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| February 21, 2008 | Salisbury Post | "Barry Manilow: He talks the songs" by Richard Harrington |
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| We asked Barry Manilow to tell us about some fan favorites and a few of his own. "Mandy" Released Oct. 7, 1974; his first chart entry, it reached No. 1 on Jan. 18, 1975. Manilow's debut album, "Barry Manilow I," had been a bust. According to Manilow, it sold "five copies: my grandparents, my mother and me. It's the beginning of a part of my life that I never expected. I did not go after a hit single; I never even listened to the pop radio. It wasn't challenging to me, a bunch of bubble gum stuff. (Record mogul) Clive Davis said, 'All you need is a hit single and your career could take off.' Clive Davis (sends) me this demo called 'Brandy.' ... (He) said, 'Listen to it and if you can do an arrangement and production, the right one, it could be a number one record for you.' The name was changed to Mandy to avoid confusion with the Looking Glass hit Brandy (You're a Fine Girl). I listened to it, I didn't care about it. I was the songwriter, I didn't want to do anybody else's song. But I love arranging and rearranging songs, and I did a pop-rock demo. Clive didn't like it. I took him to the studio and said, 'Let me just play it for you slower.' I slowed it down ... and he said, 'That's it, do that.' I sang it and played it once, and that's the record." "I Write the Songs" Released Oct. 24, 1975; reached No. 1 on Jan. 17, 1976. For the record, the Grammy-winning Song of the Year was written by Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys, with the "I" referring to Brian Wilson and music itself. "It's gotten me into such trouble. When Clive gave it to me, I said, 'Clive, I cannot do this song. First of all, no one's going to listen to the lyric. They're going to think I'm yelling about (how) I write every song, and I didn't even write this song. Plus the fact that they're not going to understand that I'm "the spirit of music," even though the first line is 'I've been alive forever'. It didn't matter." "Copacabana (At the Copa)" Released May 24, 1978; reached No. 8 in July 1978. Manilow says it took him only 15 minutes to create the irresistibly catchy disco melody for Bruce Sussman and Jack Feldman's giddy lyrics about love at the legendary New York night-spot-turned-discotheque. "Whenever somebody says they like 'Copa' (which earned Manilow his only Grammy), I always throw it to Bruce and Jack because, really, that is a brilliant lyric. I've gotten the (bad) reviews that everyone's gotten, but when they start to pick that one apart, they're wrong because I know how hard it was and I know how smart that lyric is." "When October Goes" Released in 1984, went to No. 6 on the adult contemporary chart. This is the Manilow song that Manilow thinks deserves wider recognition. "It's a melody I wrote to a poem Johnny Mercer wrote. I inherited a batch of his lyrics when he passed away. It gets done in a cabaret now and again by some wonderful, talented person that you've never heard of and will never hear of again. That's one of the songs I wish had gotten more exposure. It's a beautiful lyric, and I'm very proud of it." |
| February 20, 2008 | Star-Telegram (Dallas, Fort Worth) | "Manilow takes 'em back in time" by Chris Shull |
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| Say what you want about singer Barry Manilow -- he's sappy, he's cheesy -- but the man puts on a whale of a show. Tuesday night at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Manilow proved that the magic he made in the 1970s was for real.
Back then, Manilow became a star with hits such as "Mandy," "Could It Be Magic" and "I Write the Songs." He defined the soft-rock sound. Nowadays his Las Vegas-style act and familiar songs pack a punch because Manilow is -- and always was -- a high-energy entertainer from the old school. If you loved him -- and everyone did Tuesday night -- Manilow's show left you awash in nostalgia and with a renewed enthusiasm for his heady, happy hits. But even if you didn't know much about him, his show -- 90 minutes nonstop -- surely made you appreciate his showmanship, his well-crafted songwriting and his ability to deliver a song. Manilow ran through his greatest hits with the practiced ease of a nightclub crooner (Which he is -- Manilow has headlined at the Las Vegas Hilton since 2005). Mostly he was backed by a large show orchestra of strings, brass, reeds and rhythm section. Sometimes he sat at the piano and accompanied himself. Hits, including "Could It Be Magic" and "Looks Like We Made It," were graced with a catchy hook and a big finish. But it was the lesser-known "All the Time" that truly proved Manilow's songwriting skills -- with rhymes in perfect cadence and lyrics unspooling naturally. Manilow is a born romantic; all his songs bubbled with optimism and hope. The smooth jazz Brian Culbertson Band opened the evening with a five-song, 30-minute set. They were entertaining, but the crowd was impatient for Manilow to appear. When he did, backlit against stage fog, he instantly held the audience in his hand. By the time the first encore got under way -- an up-tempo, Vegas version of his hit "Copacabana" -- replete with his backup singers dressed as showgirls, he had made believers out of us all. |
| February 20, 2008 | Dallas Morning News | "Barry Manilow, crowd fill AAC with love and special things" by Joy Tipping |
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| There was a moment about 30 minutes into Barry Manilow's concert Tuesday at American Airlines Center when I looked around and realized that everyone was singing along. Not just the women "of a certain age" who've adored him since "Mandy" came out in 1974 ? and yes, full disclosure, that would include me ? but their husbands and boyfriends, too, and dozens and dozens of teenagers, as well. And they weren't just accompanying Mr. Manilow on the obvious singalong choices ? "I Write the Songs," "Copacabana," "Can't Smile Without You" ? but on virtually every single number. Mr. Manilow's music rarely makes it onto the radio these days; not hip enough, one supposes. But one wonders whether, 30 years from now, Kanye or Rihanna or Amy will still have that kind of power, to instantly turn nearly 11,000 people into one big sappy family (with perfectly synced dancing and singing; it was impressive). They can only hope. He seemed to be fighting a cold, and there were a few sound problems, but Mr. Manilow rose above both to make his "An Evening of Music and Passion" utterly