Barry Manilow is an icon. Ranked as the number one Adult Contemporary Artist of all-time, according to Billboard magazine, the Grammy, Emmy and Tony award-winning singer-songwriter, arranger, producer and musician has had an astonishing 50 Top 40 singles, including 12 number ones and 27 Top 10 hits, and five of his albums were on the best-seller charts simultaneously.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to his legacy as an artist that has spanned the course of popular music of a staggering five decades. On May 9, 2017, his legacy will be honored when he is awarded the title of BMI Icon at the 65th annual BMI Pop Awards in Los Angeles.
I caught up with Manilow, who has sold more than 85 million albums, to talk about the award, his charity The Manilow Music Project, as well as his new album, coming out in 2017 and the contemporary artist he would love to duet with.
Simon Thompson (ST): How do you feel about being referred to as an icon? Barry Manilow (BM): I’m surprised, I didn’t start by saying what I usually say, ‘Hi, it’s the icon speaking!’. I don’t take that seriously but I do take this recognition seriously because I’ve had my share of awards over the years but this one really does mean a lot because it’s a songwriter’s award. Over the years, songwriting has been very important to me even though I’ve had many opportunities to sing other people’s songs and have a lot of success as an arranger and a producer of other people’s songs. It’s the composing that has always been very, very close to my heart so for BMI to give me something means a lot.
ST: How do you quantify your success? Is it financially or in some other way? BM: For me, I started off just wanting to be a musician and that’s all that is important to me. The rest of it I am grateful to have, don’t get me wrong, but it’s never really been what I went after. There are a lot of people who go after fame or they go after money or they want the approval of an audience but that’s never really been my thing. All I’ve cared about is making music and it doesn’t matter whether it’s for thousands of people or for a small nightclub or even if it’s in my little studio with my computer, that’s what feels right to me.
ST: Your new album is This Is My Town: Songs of New York. How much of your success do you credit to New York? BM: It’s not my success, New York formed me as a human being and as a person. I was raised by my mother, my Grandmother, friends, relatives, all New Yorkers, all decent people with a sense of humor and really great morals. Most of all, when you come from New York, you are given a big bullsh*t meter and you can tell when people are being honest with you and New Yorkers will not stand for you being dishonest. New Yorkers are great people, honest people. If you get into trouble then you want someone from New York standing next to you because if there’s a building on fire they will run into the building, not away from it. It’s one of the things that I treasure about being raised in New York and that bullsh*t meter that I have in me has served me very well in this world of showbusiness.
ST: You have personally contributed over $100,000 to The Manilow Music Project. Is that something you see as much of a part of your legacy as your music? BM: I never really thought about it like that, I just try to get musical instruments into the schools that are running out of them and if I can encourage or inspire some young people to get into music, that’s all I care about because I know what it did for me. I was a geek when I grew up, I had a few great friends but I wasn’t into sports, they really didn’t teach me very much and I wasn’t inspired by my teachers but when I found the piano I felt safe and I knew that I had a future. You put a guitar in the hands of a young guy and it might do the same thing for them.
ST: With the foundation, is it important for you to lead by example and put your own money where your mouth is and have a personal financial input? BM: If I can, I do. I do that all over the place and all the time but the Manilow Music Project works really well on the road because in every city I go to I donate a piano and that starts off an instrument drive. We collect instruments from people that are coming to my shows, they all go to local schools and that feels great. You should read the letters from these kids. I got a picture of a little boy, he wrote to me thanking me for his brand new Tuba and he was standing next to the Tuba and it was bigger than he was.
ST: So what is the biggest investment that you have made in your career? BM: I think I have not made as many friends as I could have because of this fame. This fame thing puts a separation between the famous person and the public. I have met people in an elevator where after two sentences I could be a friend of theirs and then they leave because they are looking at this image named Barry Manilow, they’re not seeing me, the guy. Over the years I’ve found that they have to get through being comfortable with me but there’s this bubble that stops them from actually knowing who I am. I find that’s the only problem. For me, the investment has been that I think I have lost great friends because of this fame thing.
ST: A landmark for many artists is that very first big check that they get. Do you remember getting yours and do you remember how much was it for? BM: I do remember the very first big check I got. It was from Clive Davis, my hero from Arista Records, he was the record company President that began my recording career. I was a struggling young piano player, I played piano for every singer in New York because I’m a good accompanist, I’m not a good piano player but I’m a good accompanist and that was a week-to-week paycheck, although it was hardly a paycheck. Then we did Mandy and it was very successful but you don’t see any money from your records for at least a year so I was still struggling. Clive and Arista were having a convention, it was their first big convention because Mandy was their first big record. They were having it in San Diego and I was living in Manhattan so I bounced a check in a grocery store in order to get that plane to get to San Diego. When I got to San Diego, Clive knocked on my hotel door and gave me a check for $1 million and I’ll never forget it because that was the beginning of my career. I didn’t tell him I had literally just bounced a check that morning.
ST: What do you put the longevity of your career down to? BM: Simon, you’ve really got to ask them (the fans) because I’ve never known. I don’t know why they are still with me, I couldn’t be more grateful, I listen to my records and they’re okay and I watch my performances and think, ‘He’s alright.’ I don’t understand why they are still with me, I don’t understand it but maybe nobody does because perhaps every performer will give you that same answer. I keep doing the best I can, I kill myself trying to make great records, I kill myself trying to do the greatest performances I am capable of doing but I don’t understand what it is that keeps them coming back.
ST: Have you ever considered a movie or a musical tracing your life and career? BM: I haven’t but there have been other producers and filmmakers who have been interested in doing something like that. I don’t want to be involved in anything like that because it’s too creepy for me but maybe after I’m gone but not while I’m still alive.
ST: A lot of people have suggested that should follow in the footsteps of other icons such as Lionel Richie and Dolly Parton and perform at the Glastonbury Festival. Has that been discussed at all? BM: It’s never come up but those big rock and roll festivals would terrify me. I don’t think anybody would come (to see me). I’m not a rock and roll artist and that’s what those kinds of huge festivals have, they have loud bands and that’s not me. No-one’s offered that to me.
ST: You’ve done a lot of duets in your time but is there anyone around at the moment that you would like to duet with? I thought that perhaps you and Ed Sheeran could be an interesting pairing. BM: Yeah but I think I would choose Bruno Mars because he’s right up my alley. He’s a crazy performer, he comes from the kind of performing family and I just love him. That would be so great if he were interested. I met him once and it was great, we both gushed about each other but nothing has ever come out of it.
