," airing Dec. 22 on NBC. Barry promised a "blown-up" but not necessarily flashier version of the Vegas show when he hits The Palace. "My focus, my goal, is to move people, is to connect with the audience and that really doesn't work if you've got 16 dancers and crap coming down from the ceiling. Other people love that and, frankly, it's kind of fun, but that's not my goal. My goal is a guy in a spotlight making you feel something." Manilow was the first artist signed to Clive Davis' Arista Records and in 1974 scored his first No. 1 hit, "Mandy." Since then, the man often credited with inventing the power ballad has racked up more than three dozen Top 40 hits, including "Could It Be Magic" and "Copacabana," the latter of which inspired a musical that's toured the world. But the 61-year-old singer, songwriter, arranger and producer tired of touring, which led to the 2004's "One Night Live! One Last Time!" farewell tour and, he said, a life free of hotels. Like Elton John and Celine Dion, Manilow found that Las Vegas offered a chance to perform in one place without the hassles of traveling far from his home in Palm Springs, Calif. "I just can't stay in hotel rooms and stay away from home," he said. "I'm done with that." But a handful of dates earlier this year in New York, Atlantic City and Chicago were so enjoyable, he said, that he decided to start adding the occasional one-nighter here and there. He's booked 11 more for January and February next year. "We did Madison Square Garden and Atlantic City and Chicago and these audiences were, 'Geez, wow!' I told my management to just drop in some more one-nighters here and there," he said. The Vegas run also has afforded him time to pursue another passion, writing. Manilow has 13 songs finished for a concept album that he won't describe in detail. "I'm not going to give it away," he said. "Someone will steal it." But he did say it was in the vein of 1984's "2:00 A.M. Paradise Cafe," and 2001's "Here at the Mayflower," which veered into jazz and narrative songs. The new one has more of a rock edge to it. "I like to do writing about situations and characters and putting the characters in a place instead of just writing a ballad called 'I Love You, Come Back,'" Manilow said. "To me, I'd rather give you a song where you can actually picture somebody in a place, but these are hard to write." It could come out by next fall. That depends, of course, on what Clive Davis wants to do. Davis is the one who masterminded the success of Manilow's last three thematic studio albums, 2005's "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties" (which sold more than 1 million copies, last year's "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties" (sold over 500,000) and "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies" (debuted at No. 4 this fall). "It's all about Clive Davis. Obviously, this has had a huge response. It was brilliant," he said of the decades series. "I didn't get it when he suggested it to me, this '50s thing. I looked at the list of songs and said, 'Really, you think people would like this?' Being the brilliant, brilliant, brilliant record man he is - he is the No. 1 record man of our time - I just follow his lead and he's right. If he wants me to do an '80s album, I'll be right behind him." With 75 million records sold, Manilow could easily quit and count his riches for the rest of his life. But he says he's never lost the motivation. "I wouldn't know how to do anything else. I just love doing this. I just love doing this. People say, 'When are you gonna go on vacation?' I try to sit reading a book on a chaise lounge and it's TORTURE. It's torture. I make it about 15 minutes, then I run back to my studio and I'm in heaven. I won't stop until they carry me out, and when they carry me out, I'll say I've got one more idea." Barry Manilow; The Palace of Auburn Hills; 8 p.m. Saturday; Tickets: $49, $89, $149, $200, on sale at the box office, Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com and (248) 645-6666; Details: (248) 377-0100, www.palacenet.com |
| December 12, 2007 | Cleveland Free Times | "Soundcheck: Barry Manilow" by Jeff Niesel |
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| More a performer than a singer, Barry Manilow has a career that just won't quit. He's just issued a DVD boxed set that includes his television specials that aired between 1977 and 1988, and he's also put out a compilation dubbed The Greatest Songs of the Seventies that includes hits such as "The Long and Winding Road," "Mandy" and "I Write the Songs." In advance of his Cleveland show, which he emphasized is not part of a tour but rather a one-night event, Manilow spoke via phone about his lengthy career and why we shouldn't call his latest burst of energy a comeback. Free Times: Any great memories of playing Cleveland?
Barry Manilow: Many. One of the first places I played was Blossom Music Center. That was my first time playing anywhere in front of more than 5,000 people. I was conducting as music director for Bette Midler. After her first act, which I had arranged, the place went wild. I came out next and thought at that moment that I was going to die. Bette had given me this opportunity to promote my first album in the second act. I'll never forget walking out onto that stage, fully convinced that everyone was going to walk out or throw things at me. That didn't happen. They were beautiful to me and gave me a standing ovation at the end of my three songs. When Bette came back out, she was happy that I had come through. Cleveland has been good to me ever since that day. FT: Critics have said you've been making a comeback but you haven't gone anywhere, have you?
BM: No. I've been working steadily forever. I continue to release albums, and some do great and some don't. I work very hard at each one of them and promote them. I'm now doing one-nighters here and there. I just haven't stopped. Now and again, an album connects with the public. FT: What was it like for you to revisit your TV specials?
BM: Humiliating. Everyone can see me once again as the idiot in that Copacabana jacket. FT: I read you made your first recording in 1948 with your grandfather.