enjoyable, from the rousing opener "It's a Miracle" to the sentimental, lovely encore, "Forever and a Day." They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas ... but in the case of Mr. Manilow, not so much. He brought his entire Vegas act (he's been the headliner at the Las Vegas Hilton for three years) and then some, in a show requiring 11 trucks to transport it. The crackerjack orchestra included members of his own band, but was mostly Dallas musicians, on whom Mr. Manilow bestowed well-deserved praise. His opening act, Brian Culbertson, reminds one of a young Mr. Manilow in looks and spirit, but is a whiz-bang instrumentalist rather than a singer. Mr. Manilow made one fan's night ? I think her name was Darcie ? and thoroughly charmed the crowd when he pulled her up onstage for a dance during "Ready to Take a Chance Again." He interspersed the tearjerkers such as "Could It Be Magic" and "Weekend in New England" with the downright silly (and thankfully he recognizes it as such), as during a weirdly infectious vocal rendition of the William Tell Overture with his backup singers. Then there were the giant smiley faces, flashing on the big screen during "Can't Smile Without You." At 64, Mr. Manilow has gained a textured, nicely nuanced maturity to his voice, and it was obvious how much he's improved through the years during a duet with his much younger self (via big screen) on "Mandy." But he also seems to retain a bit of that shy Brooklyn kid who's genuinely stunned to be standing on that stage. One of the evening's high points was a bit during "I Made It Through the Rain" where he played a scratchy recording of himself as a child at a 25-cent-a-song booth, with his grandpa in the background urging, "Sing, Barry, sing!" He did, and the AAC crowd was thrilled. |
| February 18, 2008 | South Florida Sun-Sentinel | "Barry Manilow: Voice from the past still strong" by Sean Piccoli |
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| A set piece in Barry Manilow's live show has him singing "Mandy" ? his first No. 1 single, from 1975 ? with a younger, videotaped version of himself. It's an exercise that could be called narcissistic. But the duet also works, in that sentimental Manilow way, as a reflection on time passing. The breakup song gets a fresh treatment; the audience gets to marvel at what's changed, and what hasn't, about this quintessential showman over 30-plus years. Manilow, who has a pair of South Florida arena dates this weekend, called the "Mandy" duet an emotional experience in concert. The clip he sings along with is of a 1975 televised performance. "That was the first big show I'd ever done ... and when I look back on it, it's just so deep," he said. "I don't expect the audience to know that, but I hope that they feel something." He elaborated on what he'd like that "something" to be when talking about some of his most recent CDs, including a trio of decade-themed Greatest Songs recordings from the '50s, '60s and '70s. On them, Manilow sings everything from orchestral ballads ("Love Is a Many Splendored Thing") to orchestral Beatles ("The Long and Winding Road"). He called those albums "the musical version of comfort food in times where people need to be comforted. You put these albums on and they make you feel better, and they take away the tension of the day," he said. "And I think that's what music should do. Anyway, I think music should make you feel something. And I think these albums make people feel safer and better, and I'm very thrilled and proud to be able to do that." Manilow, 61, has enjoyed something of an unbroken streak as a provider of musical comfort. His albums of soft-pop originals, nostalgic covers, show tunes and ballads continue to sell respectably in the face of an industry-wide slump. His recent Las Vegas residency played to big crowds. When he tours, he still fills arenas. "It's been stunning," he said of his continuing good fortune, "and I've been holding on with my fingernails, waiting to be one of the casualties, and so far I'm not. But coming from Brooklyn ... I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop any second now. But I've got one thing that nobody else has: I've got Clive Davis." That would be the chairman and CEO of the RCA Music Group, which releases Manilow's albums. Davis, dubbed "the last record man" in a new Rolling Stone profile, has overseen career launches (Donovan, Aerosmith, Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys) and comebacks (Rod Stewart, Santana), amassing a hit streak of his own that stretches back to the 1960s. Davis has helped Manilow pick some of his best-known recordings, including "Mandy," and to stay connected with his audience. "And whatever we think about the music industry," said Manilow, "we all have to agree that this is the greatest record man in the history of music, and he's on my side. And so as long as he's there, it seems to me that I'm going to be there. I'm a grateful recipient of this man's brilliance. So I haven't been affected by [the slump], but everybody else is. It's tip-tapping around all of us." Whatever might be looming, Manilow will continue cheerfully onward, occasionally poking fun at the sheer enormity and longevity of the Manilow franchise. "The well has not run dry for me," he said. "I've got five ideas in the pipeline. I've got a new show that I'm putting together for the Las Vegas thing that'll happen after the summer ... I've got a new album for Arista ... I've got a 29-inch waist. I'm 141 pounds. ... Got all my hair. It just, you know, won't stop. I'm unstoppable!" He had no guarantees of unstoppability when he was trying to graduate from music-industry toiler to star in his own right. Previously he had scored TV programs, composed ad jingles, and written and produced for other artists including Bette Midler. The 1975 TV clip of Mandy reminds him vividly of the point at which he crossed over. "When I came up with the idea of singing along with myself, I had my guys dig out that ... clip and I looked at it, and just like you would if you saw yourself 30 years ago, you would cringe," he said. "I cringed when I listened to him and I looked at him. And as the piece kept going, I began to respect him, and the passion and the ambition, and the bravery of this young guy who really was thrown into this world of performing. I didn't know what the hell I was doing there. One year I was bouncing checks at the A&P and the next year I was No. 1 on the charts ... I look at that young kid and I'm just amazed that he can look as together as he is." Barry Manilow performs; Saturday at BankAtlantic Center (1 Panther Parkway, Sunrise, 954-835-8000) and Sunday at AmericanAirlines Arena (601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, 786-777- 1250). Showtimes are 8 p.m. Tickets: $7.24-$197.25 for BankAtlantic Center; $7.49-$197.50 for AmericanAirlines Arena. Call Ticketmaster (561-966-3309, 954-523-3309, 305-358-5885, ticketmaster.com). |