ST: You recently came out and have had an overwhelmingly positive response. You were concerned about how fans might react but did you expect quite the show of support? BM: No, I didn’t but I should have because the people have always been so great so I should never have doubted them. When I said that quote, what I really meant was that if I had done something like that in the 80s I don’t know whether it would have been accepted as easily and beautifully as it has today because things have changed. Being gay is no big deal anymore, thank God, although [it’s] a big deal to a lot of families and a lot of young people. Overall, I do think the tone of accepting gay people is more accepting than it’s ever been. Garry and I have been together for going on 40 years, I could have done it any old time but I think it would have been a very negative explosion and I didn’t want that for my fans because they stand up for me. Every bad review I’ve ever had, I just pull the cover over my head and feel sorry for myself but the next day the newspapers are filled with letters from people standing up for me. I adore them so much and I am so grateful and I didn’t want to put that burden on them. During those days I wasn’t the golden boy, believe me, and I wasn't as accepted with my music as I am today. I have been open about this forever to everybody and I have never hidden this and I couldn’t be more proud to be a gay man or to have a partner of 40 years, it’s never even dawned on me to hide it but People magazine, bless their hearts, needed a big headline but it really wasn’t a secret in my family or amongst my friends, my band or people that know me. All the fans knew, it was never hidden, but perhaps the public at large might be surprised, although I don’t think even they were very surprised. Simon, I’m 73 years old, I’m not married to a woman and I love Judy Garland so you do the math!
Barry Manilow returned to his roots for his latest album. The pop icon will release his upcoming LP, This Is My Town: Songs of New York, on April 21. The collection includes original tracks and standards, as well as a mash-up of timeliness tunes. PEOPLE has an exclusive first listen to “NYC Medley,” on which he covers classics (“New York, New York”) and contemporary hits (Jay Z and Alicia Keys‘ “Empire State of Mind”).
A New York City-native, Manilow, 73, says recording the Big Apple-inspired songs in his Palm Springs home studio was a poignant experience. “When I was doing these songs, I found myself welling up more often than I anticipated,” he says. “Stuff like ‘Native New Yorker’ and even ‘Empire State of Mind’ — these lyrics hit me so hard, and I just didn’t expect it to. There’s some beautiful writing in ‘Empire State of Mind’! I am a native New Yorker, and I didn’t expect it to be emotional, and it was. I had to keep stopping singing because I kept welling up.”
The star, who grew up in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood, says the lyrics took him back to his early years, when he was writing famous jingles and collaborating with Bette Midler in the city. “Every time I would get to another line, I’d be, ‘Yeah, that’s me: I was there. I believe what these lyrics say.’ Bright lights, sidewalks of New York; I was there for all of my young life,” Manilow adds. “When I got to sing them, they really hit me in the gut, and it was a very emotional recording session. I thought, New York doesn’t have one style to it — New York is a melting pot of people and different styles.”
Looks like he made it! After 50 years in showbiz, Barry Manilow sat down exclusively with PEOPLE in his home recording studio at his Palm Springs estate to reminisce on his career, enduring legacy and private world ahead of the April 21 release of his latest album, This Is My Town: Songs of New York. From his humble beginnings in Brooklyn and collaborating with Bette Midler to becoming one of the bestselling artists of all time, the pop icon looks back on how he became the man who writes the songs that make the whole world sing.
Born Barry Alan Pincus in 1943, Manilow grew up with his single mom Edna Manilow in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood; he took her name after his estranged truck-driver father, Harold Kelliher, left. And while he started playing instruments (accordion at 7, piano at 13), it wasn’t until he met his stepfather Willie Murphy that he found his first love: music. “When my stepfather came into my life and brought with him a stack of albums that may as well have been a stack of gold, some of the greatest music you’ve ever heard -- jazz, Broadway scores, great singers with great arrangements,” recalls Manilow. “He changed my life with just that little stack of records. My mother was very, very musical. So there was always great music in my house.”
He wasn’t the most popular teenager -- “I was miserable in high school!” he says with a laugh -- but Manilow found his place among fellow musicians. “When I found the orchestra class, then I became Mr. Popular, really,” says the Eastern District High School alum. “I was voted best musician of the year, I formed my own band ... but before that, I really didn’t know what to do because it was all about sports, and that’s not who I am.”
Marriage, Bette Midler - and His Big Break: After graduating, Manilow married his second love -- high school sweetheart Susan Deixler -- and pursued a career in music in Manhattan. But the young artist’s dreams put a strain on his relationship, and they split after a year. “I was in love with Susan. I just was not ready for marriage,” says Manilow, who (now married to longtime manager Garry Kief) maintains he wasn’t struggling with his sexuality at the time. “I was out making music every night, sowing my wild oats - I was too young. I wasn’t ready to settle down.” But sacrificing his personal life paid off for his professional one as he worked with up-and-coming singers, accompanying and arranging music for them.
Manilow made a name for himself writing jingles (he’s the brain behind such beloved slogans as “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there” and “I am stuck on Band-Aid brand ‘cause Band-Aid sticks on me”); headed up music for Ed Sullivan at The Late Show; then, in 1971, began collaborating with one Bette Midler at the gay hotspot the Continental Baths. “Barry Manilow was a driving force,” says Midler of Manilow, who produced her first two albums. “He did a great job arranging, and he had a great sense of how to move a song along; he just knew how to inject a song with excitement.” Midler’s career skyrocketed, and his followed suit.
A Hesitant Superstar: Following a lukewarm debut album, Manilow caught the break of a lifetime when famed record exec Clive Davis acquired his contract after seeing him perform for the first time in Central Park. “I was knocked out,” says Davis, who urged his latest signee to record a rock song that he’d discovered called “Brandy.” So Manilow took the track, slowed it down, and turned it into a dramatic piano ballad and retitling it. Soon after, “Mandy” became Manilow’s first No. 1 hit in 1974. “I didn’t know I was making the first big pop-rock ballad,” says Manilow, laughing. “But when it did get on the radio, I listened to what was around me: ‘Kung Fu Fighting,’ ‘Boogie Oogie Oogie.’ I thought, ‘These people need me!’”
Although he’s beloved by his devoted “Fanilows” as a singer, songwriter and performer, Manilow actually prides himself most on his arranging abilities. “As an arranger, you take a rock ‘n’ roll song and make it into a ballad with three chord changes and key changes and an emotional ending. That’s what I do,” he says. “Yes, I’m a songwriter. I’ve written a handful of songs that have become hit songs. But that’s not really my forte.”
Still, after the success of “Mandy,” Manilow released hit after hit, from “Could It Be Magic” and “Looks Like We Made It” to “Copacabana (At the Copa)” and “Can’t Smile Without You.” “Barry’s a terrific showman. But he’s so modest about his performing talent and, to some extent, self-deprecating,” says Davis, whose inaugural pre-Grammys party (an award season staple) was thrown in 1976 to celebrate “Mandy.” “I mean, the combination of the number of songs that are now part of, clearly, the musical culture? They’re standards. And so the hits that we have enjoyed together are really part of the new Great American Songbook.”