BM: Yes, that was something that was his idea, but I never really considered myself a singer until "Mandy." I was going to be a producer, arranger, conductor and songwriter. I never had any ambition to be a singer or performer at all. I first took it seriously when "Mandy" went number one. I went, "Oh my God, now what do I do?" FT: And to think you almost didn't record the song.
BM: That's true. It's all Clive Davis' fault. I am the grateful recipient of this man's brilliance. I would not have the career I have now without this guy. FT: You've embraced the comparisons between you and Clay Aiken, right?
BM: Yeah, I think he's great. They don't do it anymore but they did because he kind of looked like a young me. He's better looking. He hasn't got the nose that I struggled with. He's got a much better voice than I do. FT: You've complained about being misquoted. What's the craziest rumor you've ever read about yourself?
BM: That I was on the roof putting out a fire. That was back in the '90s when I was living in Bel Air and first of all, there wasn't even a fire. But the Inquirer reported that someone had seen me on the roof putting out a fire with a hose. FT: I don't blame you for not wanting to be on The View with Elizabeth Hasslebeck. But was that incident blown out of proportion?
BM: No. I didn't want to go on. They told me I didn't have to be interviewed by her and then they changed their minds so I didn't go on. Big deal. FT: What are your chances of getting into the Rock Hall?
BM: None. If they actually nominated me, which they wouldn't, I'd just tell them, "You guys have got to go rock 'n' roll." I'm not rock 'n' roll at all. I'm not bad at what I do, but I'm certainly not rock 'n' roll. I think it's a great organization and if they keep it rock 'n' roll, it's even greater. Barry Manilow
: 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 14, 2007, Quicken Loans Arena, One Center Ct., 216.241.5555, tickets: $79-$200 |
| December 12, 2007 | The Vindicator (Youngstown, Ohio) | "Manilow to crowd: This one's for you: The singer spends more time at home these days but still flies out for shows" by John Benson |
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| Entering his fourth decade as a pop star, Barry "I write the songs that make the whole world sing" Manilow brings his "Manilow: An Evening of Music and Passion" to Northeast Ohio for a Friday show at Quicken Loans Arena. With record sales exceeding 75 million, including his most recent three albums ? "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties," "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties" and "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies" ? Manilow continues to be one of the most popular recording artists of his era. His list of radio hits include "Mandy," "I Write The Songs." "Looks Like We Made It," "Can't Smile Without You" and more. The Vindicator caught up with Manilow recently in a phone call to his Palm Springs home. The Vindicator: When we talked in 2004 for your farewell tour, you said, "I'm done touring with semis and being away from home for three or four months at a time." However, we notice the press release for your upcoming show mentions "Manilow: An Evening of Music and Passion" being an 11-truck extravaganza.
Barry Manilow: They're touring but I'm not (laughs). I'm home and even when we do these gigs, I just fly right home. What I needed to stop doing was being away from home for three weeks at a time and in hotel rooms night after night, not having any personal life. I certainly don't want to stop performing, I didn't want to stop playing with my band and being around an audience and doing all that. I just needed to get off the road, and I have. TV: On the road or off, you're still quite successful with your resident show at the Las Vegas Hilton and now the trilogy of tribute discs. What was your expectation going into the recording of the cover albums?
BM: I had no expectations. It was all a Clive Davis brilliant idea once again. He is the greatest record man in the history of music, and I'm the grateful recipient of his brilliance. He came up with this idea ? "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties" ? and just like I've always done with this guy, I said, "I don't agree with you. It's never going to be a hit. How could it be a hit? They're square and old-fashioned." I've done it from "Mandy" to last year. But I just followed and he just led me up the charts again. TV: So what is it that attracts your fans to square and old-fashioned material?
BM: I think the songs are comforting, not challenging, and make people feel good. I think Clive is absolutely right, that people just need to hear beautiful melodies and familiar songs. TV: Unlike say the novelty aspect of Rod Stewart delving into the Great American Songbook or Johnny Cash transforming rock songs into singer-songwriter gems, your "Greatest Songs" albums seemingly eschews artifice for integrity. You could have easily covered The Bee Gees "Stayin' Alive" but instead chose a timeless classic such as Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water."
BM: Honestly, this is a Clive Davis project. I was the arranger, producer and vocalist but this is his idea. We came up with a rule that the songs had to have been No. 1 records in all three decades or tremendously famous. And Clive had the idea of what kind of songs, the tone of each album, and the style that he wanted. So I just followed his lead. I would have done "Stayin' Alive" and had a ball, but he had this idea to make these albums into adult contemporary stuff that people can play all day long. TV: Considering you've released over 25 studio albums in your nearly 35-year career, are you performing any hidden gems or obscure album tracks in your current set?
BM: We're playing arenas and my hidden gems go over like a lead balloon (laughs). These audiences really want to hear the hits. They really love them, and they put up with my artistic songs until I hit "Weekend in New England," and then they go through the roof. I see what they want. I haven't been on the road for a long time, haven't seen them in a long time, and they really want to hear the hits. It brings back memories. And if I do one of my hidden little gems, then that performance is for me. So I'm not there for me. I'm there for them." |
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