| February 18, 2008 | Star-Telegram (Fort Worth) | "Manilow remains as passionate as his fans" by Preston Jones |
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| By his own admission, the Brooklyn-born singer/songwriter is an inveterate fine-tuner, constantly massaging and re-shaping his own material, as well as that of the artists he covers on such records as those in The Greatest Songs series. As the 60-something performer makes his way to Dallas for his first North Texas performance in four years, he'll likely have tweaked some or most of his show Manilow: An Evening of Music and Passion. "I can't stop the ideas from coming out -- I can't stop being passionate about the new things I want to create," Manilow says by phone from Los Angeles. "When it comes time to do my shows, even in Dallas, I've changed things around every night. I do this all the time ... I have some crazy idea that I want to get out there. It won't leave me alone." Speaking of not being left alone, Manilow boasts some of pop music's most passionate fans, a deeply engaged group that some might politely describe as "intensely enthused." But if the man who told us all about the Copacabana isn't fazed by their unceasing appreciation, perhaps the rest of us shouldn't be, either. "I'm a very grateful guy that that [is] still happening, they should've been gone years ago, and they're not," Manilow says of his fans. "They're very loyal and there are many, many, many new people out there discovering the music and the passion that I've devoted my life to." Manilow released "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies" in September and says he's working on three new albums concurrently, between his ongoing headliner gig at the Las Vegas Hilton, a smattering of concert dates across the country and the occasional stint as an American Idol mentor (Manilow appeared on seasons three and five). "It really was an eye-opener for me how much good somebody like me ... could do for young talent," Manilow says. "I just really didn't know until I got there that just a couple suggestions from me as a musician and an arranger could help them so much." But if Manilow was a struggling up-and-comer today, in an age of MySpace, MP3s and file-sharing, would he have achieved the same success? He first began turning heads in the mid-'60s, writing jingles for TV and radio, and accompanying a then-unknown Bette Midler at New York City's Continental Baths, before he broke out in 1974 with "Mandy." "I think every successful person will tell you they backed into it," Manilow says. "You start off wanting to do one thing and end up doing another. That's what happened to me: I started off wanting to be a musician and ended up being a performer. I don't know whether that could happen again these days." Although his own career might look drastically different if he started all over again, his advice for any aspiring acolytes is simple: "Go study George Gershwin." But ask him what he hopes the audience feels during his concerts, whether in Dallas, Dubai or Las Vegas, and the Grammy winner is even more succinct: "Goosebumps." Barry Manilow. 8 p.m. Tuesday. American Airlines Center, Dallas. $9.99-$175. 972-647-5700; www.ticketmaster.com. |
| February 17, 2008 | Miami Herald | "Maybe the old songs will bring back the old times: Barry Manilow's sure to play your favorites in two performances, but don't be surprised if he's got more than nostalgia on the playlist" by Howard Cohen |
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| Thirty-four years after Mandy became his first No. 1 hit, Barry Manilow isn't writing the songs that make the whole world sing anymore. But he says the music business still excites him. "When people ask me, 'What do you think of the garbage out there?' I don't agree. This musical world has not let me down, and it never has. It's still killing me," the ever-busy Manilow says in a telephone conversation before coming to South Florida for back-to-back concerts. "Florida and me, we've been good friends from the beginning," Manilow says. "The first time I heard that Mandy had gone to No. 1, I was driving down with [lyricist] Bruce Sussman, my dear friend, and some DJ said, 'Here's the No. 1 song in Dade County,' and Bruce drove off the road! From that moment on, it was me and Florida in love." Decades after the odds would have favored his exile from the pop-culture radar, Manilow continues to prove relevant. His recent series of covers albums of easy-listening music from the '50s, '60s and '70s all went Top 5 on the Billboard chart. The first, Greatest Songs of the Fifties, went all the way to No. 1, his first chart-topping album since 1977. "It's amazing I'm still able to draw the kind of audience that I am at this stage of my career ... My goal was to make [the audience] feel good, make them feel better when they left than when they came. It's my one goal. It's all I ever cared about. I think that's maybe why they come back." Manilow is currently recording a labor-of-love project, a guitar-oriented pop/rock concept album with lyricist Enoch Anderson, his longtime collaborator who co-wrote mid-'70s songs A Nice Boy Like Me and She's a Star, the kind of uptempo songs that serve as musical blueprints for this proposed album. Yet, there's no guarantee that Sony/BMG will deem the CD commercially viable enough to release. Naturally, another mainstream sequel to the covers albums, focusing on the Greed is Good Decade, is in discussion. "Clive [Davis, the head of Sony/BMG Music Group] and I are speaking about it again," Manilow says. "I thought we were done with the Seventies [album]. I didn't think there were enough songs in the '80s to merit looking around, but he sent me this list, and they are not bad: Time After Time. Arthur's Theme." Manilow has also been introduced to younger audiences as one of the harder-working American Idol mentors, most memorably coaching new star Chris Daughtry to his Season Five peak performance of I Walk the Line. "He didn't need me. He was a star right then; he was ready to go," Manilow says of the bald rocker who has become Idol's big success story. Manilow, whose former backup singer Debra Byrd is American Idol's head vocal coach, took the Idol gig not so much to promote his Fifties album -- though "my