Indeed, Manilow says he’s still wrapping his head around his pop star status. “I started out not loving the job because it was a big surprise,” he says. “I never thought about being a performer or a singer or any of that - maybe a composer or producer, anything in the background. But when I wound up on the stage singing and trying to talk to an audience, I was terrible; I was really terrible. I was an amateur. I got up from the piano, and I didn’t know what to do with my legs. And as the years went by, I’ve figured it out and become comfortable with it, and the audiences have stayed enthusiastic and wonderful.”
Over the course of his decades-spanning career, Manilow has released dozens of albums, become one of the bestselling artists of all time and won a Grammy, an Emmy (which he uses as a makeshift doorstop!) and a special Tony. And while his fan base is as fervent as ever, he bid adieu to his touring days last year.
“Forty-five years of room service is enough!” Manilow jokes of his retiring from touring. “Going away from home for weeks at a time, I just couldn’t do that anymore. I wanted to be home, to really have my life back. You know, there’s this joke: Like the prostitute says, it’s not the work, it’s the stares. That’s me! It’s not the work; it’s getting there that got me eventually, it just got me. So it was the last couple of tours I kept saying, ‘I think this is it.’ And then it wasn’t. It was so exciting: another album, another reason to go on the road, another television thing. But eventually, it just got me, finally. “It’s the end of the road - but it’s not the end.”
The consummate performer gets to spend more time with husband Kief at home in Palm Springs these days. “The reason I chose Palm Springs: My life is so filled with noise - great noise and the noise of airports and streets and going in and out of concert halls and music and applause,” he says. “I needed to be able to come home to a place where it was peaceful. It’s peaceful here. It is the absolute opposite of what my 45-year career has been.” That doesn’t mean Manilow is retiring, though: “I tried it. I was so bored, I was driving myself crazy,” he says.
Sure enough, the legend is keeping busy making new music, as This Is My Town drops later this month. “There’s always the next thing,” he says. “A lot of the people that I started out with are not making albums. There are still record companies that are interested in me and audiences that are still interested in what I have to say. I’m just one of the lucky guys that are able to keep going. I’ll keep going until they stop me!”
Pop legend Barry Manilow opens up for the first time about coming out, finding love, and surviving showbiz for 50 years. For decades Barry Manilow gave the world timeless hits, while keeping his own world a total secret. Now at 73 years old, the music legend is opening up about his life, struggles and, for the first time, his sexuality.
Fiercely private, the pop icon recently welcomed PEOPLE into his Palm Springs home for an exclusive interview and photo shoot with his manager husband Garry Kief — and talked for the first time about their nearly 40-year romance. Says Manilow, “I’m so private. I always have been.”
Born Barry Alan Pincus in 1943 and raised by his single mother Edna Manilow, in Brooklyn, Manilow knew early on his first love was music. His second love was his high school sweetheart Susan Deixler. “I was in love with Susan,” says Manilow of the woman he married after graduating high school, “I just was not ready for marriage.” The star maintains he wasn’t struggling with his sexuality at the time of their one-year matrimony. “I was out making music every night, sowing my wild oats — I was too young. I wasn’t ready to settle down.”
Indeed, Manilow’s personal life took a backseat as he pursued a career in music, writing jingles to pay the bills (State Farm, Band-Aid and others still use them today) and in 1971, taking a gig arranging music for and accompanying a young Bette Midler at the gay hotspot the Continental Baths. He produced the diva’s first two albums and when her career took off, his followed suit.
After skyrocketing to fame in 1974 with his pop-rock ballad “Mandy,” the Brooklyn native’s star only got brighter with the release of classics like “Looks Like We Made It,” “Copacabana (At the Copa)” and “Can’t Smile Without You.” Then in 1978, he met Kief — a TV executive and Houston native — and “I knew that this was it,” says Manilow. “I was one of the lucky ones. I was pretty lonely before that.”
Soon after, Kief became Manilow’s manager, a role he still holds today, in addition to being President of Barry Manilow Productions. “He’s the smartest person I’ve ever met in my life — and a great guy, too,” Manilow says.
Adds longtime friend Suzanne Somers: “There’s Barry Manilow the performer, and then there’s the Barry ‘machine.’ It takes enormous savvy and know-how to book and market complicated arena tours, choreograph promotion, direct the entire team and make it look effortless, and that part is Garry’s domain. A major career takes two. Between them, there is enormous comfort and trust.”
Not that it was always easy for the pair. Early on in their relationship, Kief went to a Manilow concert. Afterward, “I got into the car with him, and [the fans] were rocking the car,” Manilow recalls. “He was like, ‘I can’t handle this. It’s not for me.’ I’m glad he stayed.”
And the couple has stayed together for 39 years, all while remaining mum on his sexuality — an open secret to some in his long-devoted, mostly female fan base, a shock to others - and even stepping out and living with once-rumored love interest Linda Allen during his relationship with Kief.
Manilow,who will release his new album This Is My Town: Songs of New York on April 21, admits he’s always been hesitant to discuss the relationship — and to come out publicly, even after he finally married Kief in a clandestine ceremony at their 53-acre Palm Springs estate in April 2014.
In 2015, news of their marriage and Manilow’s sexuality made headlines, something the legend calls “a blessing and a curse.” Considering his fans, “I thought I would be disappointing them if they knew I was gay. So I never did anything,” says Manilow. Turns out, “When they found out that Garry and I were together, they were so happy. The reaction was so beautiful — strangers commenting, ‘Great for you!’ I’m just so grateful for it.”
Barry Manilow can’t smile without him! In the new issue of PEOPLE, the pop icon, 73, opens up for the first time about his 39-year relationship — and 2014 wedding — with longtime manager Garry Kief.
After breaking out in 1974 with his pop-rock ballad “Mandy,” Manilow skyrocketed to fame with hit after hit, from “Looks Like We Made It” to “Copacabana (At the Copa).” The performer says the attention was alienating. “When you’re that big, you don’t meet very many people,” says the pop icon, who will release his new album, This Is My Town: Songs of New York, on April 21.
So when Manilow met Kief — then a TV exec and Houston native — in 1978, his life changed completely. “I knew that this was it,” says Manilow. “I was one of the lucky ones. I was pretty lonely before that ... Garry didn’t know what I did, even though I had all these records out. He was a guy, and I was a guy, so we could just deal with each other like two normal people, not like a superstar and a person.”
Manilow and Kief, 68, have been together ever since, romantically — and even professionally, as Kief has managed the star for nearly 40 years. “He’s the smartest guy I’ve ever met in my life — and a great guy, too” says Manilow.
Adds Suzanne Somers, a longtime friend of the couple: “It helps that Garry is devastatingly handsome. I still see Barry looking at him with his sparkling, periwinkle-blue eyes, and it’s clear their decades-long love is here to stay.”
Manilow likely gave Kief that same look of love in April 2014, when they exchanged vows in April 2014 in an intimate, private wedding ceremony at their 53-acre Palm Springs estate. “I didn’t think it was going to be that emotional,” recalls Manilow. “It was deeper than we thought it was going to be, looking at each other, saying, ‘I love you’ in front of people.”
Still, Manilow says their nuptials were more of a formality than anything. “We’ve been married all these years. It’s just that it became legal,” says Manilow, who was previously married to high school sweetheart Susan Deixler for a year before they split. (“I was in love with Susan ... I wasn’t ready to settle down,” he adds, maintaining he wasn’t struggling with his sexuality at the time). Adds Manilow: “We took a look at our wills and made sure that everything is in proper order. Getting married was the right thing to do.”
Like any couple, Manilow and Kief faced some challenges over their years together. The showman says his fame put a strain on their relationship early on after Kief went to a Manilow concert. Afterward, “I got into the car with him, and [the fans] were rocking the car,” Manilow recalls. “He was like, ‘I can’t handle this. It’s not for me.’ I’m glad he stayed.”
After nearly four decades together, though, the couple is happier than ever. “Thank goodness we’re still together,” Manilow says, “and we’re in good shape, too.”
Looks like he made it. Singer-songwriter and all-around entertainer Barry Manilow will be honored with Broadcast Music, Inc.'s prestigious Icon Award at the upcoming 65th annual BMI Pop Awards, held May 9 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.
The BMI Pop Awards recognize the songwriters and publishers of the past year's most performed pop songs in the country. Hosting duties for the invitation-only ceremony fall to BMI president and CEO Mike O'Neill and vp of writer/publisher relations Barbara Cane.
"Barry Manilow is a visionary whose exceptional body of work has shaped the course of popular music for over five decades," said Cane in a statement. "He has left a lasting imprint on every aspect of music, influenced the careers of his contemporaries, and touched the lives of many with his unique gift of artistry. His musical brilliance defies genre expectations and I cannot think of a more deserving recipient."
The Brooklyn native has either written or co-written many of his biggest hits, including "Copacabana," "Could It Be Magic" and "I Made It Through the Rain." The ones he didn't write, like the No. 1s "Mandy" and "I Write the Songs," he produced. Other hits include the chart-topping "Looks Like We Made It," as well as "Can't Smile Without You" and "Ships." He's currently preparing for the release of his next studio album, This Is My Town, out April 21 on Verve.
Manilow will join the ranks of previous recipients including Sting, Stevie Nicks, Paul Simon, Carole King, John Fogerty, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, Brian Wilson and Dolly Parton, among others.
On Tuesday, May 9, BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc.) will honor Barry Manilow with their Icon Award at the 65th BMI Pop Awards.
Barbara Cane, VP of Writer/Publisher Relations at BMI, said "Barry Manilow is a visionary whose exceptional body of work has shaped the course of popular music for over five decades.He has left a lasting imprint on every aspect of music, influenced the careers of his contemporaries, and touched the lives of many with his unique gift of artistry. His musical brilliance defies genre expectations and I cannot think of a more deserving recipient."
BMI, which is a songwriting an publishing organization, is honoring Manilow for the music that he has composed; however, Barry is a unique talent that is as comfortable with other's music as he is with his own songs. Of his many hits, only a handful were written by the singer himself. His first hit, Mandy, was written by Scott English and Richard Kerr while his biggest, I Write the Songs, was by Beach Boys' member Bruce Johnston. Other songwriters whose career he boosted were David Pomeranz (Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again, The Old Songs), Randy Edelman (Weekend in New England), Richard Kerr and Will Jennings (Looks Like We Made It, Somewhere In the Night) and Christian Arnold, Geoff Morrow & David Martin (Can't Smile Without You). He also had a hit with Mick Ronson and Ian Hunter's Ships.
His most popular songs that he has written include It's a Miracle, Could It Be Magic, This One's For You, Daybreak, Even Now, Copacabana (At the Copa) and I Made It Through the Rain.
Manilow is getting ready to release his 29th non-holiday studio album, This is My Town, a salute to New York City that is half original compositions and half covers.
BARRY MANILOW will be named BMI ICON at the 65th annual BMI POP AWARDS, MAY 9th in BEVERLY HILLS, CA. The GRAMMY, EMMY and TONY-winning singer-songwriter, arranger, producer and musician will receive this honor in recognition of his prodigious musical legacy and an unparalleled career encompassing the worlds of BROADWAY, film, TV, and popular culture. The event will be held TUESDAY, MAY 9th at the BEVERLY WILSHIRE HOTEL in BEVERLY HILLS, hosted by BMI President/CEO MIKE O’NEILL and BMI VP Writer/Publisher Relations BARBARA CANE.
Commented CAND, “BARRY MANILOW is a visionary whose exceptional body of work has shaped the course of popular music for over five decades. He has left a lasting imprint on every aspect of music, influenced the careers of his contemporaries, and touched the lives of many with his unique gift of artistry. His musical brilliance defies genre expectations and I cannot think of a more deserving recipient.”
The evening will also recognize the songwriters, publishers, and administrators of the past year’s most-performed pop songs in the U.S. from BMI’s repertoire of nearly 12 million musical works. The BMI Pop Song, Songwriter and Publisher of the Year will be named during the ceremony.
As a BMI Icon, MANILOW joins an elite group of songwriters who have received BMI’s highest honor for their “unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers.” Previous recipients include STING, MANN & WEIL, NILE RODGERS, STEVIE NICKS, PAUL SIMON, CAROLE KING, DAVID FOSTER, JOHN FOGERTY, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON, THE JACKSONS, CROSBY, STILLS & NASH, THE BEE GEES, WILLIE NELSON, MERLE HAGGARD, BRIAN WILSON, CARLOS SANTANA and DOLLY PARTON, among others.
MANILOW has had an astonishing 50 Top 40 singles, including 12 #1s and 27 Top 10 hits, five of his albums were on the best-seller charts simultaneously, and is ranked at the #1 Adult Contemporary Artist of all-time, according to BILLBOARD magazine.
MANILOW has garnered numerous awards and accolades, including 11 GRAMMY nominations and a GRAMMY AWARD for Best Pop Male Vocal Performance in 1979 (for "Copacabana"), two EMMYs, a TONY and three AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS. "I like a melody," he admits. "I like a song that has a lyric you remember and a melody you can’t forget. That's always been my mantra whenever I'm composing anything."
He is currently preparing for the release of his new record, "This Is My Town: Songs of NEW YORK," an homage to his hometown, due to hit shelves APRIL 21st.
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is pleased to announce that GRAMMY, EMMY and TONY Award-winning singer-songwriter, arranger, producer and musician, Barry Manilow, will be named the BMI Icon at the 65th annual BMI Pop Awards. Mr. Manilow, a pop music legend, will receive this honor in recognition of his prodigious musical legacy and an unparalleled career encompassing the worlds of Broadway, Film, TV, and popular culture. The celebratory event will be held Tuesday, May 9th at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, hosted by BMI President & CEO Mike O'Neill and BMI Vice President of Writer/Publisher Relations Barbara Cane.