record company wanted me to do that" -- but to pass along his love of music. "This whole idea of performing and moving people is so important to me. I thought this is a great opportunity to do this with 10 or 12 new kids. I said to [Idol producers], 'I'll do it, but you've got to let me arrange each song for each singer.' They gave me an extra week, and I was able to work with [the contestants] and find out why they were singing the song, what they wanted to do with them. I think they learned you don't just put What the World Needs Now Is Love in front of the piano player and expect miracles. You've got to work on these songs and make them your own." The show Manilow is bringing to South Florida is a "blown-up version" of his Music and Passion residency at the Las Vegas Hilton. Expect more hits, more chatter, more sets (it takes 11 trucks to haul all that equipment over) and more Manilow. And if you think he's all about nostalgia, think again. "I've been into jazz and show tunes for so many years it informs everything I do," Manilow says, "but I'm playing in a rock-and-roll world, and they are doing great stuff: From Nickelback to The Fray to Gang of Four to these remixers, it's thrilling. Before you know it, it's a brand new sound, and it's thrilling again." The point, he says, is to keep working at your craft to evolve. "I stunk for a long time before I figured out how to get there." Of course, that mindset is off-key with how the industry operates today. Major labels, battered by dwindling sales and a failure to figure out how to market music in an Internet world, rarely develop artists. Yet for an artist whose career began in an era of mom-and-pop record stores, clunky 8-tracks and primitive analog recording, Manilow proves surprisingly savvy and receptive to advancements in audio technology and music delivery. He cites the recent Radiohead experiment, in which the British rock group put out its new album online and let its fans set the price, as an interesting but uncertain model. "It sounded like a thrilling idea. Let people pay what they want; [Radiohead] made their money back. Come back in five years and the record industry will be totally different than anything we've known," Manilow says. "I don't know where it's going, but it's not staying here. On one hand, I've always been for new ventures. But when you do that, it's terrifying. But I think, ultimately, we're going to be all fine, and it's exciting." The problem, however, is that commerce, more than ever, trumps the artistic side. Manilow isn't immune. For example, in 2001 the singer-songwriter released Here at the Mayflower, a theatrical concept album about a fictional Brooklyn brownstone and its diverse inhabitants. The jazz-oriented independent label Concord released the CD when Manilow's longtime home, Arista, passed on it. For an indie disc, Mayflower sold well, 183,000 copies. Concord called it its biggest hit to that time. But for a major label, that figure would be insufficient. "Clive ... turned it down on the idea," Manilow recalls without a hint of rancor. "If it's not a big No. 1 hit, he's not interested in it. What he's come up with with these decades albums are fantastic ideas, and they are No. 1 albums. An original album by a guy like me, he warns me they are not going to work. "It's all about business. It's not about my feelings or his feelings. It's about what's going to be a hit. That's all the record business is about." That might not be what music lovers want to hear. However Manilow, flexing some of that maverick muscle, hints that fans hungering for that original work shouldn't lose hope if Davis balks when he hears it upon completion. The as-yet-unnamed album could come out later this year. "Maybe on Barry Records," Manilow says, laughing. "Who know's what's going on?" |
| February 17, 2008 | San Jose Mercury News | "Review: Barry Manilow sends his 'fanilows' home happy" by Jim Harrington |
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| Barry Manilow is such a perfect match for Las Vegas that it's hard to fathom how Celine Dion and Elton John beat him to the punch in terms of mega-year Sin City residencies. Manilow is one of the savviest showmen in the business. His specialties include over-the-top romantic ballads, razzle-dazzle up-tempo numbers and charming personal anecdotes, all of which play superbly on the Vegas stage. Plus, he has an uncanny ability to come across as both the underdog and the people's choice, something only Barbra Streisand manages as well. Thus, it came as no surprise in 2005 when the singer-songwriter announced that he had signed on for a lengthy residency at the Las Vegas Hilton. The show, "Music and Passion," has been a sizable hit, so much so that its run has been extended for yet another year. Not everyone can get to Sin City, which is why the superstar has taken "Music and Passion" on the road. On Friday, the tour came to the HP Pavilion in San Jose and the result was pure Manilow mania. Now, most would consider what's happened to Manilow in recent years -- the surprise hit albums, the guest spots on "American Idol" and "Dancing With the Stars," the Vegas show, etc. -- and call it a comeback. The 15,000-or-so adoring fans (or "Fanilows") who packed the HP to capacity, however, would probably call it a case of the rest of the public finally coming to its senses. Indeed, the guy who took the stage Friday in San Jose didn't seem all that different than the chart-topper we watched on TV (or at the old Circle Star theater) decades ago. He still sounds, looks and acts pretty much the same. That's not to say there weren't some surprises, the biggest of which came at the start of Manilow's 100-minute set. After an opening set by likable smooth jazz artist Brian Culbertson, the house lights went dim again and some crazy techno music started pumping. The Fanilows began to wave their green glow sticks, which had been given out upon entrance, and the whole scene resembled what might happen if a rave broke out at a retirement planning seminar. The lights finally hit the stage, revealing a huge orchestra, a rock band ensemble and four backing vocalists -- but no Barry. Then the elevated band stand split down the middle, with the strings heading stage right and the horns moving stage left, and out walked Moses, I mean, Manilow. From that second on, the Vegas-style spectacle was in full effect. The star greeted his Fanilows, many of whom had seen the singer appear with skater Brian Boitano at San Francisco's AT&T Park back in December, and proceeded to perform the songs that make the whole world sing. "We've got the music," Manilow