"Barry Manilow is a visionary whose exceptional body of work has shaped the course of popular music for over five decades," said Cane. "He has left a lasting imprint on every aspect of music, influenced the careers of his contemporaries, and touched the lives of many with his unique gift of artistry. His musical brilliance defies genre expectations and I cannot think of a more deserving recipient."
The evening will also recognize the songwriters, publishers, and administrators of the past year's most-performed pop songs in the United States from BMI's repertoire of nearly 12 million musical works. The BMI Pop Song, Songwriter and Publisher of the Year will be named during the ceremony.
As a BMI Icon, Mr. Manilow joins an elite group of songwriters who have received BMI's highest honor for their "unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers." Previous recipients include Sting, Mann & Weil, Nile Rodgers, Stevie Nicks, Paul Simon, Carole King, David Foster, John Fogerty, Kris Kristofferson, the Jacksons, Crosby, Stills & Nash, the Bee Gees, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Brian Wilson, Carlos Santana and Dolly Parton, among others.
Barry Manilow is one of the world's best-selling recording artists with more than 85 million albums sold worldwide. A Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, Manilow has triumphed in every medium of entertainment with an iconic career touching virtually every aspect of music. He's had an astonishing 50 Top 40 singles, including 12 #1s and 27 Top 10 hits, five of his albums were on the best-seller charts simultaneously, and is ranked at the #1 Adult Contemporary Artist of all-time, according to Billboard and R&R magazines.
Upon entering the music business, he split his creative energies between Off-Broadway musicals and Madison Avenue jingle mills, where he wrote a variety of unforgettable jingles for State Farm and Band-Aids. His singing could be heard on campaigns for Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pepsi, Dr. Pepper and in McDonald's iconic "You Deserve a Break Today." In 1971, he began a musical association with Bette Midler that would propel each of their careers forward while changing the course of popular music itself, after co-producing her first two albums The Divine Miss M and Bette Midler.
Since then, Mr. Manilow has garnered numerous awards and accolades, including 11 Grammy nominations and a Grammy Award for Best Pop Male Vocal Performance in 1979 (for "Copacabana"), two Emmy's (Barry Manilow: Music and Passion, The Barry Manilow Special), a Tony Award (Barry Manilow on Broadway) and three American Music Awards in the category of Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist. If there's a secret to his success, it lies in one simple musical principle. "I like a melody," he admits. "I like a song that has a lyric you remember and a melody you can't forget. That's always been my mantra whenever I'm composing anything."
He is currently preparing for the release of his new record, This Is My Town: Songs of New York, an homage to his hometown of New York City due to hit shelves April 21, 2017.
On Wednesday, April 12 at 6 PM (ET) GRAMMY, TONY, and EMMY Award-winning musician and music icon Barry Manilow is scheduled to return to QVC® during the "Barry Manilow: Q Sessions" broadcast to debut his latest studio album, THIS IS MY TOWN: SONGS FROM NEW YORK, in stores April 21 on the Verve Label Group. The one hour special will feature performances and interview with the pop legend. Barry is no stranger to QVC, where he set the record in 2006 for the highest single-day sales by a musical artist.
Manilow is scheduled to perform songs from THIS IS MY TOWN: SONGS FROM NEW YORK album as well as songs from SONGS FROM MANILOW: LIVE FROM Paris Las Vegas, a bonus CD featuring four never-released live tracks compiled especially for QVC. Customers will be given the opportunity to order the two-CD set more than a week before its release date on April 21st.
BONUS TRACKS
Brooklyn Blues
I Am Your Child
This One's For You
New York City Rhythm
More than a year in creation, THIS IS MY TOWN: SONGS FROM NEW YORK premieres ten new Barry Manilow studio recordings with the songs evenly divided between new original Manilow compositions and standards evoking the spirit and energy of New York City. While writing his own songs for the album, Barry made demos of the classic New York-inspired songs he loved to sing. "I didn't want to do a full original album," he says. "It felt like it would be cheating the public to not give them the old songs that they knew. I must have done 50 demos of standards as I was writing the original songs. That's what took the longest: to choose the standards. And, of course, to write the originals."
THIS IS MY TOWN: SONGS FROM NEW YORK (QVC Item #E230566) will be available beginning April 12, while supplies last, through QVC.com, the QVC apps or by calling 800.345.1515.
About Barry Manilow: Barry Manilow's unparalleled career encompasses virtually every area of music, including performing, composing, arranging and producing. A Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, Manilow has triumphed in every medium of entertainment. With worldwide record sales exceeding 85 million, Barry Manilow is ranked as the top Adult Contemporary chart artist of all time with over 50 Top 40 hits.
QVC, the Q and Q Ribbon Logo, are registered service marks of ER Marks, Inc.
Barry Manilow will perform at the Grand Theater at Foxwoods on May 27 at 8 p.m. Manilow, who announced in 2015 that he was retiring from large tours, has six shows scheduled for the spring. Tickets for the show are available beginning Friday, March 31 at 10 a.m. through the Foxwoods Box Office at (800) 200-2882 and through all Ticketmaster outlets and locations including ticketmaster.com and by phone at (800)745-3000.
CONCERT FOR AMERICA: STAND UP, SING OUT! announced today that music icon Barry Manilow will be kicking off the fourth edition of the benefit concert series, which will take place on Tuesday April 18th at 8pm at The Town Hall in NYC (123 W. 43rd Street). Manilow is ranked as the top Adult Contemporary chart artist of all time with a staggering 50 top 40 hits. With worldwide record sales exceeding 85 million, Manilow has produced, arranged, and released over 40 albums over the course of his legendary career.
CONCERT FOR AMERICA: STAND UP, SING OUT! concert proceeds will support five national organizations working to protect human rights: Southern Poverty Law Center, National Immigration Law Center, The Sierra Club Foundation, NAACP and National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. The previously announced performers and presenters include Vanessa Williams, Michael Urie, Oskar Eustis, Lisa Lampanelli, LaChanze, and Andy Cohen. Tickets range from $30 to $250 and are available at www.ConcertsForAmerica.com. Sponsorships are available. For more information, email concertforamerica@gmail.com.
The concert series was created and organized by Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley, in association with Your Kids, Our Kids as well as the generous support of The Actors Fund and Janet and Howard Kagan. It is co-produced by Joey Monda and Frankie Dailey and will be directed by Tony Award nominee Lisa Mordente.
CONCERT FOR AMERICA: STAND UP, SING OUT! will be broadcast Live via Facebook and at ConcertsforAmerica.com, beginning at 8PM ET/5PM PT on Tuesday April 18th. Supporters unable to attend are encouraged to view and donate via the concert's website or Facebook's livestream.
CONCERT FOR AMERICA: STAND UP, SING OUT! is the innovation of Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley, who also organized the Broadway For Orlando/"What the World Needs Now is Love" recording. The benefit concert series debuted to critical acclaim at New York City's The Town Hall on Inauguration Day and two additional concerts in New York and Chicago evolved.