cried out after bringing the opener, "It's a Miracle," to a close. "Do you have the passion?" That, of course, was a rhetorical question. There was no doubting the passion in the building as Manilow sailed through "Daybreak," "Ready to Take a Chance Again," "Bandstand Boogie" and the other selections that have helped him sell some 75 million records to date. One of the best twists in modern music history is that Barry I Write the Songs Manilow has returned to the pop charts as a cover artist. His "Greatest Songs of the '50s" CD hit No. 1 upon release in 2006 and the two like-minded follow-ups, focusing first on the '60s and then the '70s, have also been strong sellers. He's currently at work on a fourth, "Greatest Songs of the '80s." The focus of this concert, however, was on his own hits. That seemed like a strange decision, given the success of the "Greatest Songs" series. Yet, as the vocalist closed out the main set with a great run through "Mandy," "I Write the Songs" and "Copacabana (At the Copa)," each sending Fanilows into further reaches of Manilow mania, it became apparent that this savvy entertainer had once again made the right call. |
| February 16, 2008 | San Francisco Examiner | "Review: Even now, Barry Manilow makes musical magic" by Leslie Katz |
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| Barry Manilow was great. He always is. Friday night's rare Bay Area concert at the HP Pavilion in San Jose (he was there in 1998 when it was the San Jose Arena) found the superstar at his usual, show-bizzy best. Decades after his breakout hit "Mandy," Manilow is still singing the sappy ballads and simple Top 40 hits that simply haven't worn over the years, particularly for the unapologetic diehard fans comprising the capacity crowd. But this time around, Manilow's got street cred. Critics finally have recognized his versatility (he's written and sung big band, show tunes and jazz) as well as his razzle-dazzle showmanship and undeniable selling power. These days, Manilow is back on top of the charts, with albums featuring covers of songs from the 1950s, ?60s and, most recently, the ?70s -- meaning 1970s hits he didn't originate. But happily, he and his excellent orchestra and backup singers stuck mostly to his own 1970s chart-toppers and favorites Friday, opening with "It's a Miracle" and closing with "I Write the Songs" and "Copacabana." In between were the ballads -- "Somewhere in the Night," "This One's for You," "Ready to Take a Chance Again," "Weekend in New England" -- of which he joked, "I'm so glad you still like these songs. I hope they'll be ruined in karaoke bars for years to come." In a bit of spontaneity, after fussing with a "droopy" microphone at the piano, he commented about other things being droopy; a bit later, his 1960s segment had another PG-13 moment, with him taking a hit from a cigarette and chatting hazily, but recovering with, "The only drug I take is Lipitor." High points included a tribute to his grandfather ("I Made It Through The Rain"), who was responsible for his first recording, made in a coin-operated booth when Barry was a young child, and a kick-butt version of the classical-inspired "Could It Be Magic." But the show's climax was video clip of him singing "Mandy" on TV's "Midnight Special" in 1975 during which he rose from the floor at the piano, accompanying himself on the song. The "then and now" sequence was an evocative testament to the power of the guy who's still making the whole world sing. |
| February 15, 2008 | WFAA (Dallas Morning News) | "Barry Manilow at American Airlines Center: Fans can expect to hear hits from three decades during 'Evening of Music and Passion'" by Joy Tipping |
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| Last time Barry Manilow brought his arena act to town, in 2004, he said that he'd never again take "10 semitrucks around the country and around the world for eight months every year." He wasn't lying: Mr. Manilow isn't bringing 10 trucks to his concert Tuesday at American Airlines Center. This time, it's 11. Mr. Manilow quit the road for Vegas (the Las Vegas Hilton, to be precise) where he has been ensconced as the headliner since February 2005. When he gets a night or a week off in Vegas, he says, he likes to perform one-nighters hither and yon. "You know, we've got a wonderful arena show," he says from his home in Palm Springs, Calif. "It's a blown-up version of the Vegas show. In Vegas, I'm allowed to do between 80 and 85 minutes. Each night I try to squeeze in as much, as many of the big hits as I can. ... But when we go out to the arenas, I'm able to do many more of the songs that people really want to hear." The Dallas show will be followed by gigs in Sunrise, Fla., and Miami, then back to Vegas, then on to Raleigh, N.C., and Atlanta in March. He certainly has at least a truckload of material from which to choose. His career as a singer, songwriter and arranger has spanned three decades, with sales of more than 75 million records worldwide and a string of 25 consecutive Top 40 hits starting with 1974's "Mandy." He's been ranked the top adult contemporary artist of all time by both R&R (Radio & Records) and Billboard magazines. Fans who show up Tuesday for "Manilow: An Evening of Music and Passion" will get a dose of those hits: "Even Now," "This One's for You," "Weekend in New England" and "I Write the Songs" are all good bets. He could also pull from his recent hit albums covering classics of the '50s, '60s and '70s; his Broadway collection, Showstoppers; or his jazzy Here at the Mayflower. Although he found his niche in pop, Mr. Manilow says his influences ranged from classical music to Big Band to show tunes. He credits his stepfather, Willie Murphy, with "changing my life" at 13, when he introduced the young Barry to artists "from Ella Fitzgerald to Broadway scores, from The King and I to The Most Happy Fella to Sondheim ... in piano lessons, I was memorizing some of the most sophisticated jazz pieces, even classical music. That's where my influences were." So, he says with a wry laugh, "When I found myself in the world of pop music singing four chords of 'Can't Smile Without You,' it was torture. Quite a challenge to keep both plates in the air." He seems to have made peace with the dichotomy. "I really never was into just singing a cute little song," he says. "I wanted these songs to outlive me; that's my goal. If elevators are playing 'Could It Be Magic' forever, I would be a very proud guy." He has enjoyed seeing his fans mature along with him and says of the old songs that longtime fans crave: "They're deeper now. They mean more now; they're not just songs. They probably never were." And he's looking forward to hooking another generation or two of "fanilows." "I love it ... I'm not ready to retire; I love creating. The most important thing is when I look out at an audience, and they're smiling." Tuesday at 8 p.m. at American Airlines Center, 2500 Victory. Ticketmaster. $9.99 to $175. |
| February 16, 2008 | Los Angeles Times | "Barry Manilow Live: The pop icon gets the crowd to sing along to his old reliables" by Sarah Tomlinson |
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| "I can only hope these songs are ruined in karaoke bars for years to come," Barry Manilow joked of songs he played for an adoring, near-capacity crowd Thursday at Staples Center. That's a given -- as is the magnitude of Manilow's legacy, which he showed off during a dynamic, 90-minute set. This is a performer, after all, who in the last two years has put out an album each of other artists' hits from the '50, '60s and '70s, including a handful of his own on the latter set. And who, after lying low for much of the '90s, recently got his "Music and Passion" revue at the Las Vegas Hilton extended until 2009. From the moment the singer kicked things off with "It's a Miracle," the crowd went wild, waving glow sticks and singing along. Performing with a small orchestra and four backup singers, Manilow threw himself into bold versions of his early material, from a torchy, string-laden "The Old Songs," to "Ready to Take a Chance Again," during which he danced with a fan onstage. His backup singers sock-hopped during a goofy but kinetic version of "Bandstand Boogie," which included a shout-out to Dick Clark, who was in the audience. Despite the requisite jokes about his age, Manilow looked like Peter Pan as he sat atop his piano during "Can't Smile Without You." Manilow was joined by smooth-jazz saxophonist Dave Koz during a tender, jazzy version of "My Funny Valentine." Manilow seemed a bit in awe of his good fortune, as he beamed during Bruce Johnston's genuinely affecting "I Write the Songs." It was one of several moving moments during a performance that had the intimacy of a cabaret show, thanks to his frequent, funny asides. There was schmaltz too, but Manilow displayed enough heart and humor to avoid becoming a caricature. After a hasty version of "Copacabana (At the Copa)," Manilow returned to the stage with the promise he'd never retire and closed with "Forever and a Day." Amid all the glitz and gags, he looked like he was still having the time of his life. |
| February 15, 2008 | Orange County Register | "Barry Manilow still the ultimate showman at Staples: Stepping away from his Vegas revue for an L.A. stop, the entertainer delighted fans of all ages on Valentine's Day" by Lauren Wilson |
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| "God, how many years have I been making records?" Barry Manilow asked the Staples Center audience Thursday night. "A long time!" yelled one fan from the floor. "I heard that." Fans like that have come to know what to expect from a Manilow show, like this sold-out Valentine's Day treat. The show opened with a montage of Manilow photos and sound clips as the orchestra and band slowly filed out and took their seats. White fog filled the stage, then parted to reveal Manilow's silhouette. He then launched into "It's a Miracle," "Daybreak," "Weekend in New England," and "I Am Your Child." He reveled in "Can't Smile Without You," a cornball classic that here was a stellar standout, sitting atop his piano as the enthusiastic crowd sang along, swaying their bodies as well as green glow sticks that had been handed out earlier in the evening. He also tackled the Rodgers & Hart staple "My Funny Valentine," as a tribute to the countless couples here this Valentine's night. Naturally, much of the production resembled Manilow's Vegas show, "Music and Passion," including the use of a 1975 clip from "The Midnight Special," in which Clive Davis introduces a much younger Barry at a white piano in white tight pants and a powder-blue, satin, rhinestone-encrusted coat, singing his then-new hit "Mandy." As it airs, the present-day Manilow rises to the stage playing a similar white piano, wearing a midnight-blue glitter jacket ? and performing a duet with himself. It was a particularly affecting scene to watch, and the sentimentality really hit home with the crowd. Of course, no one does charm quite like Manilow ... You just want to go up and hug the man. One fan actually got the chance when Manilow randomly picked a member of the audience to dance with during "Ready to Take a Chance Again." Because he's Manilow, he gets away with a lot more stuff ... His stories, like the one about getting his start in music when his grandpa would take him to a 25-cent voice-recording booth on Saturdays in Times Square, come across touchingly. At another point, he mentioned how it wasn't about the singing for him but the music, especially the passion he had for it. Similar things could be said about the show. "Music and Passion" isn't really about the voice. It's about the spectacle ? the lights, the videos, the Fanilow love permeating the atmosphere, the neon-colored monstrosities of showgirl outfits his backup singers get to wear during "Copacabana." Most of all, it's about the fun ? what he does best. Really, would we have him any other way? |
| February 14, 2008 | Contra Costa Times | "Barry Manilow keeps going" by Chad Jones |
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| Inside Bay Area | "Man, oh, Manilow! Barry Manilow makes rare Bay Area concert stop in San Jose" by Chad Jones |
| It's a miracle that even now, Barry Manilow is writing the songs that make, if not the whole world, at least a fair portion of it sing. Could it be magic? Magic had nothing to do with it. Try hard work, dogged persistence and thousands of "Fanilows" who can't smile without him. Yes, Barry Manilow is still going strong, more than 30 years since his first hit, "Mandy," unveiled the Manilow musical formula: big heart-on-the-sleeve ballads sung with utmost sincerity and some good old-fashioned show-biz brio. Just when you think the time has finally come for Manilow to fade into pop history, he shows up with a surprise hit album, an appearance on "American Idol" or "Dancing with the Stars" or a long-running hit show in Vegas. The man never rests. He's 61 and riding yet another crest of popularity from his three "Greatest Songs of" albums that have him warbling tunes from the '50s, '60s and '70s. His show at the Las Vegas Hilton, "Music and Passion," has just been extended for another year. He