Grammy and Emmy winner Barry Manilow has joined the lineup of performers for the next concert in the fundraising series Concert for America: Stand Up, Sing Out!, which will be presented April 18 at 8 PM at The Town Hall, 123 W. 43rd St. The Tony Award honoree joins Ugly Betty co-stars Vanessa Williams and Michael Urie, Oskar Eustis, Lisa Lampanelli, LaChanze, and Andy Cohen for the evening of song, comedy, and commentary. Tony nominee Lisa Mordente directs.
The innovation of Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley, the concert event is part of the monthly series benefiting five national organizations working to protect human rights: Southern Poverty Law Center, National Immigration Law Center, The Sierra Club Foundation, NAACP, and National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. For those unable to attend the concert in person, it will be broadcast via Facebook Live and at ConcertsforAmerica.com, beginning at 8 PM ET.
Concert for America: Stand Up, Sing Out! is created and organized by Rudetsky and Wesley in association with Your Kids, Our Kids, as well as the support of The Actors Fund. It is co-produced by Joey Monda and Frankie Dailey. Tickets start at $30 and are available at Ticketmaster.com and at The Town Hall box office.
Barry Manilow is adding his legendary voice to a concert series in New York City that raises money for human rights organizations. The Grammy-winning singer of songs such as "Mandy," "I Write the Songs" and "Looks Like We Made It" will appear at the next monthly "Concert for America: Stand Up, Sing Out!" on April 18 at The Town Hall. It also will be streamed live on Facebook. Manilow will join other performers and presenters including Vanessa Williams, Michael Urie, Lisa Lampanelli, LaChanze and Andy Cohen.
Proceeds will benefit the NAACP, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Southern Poverty Law Center, National Immigration Law Center and the Sierra Club Foundation. Tickets range from $30 to $250. The monthly series, which started on Inauguration Day, is the brainchild of Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley. There have been two additional concerts in New York and Chicago. Online: http://thetownhall.org/event/concertforamerica
NEW YORK (CBS SF) – Legendary entertainer Barry Manilow has been added to the monthly concert series, “Concert for America: Stand Up, Sing Out!,” created by Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley. Manilow’s performance will be on April 18th, helping to raise funds for human rights organizations.
Best known for his hit songs "Mandy," "I Write the Songs" and "Looks Like We Made It," just to name a few, the Grammy-winner joins other artists and presenters including Vanessa Williams, Michael Urie, Lisa Lampanelli, LaChanze and Andy Cohen. The event will be held at The Town Hall and will stream on Facebook Live.
Previous concerts featured artists and entertainers like Ingrid Michaelson, Martha Wash, Ellen Burstyn, Andrea Martin, Stephanie Mills, Piper Perabo, Kate Mulgrew, Bebe Neuwirth, Rosie Perez and many more.
Tickets to attend the show go between $30.00 to $250.00 with proceeds benefitting the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Southern Poverty Law Center, National Immigration Law Center and the Sierra Club Foundation. More information on the concert can be found at their website, concertsforamerica.com.
This Is My Town: Songs of New York is the album Barry Manilow was born to make. A native New Yorker, Barry's been in love with the rhythms, melodies and music of the Big Apple since childhood. Now, with the release of his new album, out on April 21 on Verve Label Group, he's "saying thanks to the city for giving me my ambition, my sense of humor and my decency" with a thematic song-cycle celebrating his home town. Below, BroadwayWorld has a world-premiere exclusive first listen to "Coney Island"!
Pre-order the album on Amazon and iTunes, and get "This Is My Town" instantly!
"I'm grateful for having been raised there because I've always felt grounded," Manilow says. "One of the things I'm most proud of is that having gone through the hurricane of success, I feel I'm still the same guy that took the subway every day to work in Manhattan. And I attribute that grounding to being raised in New York."
More than a year in creation, This Is My Town: Songs of New York premieres ten new Barry Manilow studio recordings with the songs evenly divided between new original Manilow compositions and standards evoking the spirit and energy of New York City. While writing his own songs for the album, Barry made demos of the classic New York-inspired songs he loved to sing.
According to Barry, "the album is like a melting pot - just like New York is. We take you from Brooklyn to Broadway to Birdland. We even wind up in Coney Island. Take a look at the titles and it really does look like you're going from place to place to place. There are different styles. There's pop, there's a little rock and roll, there's jazz, there's a little R&B, and Broadway. That's what I think of when I think of my home town and of New York."
Having sold more than 85 million albums worldwide, Barry Manilow is one of the world's all-time bestselling recording artists. He's had an astonishing 50 Top 40 singles including 12 #1s and 27 Top 10 hits and is ranked at the #1 Adult Contemporary Artist of all-time, according to Billboard and R&R magazines. He has been nominated for a Grammy Award in every decade since the 1970s and, in addition to winning the Best Pop Male Vocal Performance Grammy in 1979 (for "Copacabana"), is an Emmy, Tony and American Music Award winner three years in a row. Barry Manilow was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and has his own Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1978, five of his albums were on the best-seller charts simultaneously.
This Is My Town: Songs of New York is co-produced by Barry Manilow with David Benson, except for "Coney Island" [which] was co-produced with Michael Lloyd.
Bill and Wendy are joined on the phone by the GREAT singer and musician, Barry Manilow! They talk about his new album, 'This Is My Town', his love for Chicago, his love for his fans, and much more.
There's no question what state of mind Barry Manilow is in on his next album, This Is My Town: Songs of New York. The set, due out April 21 on Decca, features 10 Big Apple-centric songs, mixing Manilow originals and covers as well as mash-ups such as the "NYC Medley" and "New York City Rhythm/On Broadway," which is premiering below. "I come from New York," Manilow, a Brooklyn native, tells Billboard. "When you come from New York you are always a New Yorker. Even though I've lived on the West Coast for more years than I did in New York. I still feel like a New Yorker. I still talk fast. I still have my Brooklyn accent if I don't watch out. I still feel like a New York guy, so this (album) made sense."
Manilow considered "a lot of different angles" for the musical love letter to his home town -- some narrative, some thematic like previous releases such as 2:00 AM Paradise Cafe, Swing Street and Here at The Mayflower. He ultimately decided on a more general direction. "This is just great songs about New York," he explains. "It started off being a jazz album, but then I did a little pop and then a little blues along with the jazz and a little Broadway and I said, 'Y'know, that's what New York is. It's a melting pot of different styles.'"
The "New York City Rhythm"/"On Broadway," combo, knitting Manilow's 1975 original with the Drifters classic, came together by happenstance, as Manilow was putting together demos and experimenting with ideas for This Is My Town. "'New York City Rhythm' was done as an uptempo thing," he says, "but I decided to slow it down and use it as an intro into 'On Broadway,' and then in 'On Broadway' I kept quoting the strong lines of 'New York City Rhythm.' So only fans or people who actually know my music will understand that I used a lot of the string line from 'New York City Rhythm' in 'On Broadway.' That was just an arranger's trick, but I think it worked fine."