has two DVD sets out -- a concert promoting the '70s album and a box set of his '70s and '80s TV specials. Though his concert tours have been curtailed by the Vegas show, Manilow is doing a few one-night stops around the country, and he'll make a rare Bay Area performance Friday at the HP Pavilion in San Jose. On the road, shuttling from one gig to another, Manilow checks in by phone and says that although his last Bay Area appearance was nearly 10 years ago (also in San Jose), he loves the area. "I remember playing there in 1973," he says. "It was a small nightclub. Bette (Midler) had just been there ... the Boarding House. It was sort of a hippie nightclub. I got my first taste of the Bay Area audience there, and these people are smart. They don't suffer fools gladly. I've gotten away with a lot of being cute and telling cornball jokes. Can't do that up there. They want real music, and I have the real music. I didn't need to do anything but be truthful and make music I believed in." Manilow has been the butt of many a joke. When you're as popular as he is -- last year he was honored for career album sales of more than 75 million copies worldwide -- you're undoubtedly going to peeve the purists. Still, Manilow has been able to keep his sense of humor and his perspective. He has done his own thing and made forays into jazz ("2:00 AM Paradise Cafe"), show tunes ("Showstoppers") and standards ("Manilow Sings Sinatra"). He's even written two musicals. More on that in a minute. Whatever music he's working on -- and this is likely a key to his success -- Manilow communicates emotion clearly and cleanly. He's a born musical storyteller. "I try to sing as if I'm continuing talking," he says. "I try to make the audience not know the difference between when I finish talking and when I begin to sing. Then, what I do, in my lyrics when I perform, I break down every lyric as if I were breaking down a scene in a play. I create the situation for myself in my imagination. I create a partner who I'm singing to. I know whether I'm in an apartment with my father or grandfather or out in a field with friends. It's rare anyone cares to do that in pop music." Manilow's technique is much more common in theater, which is something he fully realizes, having been a musical theater fan since his childhood days in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. "My first records were cast albums starting with 'Guys and Dolls,' to 'Finian's Rainbow' to 'Gypsy' and all the great shows," he recalls. "I fell in love with songs that told stories and songs that had great situations in them and great melodies. Then I found myself onstage singing pop songs, and I was not interested in just standing there and singing. The only way to go, to keep myself sane, was to find situations I could find myself truthful in, even though they were relatively simple lyrics in a pop song. 'I Can't Smile Without You' or 'I Write the Songs' or any of the songs I've had hits with, they are not Sondheim lyrics, but I treat them as if they are." Raised on show tunes, Manilow, not surprisingly, has tried his hand at writing a musical. His first effort was an offshoot of his hit song "Copacabana (At the Copa)," which ran in London and toured the United States (with a stop in San Jose). With Bruce Sussman, Manilow also wrote "Harmony," an original musical about the Comedian Harmonists, a German singing group popular in the 1920s and '30s during the rise of the Nazi regime. The show had its world premiere at the La Jolla Playhouse in 1997, and plans for Broadway were off, then on, then off again. It was a bruising experience for Manilow. "One of my goals before I croak is to see 'Harmony' produced properly," Manilow says. "I'm not involved in producing it anymore -- that killed me last time -- but there are two respected producers who are interested in doing the show. Who knows? In the next year, you might see 'Harmony' in a full-page ad somewhere. As of now, I had to step back and put my defenses up again. It hurt too bad." But Manilow has not soured on the idea of creating a musical. The fun, he says, is in the creation and in putting all the elements together. "Then it turns to money and the whole thing falls apart. But the creative part is so addictive, so thrilling and so satisfying. After you get past the insanity, everyone goes back. I have loads of composer-writer friends all over Broadway with the same scars I've got, and they always go back." One of the hardest-working men in show business, Manilow claims that the best vacation for him is in front of his keyboard writing songs. "I try my best," he says. "I chain myself to a chaise lounge, grease myself up like a tuna fish, sit there and try to read a book. But I can't do it. I'm much happier in front of my keyboard." Manilow is back in talks with Clive Davis, his longtime producer, about a fourth "decade" CD: the'80s. And he's writing another concept album similar to 2001's "Here at the Mayflower," but with more of a rock bent. "Right now, believe it or not, I'm studying pop-rock bands like Nickelback and The Fray," Manilow says. "There's a bunch of talented young people in that world. This new album has some edge to it, and I'm trying to figure out what's going on out there, and what's going on is very exciting. I need to scare myself again. This rock'n' roll world is scaring me. I don't know whether I can do it." Who: Barry Manilow, with special guest Brian Culbertson; When: 8 p.m. Feb. 15; Where: HP Pavilion, 525 W. Santa Clara St., San Jose; How Much: $9.99-$175; Contact: 510-625-8497, 925-685-8497, http://www.ticketmaster.com |
| February 13, 2008 | San Jose Mercury News | "Manilow writes the songs - and he's a good sport, too" by Shay Quillen |
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| Looks like he made it - again. After keeping a low profile in the 1980s and '90s, Barry Manilow is back in a big way. His three "Greatest Songs" discs - featuring familiar mellow hits from the '50s, '60s and '70s - have returned the '70s superstar to the top rungs of the charts, and his popular "Music and Passion" show at the Las Vegas Hilton was recently extended into 2009. Manilow rarely tours anymore, but he's hitting the road for a few arena shows this month, including one Friday at San Jose's HP Pavilion. We got a few minutes on the phone with Manilow from his home in Palm Springs. The Brooklyn native turned out to be a funny, self-deprecating Nickelback fan. Who knew? Mercury News: Many people had written you off as a major cultural force, but now you're back, all over TV and with a string of hit albums. How did you do it?