That experimentation extended to the eight-song "NYC Medley," which includes the theme from New York, New York, Billy Joel's "New York State Of Mind" and Jay Z and Alicia Keys' "Empire State Of Mind." "If you took a look at my computer and saw all the ideas I had for this album, they go on and on and on," says Manilow, who also does a virtual, posthumous duet with Mel Torme on "Brooklyn Bridge." I thought I'd sound like a real idiot with ('Empire State Of Mind') in the middle of that medley; I did, but not as much as I thought I would. I think I pulled it off." That plethora of ideas doesn't mean he'll do a sequel, however.
"No. One album and that's it," Manilow says. "The only album I wanted to do a volume two of was Paradise Cafe. It's the only one I would've considered, but every time I tried... Y'know, sometimes you've just got to leave it alone, so I left that one along. But no second New York album. This is it."
Metropolitan New York will be one of three places Manilow plays this year -- along with Los Angeles and Chicago. He ended his touring career, he swears, last June in England after spending more than a year "saying goodbye to every city possible." But starting in May he'll be playing a series of bi-monthly shows, kicking off May 14 at The Forum Inglewood, Calif., then playing May 17 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., and the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y.
"It's going to be a residency type of thing, every other month for as long as people will come," Manilow says. As he did during his residency at Paris in Las Vegas, Manilow plans to mix the setlists up and dig deep into his catalog to keep his fans coming. "We loved it in Vegas 'cause I was able to change the show around every six weeks or so, and it was totally different than the last time," he says. "That's what I could do with this thing I'm going to be doing. We'll see if I can pull it off. It should be exciting."
Barry Manilow has released his new medley "New York City Rhythm/On Broadway" from his upcoming new album. The album, which is titled This Is My Town: Songs of New York, finds Manilow backed by a 10-piece big band. The release is due out April 21 via Decca Records and the New York native said it's truly a love letter to his hometown: "I come from New York," Manilow, a Brooklyn native, tells Billboard. "When you come from New York you are always a New Yorker. Even though I've lived on the West Coast for more years than I did in New York. I still feel like a New Yorker. I still talk fast. I still have my Brooklyn accent if I don't watch out. I still feel like a New York guy, so this (album) made sense."
Barry Manilow's upcoming studio album, This Is My Town: Songs of New York, is an homage to his hometown that mixes new original tunes and classic standards, all celebrating the Big Apple. Now, one of the pop legend's new tracks, a mash-up of his own song "New York City Rhythm" and the Drifters hit "On Broadway," has premiered at Billboard.com.
Barry tells Billboard that he came up with the idea for the mash-up while he was making demos for the project. "'New York City Rhythm' was done as an uptempo thing, but I decided to slow it down and use it as an intro into 'On Broadway,'" he explains. "And then in 'On Broadway' I kept quoting the string lines of 'New York City Rhythm.' So only fans or people who actually know my music will understand that I used a lot of the string line from 'New York City Rhythm' in 'On Broadway.'"
Regarding the album's concept, Barry notes, "This is just great songs about New York. It started off being a jazz album, but then I did a little pop and then a little blues along with the jazz and a little Broadway and I said, 'Y'know, that's what New York is. It's a melting pot of different styles.'"
The album ends with a track called "NYC Medley" that features segments of the theme from New York, New York, Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind" and the Jay Z-Alicia Keys duet "Empire State of Mind." Manilow admits, "I thought I'd sound like a real idiot with ['Empire State of Mind'] in the middle of that medley; I did, but not as much as I thought I would. I think I pulled it off."
This Is My Town: Songs of New York will be released on April 21.
Barry Manilow is heading back on tour with a stop at Rosemont's Allstate Arena at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 17. The Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter will be performing his top pop hits as well as selections from his forthcoming album "This Is My Town: Songs of New York." Tickets are $19.75 to $349.75 and go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday. Call (800) 745-3000 or visit allstatearena.com.
Pop music showman Barry Manilow is embarking on a three-city concert stint this spring, playing Allstate Arena in Rosemont on May 17. Touring in support of his new album "This Is My Town: Songs of New York," due April 21 as well as his numerous hits such as "Mandy" and "Copacabana," Manilow will play shows in Los Angeles and New York. Tickets go on sale noon Friday through Livenation. Each pair of tickets comes with a copy of Manilow's new album.
DURANT - Pop music icon Barry Manilow will take the stage May 12 at Choctaw Grand Theater, 4418 S Hwy 69/75 at Choctaw Casino Resort, to celebrate his new album. “This is My Town: Songs of New York” is due out April 21 on Verve Label Group. More than a year in creation, the album includes 10 new studio recordings, with the selections evenly divided between new original Manilow compositions and standards evoking the spirit and energy of New York City. In Durant, Manilow will perform his greatest hits like “Copacabana” and “Mandy” as well as songs from his new album on the intimate Grand Theater stage.
Manilow has sold more than 85 million albums and scored 50 Top 40 hits. Last year, he played Oklahoma City and Tulsa on his "One Last Time!” multi-city North American tour, announcing his intention to limit his concert appearances after the trek. The Durant show is one of only four currently listed on his tour itinerary; the other May concerts will be in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.
Tickets to his Oklahoma show go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday and can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (800) 745-3000. Ticket prices are $100 and $125. For more information, go to www.choctawcasinos.com/choctaw-durant.
He writes the songs - and this time around, they’re all about the Big Apple! Barry Manilow is back with a new album, and PEOPLE has an exclusive first listen to his new song, "I Dig New York."
The track will appear on the icon’s latest album, This Is My Town: Songs of New York, due April 21. Inspired by his hometown — Manilow, 73, grew up in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood - the 10-track collection includes original songs, in addition to classics like "On Broadway."
This Is My Town is Manilow’s first album [that] he’s released since undergoing emergency oral surgery in February of 2016; the surgery was successful, and a week later the modern Great American Songbook contributor performed at Clive Davis’ 40th pre-Grammy party in L.A.
NEW YORK, Feb. 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Pop Music Icon Barry Manilow announced today that he will perform a three-city 2017 concert residency in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
Los Angeles' Forum will host the first concert on Sunday, May 14th (Mother's Day) followed by the Allstate Arena in Rosemont (Chicago) on Wednesday, May 17th and the NEW Nassau Coliseum in New York on Thursday, May 25.
Manilow's concerts will feature his Greatest Hits along with songs from his new album, This Is My Town: Songs of New York, scheduled to be released on April 21st by the Verve Label Group (Universal). Every pair (2) of tickets for these show's will include a physical CD of Barry's new album.
The album features the following tracks:
This Is My Town
New York City Rhythm / On Broadway
Coney Island
Lonely Town
Lovin' At Birdland
Downtown / Uptown
On The Roof
I Dig New York
The Brooklyn Bridge (Virtual Duet with Mel Tormé)
NYC Medley
"I'm thrilled to perform in these three exciting cities. Each are unique and hold very special memories for me," said Manilow.