Barry Manilow: I don't consider it a comeback at all. I've just been working since 1821 or something. I don't remember ever taking off much time. Whether I was making records or not, I was always on the road, creating something, being somewhere ... I didn't have [hit records] for a while, but I've always been working. MN: Your "Greatest Songs" CDs cover a period - the '50s, '60s and '70s - when rock was at the forefront, yet there are few rock songs on your albums. Did the rock of those years resonate with you?
BM: It did with me, but I'm sorry to say it didn't with Clive (Davis, founder of Arista Records). Clive wanted a much more mellow, emotional album ... These albums are really not made for jumping around your house. MN: Could the series continue into the '80s and beyond? Are there people today writing your kind of songs?
BM: Now and again. I slog through the radio like we all do. I put up with the garbage that's always on. And then, now and again, something wonderful will come out of it - the Fray will suddenly come up, or Nickelback will suddenly come up, or Gwen Stefani with the catchiest thing you've ever heard ... The Foo Fighters are really doing some great stuff. Did you ever think you'd hear those words coming out of my mouth? A 95-year-old ballad singer? But music is music. I'm a musician, and if it's good, I get it. MN: You've appeared on "American Idol" twice. What do you think about that phenomenon?
BM: In the beginning, I thought it was just a gimmick ... I got it when I did the show. I really hadn't paid much attention to it, but when I got to work with them, I respected the show and these kids much more than I thought. They are very serious, and most of them have a lot of talent. And when they get down to the last nine, they've all got something. MN: Is there one contestant who stands out to you?
BM: Chris Daughtry. I just knew it. I would put my two cents in with all of them, but when he sang for me the song he was going to do that night, I just said, "Man, you don't need me. Just keep going." And that was it. That was my mentoring to Chris. MN: Tell us about the show you're bringing to San Jose. Is it like the "Songs From the Seventies" TV special that just came out on DVD?
BM: It's certainly a much more produced show than that ... This is 11 trucks' worth of stuff. But I'll tell you something, Shay, it's still an intimate show. Even though there's 11 trucks of crap on the stage, it's really still me and the audience. If it's not that with me, it never works. It might be beautiful around me, and there might be lots of stuff going on, but really if I don't somehow connect emotionally to every single person in that room, it doesn't matter whether there's 11 trucks' worth. So it's really kind of an intimate show, with 11 trucks. MN: Is it similar to your Vegas show?
BM: This is a blown-up version of our Vegas show. In Vegas, you can only do between 80 and 90 minutes before they throw you off the stage so that the audience can go back and throw their money away in the casino. But when I go back to the arenas now and again, I can do as much as I want. MN: Do you live in Vegas now?
BM: No, I live in Palm Springs, where it's just gorgeous, and it's about 30 minutes away from Vegas with a plane. So whenever I have a gig there, I fly there, I stay there till I'm done, and I fly home. It's a real great gig, because it keeps me off the road. I was so over the road. I've been on the road for three decades, and really, I was done with waiting for room service. MN: Last night, I watched your '70s TV specials, which just came out on DVD.
BM: I'm so sorry. Once again, you see me looking like an idiot wearing that "Copacabana" jacket. I thought I would be dead when they released that thing so I wouldn't have to go through that again. MN: Actually, I liked a lot of it.
BM: The hardest thing for me, especially in those days, was figuring out how to perform. That's the only part that I really don't enjoy watching. Listen, if you looked at your old home videotapes, you'd probably cringe, too. Only I did mine in front of a billion people. Barry Manilow with Brian Culbertson; Where: HP Pavilion at San Jose, 525 W. Santa Clara St.; When: 8 p.m. Friday; Tickets: $9.99-$175; Call: (408) 998-8497 or visit www.ticketmaster.com. |
| February 13, 2008 | KTUV.com | Events - Barry Manilow |
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| He might not be the hippest performer out there, few songwriters can match the success and mainstream adoration Barry Manilow has enjoyed for the last three decades. A musically talented youth in New York whose imagination was stoked by heavy exposure to jazz and swing by his stepfather and grandparents, Manilow scored his first off-Broadway production at the age of 21 while studying at New York College of Music and Julliard as well as working the mailroom at CBS. More stage commissions led to extensive work as a pianist, producer and arranger. Manilow also paid the bills as a commercial jingle writer and singer, a practice he would continue into the '70s, penning and/or performing jingles for State Farm Insurance, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, and the famed McDonald's "You Deserve a Break Today" campaign. Though he was making a solid living, the musician's biggest break came when he became the pianist and musical director for Bette Midler after first accompanying the singer during her infamous run at the Continental Baths in New York City. Manilow worked with Midler through her rise to stardom in the early '70s before leaving to launch his own successful solo career in 1975. The year before, his breakthrough album 'Barry Manilow II' with the #1 hit "Mandy" introduced the singer to a global audience and started a remarkable string of chart-topping albums and singles. Manilow became a fixture on television (between his own specials and frequent talk show appearances that continue to this day) and Las Vegas while establishing himself as a monolithic if middle-of-the-road pop music giant. Though Manilow has moved away from songwriting to become a performer of jazz and pop standards, he continues to be a major force on the charts and international touring circuit. He sings hit tunes from throughout his career along with new favorites from his latest effort 'The Greatest Songs of the Seventies' when he comes to San Jose Friday night. Date(s): 2008 Feb: 15; Location: San Jose; Venue: HP Pavilion (formerly Compaq Center); Time Info: 8 p.m.; Price Info: $9.99-$175. |
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