About Barry Manilow: Barry Manilow's unparalleled career encompasses virtually every area of music, including performing, composing, arranging and producing. A Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, Manilow has triumphed in every medium of entertainment. With worldwide record sales exceeding 85 million, Barry Manilow is ranked as the top Adult Contemporary chart artist of all time with over 50 Top 40 hits.
Barry Manilow just can’t say goodbye. Though the Brooklyn native wrapped up his “One Last Time!” tour last year — he said it would be his final time around — he has planned a short tour to promote his upcoming “This Is My Town: Songs of New York” album, including a stop at Nassau Coliseum on May 25.
Uniondale will be one of only three cities on the limited engagement, which also includes stops in Los Angeles and Chicago. “I’m thrilled to perform in these three exciting cities,” Manilow said in a statement. “Each are unique and hold very special memories for me. Finally, I’m home,” Manilow said at his Nassau Coliseum show in 2015. “Finally, I can talk as fast as I want to.”
Tickets for Manilow’s show go on sale at noon Friday through Ticketmaster. His album, a tribute to his life in New York, is due out on April 21 through Verve Records.
Barry Manilow gave the perfect Valentine's Day gift to his Fanilows (what his fans call themselves) on Tuesday. The pop music icon announced that he will perform a three-city 2017 concert residency in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles' Forum will host the first concert on May 14 followed by the Allstate Arena in Rosemont (Chicago) on May 17 and The New Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York on May 25.
Manilow's concerts will feature his greatest hits along with song from his new album, "This Is My Town: Songs of New York." Every pair of tickets for these shows will include a physical CD of Manilow's new album.
Start spreading the news! Barry Manilow will release a brand-new album paying tribute to his hometown, New York City, on April 21. This Is My Town: Songs of New York is a song cycle mixing new original tunes and renditions of standards celebrating the Big Apple.
As Manilow explains, the themed 10-track collection is his way of "saying thanks to the city for giving me my ambition, my sense of humor and my decency." The singer reveals that he decided to include classic non-original material on the record because "it felt like it would be cheating the public to not give them the old songs that they knew."
The album features a mash-up of his own 1975 tune "New York City Rhythm" and the Drifters hit "On Broadway," other medleys that include Petula Clark's "Downtown" and Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind," and a virtual duet with late crooner Mel Tormé on the song "The Brooklyn Bridge."
Kicking off This Is My Town is the title track, an anthem which was co-written by Manilow and his longtime collaborator, Bruce Sussman, and features Barry declaring his love for the city. You can listen to the song now at Manilow's official VEVO YouTube channel.
Regarding the various genres featured on the album, Barry describes it as a melting pot. "There's pop, there's a little rock and roll, there's jazz, there's a little R&B and Broadway," says Manilow. "That's what I think of when I think of my home town and of New York."
Here's the full track list of This Is My Town: Songs of New York:
"This Is My Town" "New York City Rhythm"/"On Broadway" "Coney Island" "Lonely Town" "Lovin' at Birdland" "Downtown"/"Uptown" "On the Roof" "I Dig New York" "The Brooklyn Bridge" (virtual duet with Mel Tormé) "NYC Medley"
NEW YORK, Feb. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- This Is My Town: Songs of New York is the album Barry Manilow was born to make. A native New Yorker, Barry's been in love with the rhythms, melodies and music of the Big Apple since childhood. Now, with the release of his new album, out on April 21 on Verve Label Group, he's "saying thanks to the city for giving me my ambition, my sense of humor and my decency" with a thematic song-cycle celebrating his home town.
"I'm grateful for having been raised there because I've always felt grounded," he says. "One of the things I'm most proud of is that having gone through the hurricane of success, I feel I'm still the same guy that took the subway every day to work in Manhattan. And I attribute that grounding to being raised in New York."
More than a year in creation, This Is My Town: Songs of New York premieres ten new Barry Manilow studio recordings with the songs evenly divided between new original Manilow compositions and standards evoking the spirit and energy of New York City. While writing his own songs for the album, Barry made demos of the classic New York-inspired songs he loved to sing.
"I didn't want to do a full original album," he says. "It felt like it would be cheating the public to not give them the old songs that they knew. I must have done 50 demos of standards as I was writing the original songs. That's what took the longest: to choose the standards. And, of course, to write the originals."
The title song, "This Is My Town" sets up the album's musical journey through New York's five boroughs. The track was co-written by Barry Manilow "with my brilliant, long-time collaborator, Bruce Sussman. I'm very proud of the production, arrangement, orchestration and melody. And listen to Bruce's brilliant lyric. Only a New Yorker could have written that lyric."
According to Barry, "the album is like a melting pot – just like New York is. We take you from Brooklyn to Broadway to Birdland. We even wind up in Coney Island. Take a look at the titles and it really does look like you're going from place to place to place. There are different styles. There's pop, there's a little rock and roll, there's jazz, there's a little R&B, and Broadway. That's what I think of when I think of my home town and of New York."
Having sold more than 85 million albums worldwide, Barry Manilow is one of the world's all-time best-selling recording artists. He's had an astonishing 50 Top 40 singles including 12 #1s and 27 Top 10 hits and is ranked at the #1 Adult Contemporary Artist of all-time, according to Billboard and R&R magazines.
He has been nominated for a Grammy Award in every decade since the 1970s and, in addition to winning the Best Pop Male Vocal Performance Grammy in 1979 (for "Copacabana"), is an Emmy, Tony and American Music Award winner three years in a row.
Barry Manilow was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and has his own Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1978, five of his albums were on the best-seller charts simultaneously.
This Is My Town: Songs of New York is co-produced by Barry Manilow with David Benson. Except for "Coney Island" was co-produced with Michael Lloyd.
Barry Manilow had some of the biggest hits of the 70's and early 80's, many of which he actually didn't write even though he is a Songwriters Hall of Fame member. That's one of the things that made Manilow unique in the music of the last five decades. He was as adept at singing his own songs as he was at interpreting the music of others.
Since 2006, Barry has released nine albums with only one, 2011's 15 Minutes, being a strictly Manilow composed set. The rest highlighted the best songs of each decade, love songs, duets and holiday music.
On April 21, Barry will mix originals with covers on the album This is My Town: Songs of New York. In fact, he has split the album evenly between new songs and standards, all of which evoke the spirit and energy of his home town, New York City.
Manilow said "I'm grateful for having been raised there because I've always felt grounded. One of the things I'm most proud of is that having gone through the hurricane of success, I feel I'm still the same guy that took the subway every day to work in Manhattan. And I attribute that grounding to being raised in New York."
The singer recorded dozens of demos of songs about the city while writing his original material. "I didn't want to do a full original album. It felt like it would be cheating the public to not give them the old songs that they knew. I must have done 50 demos of standards as I was writing the original songs. That's what took the longest: to choose the standards. And, of course, to write the originals."
The title song, This Is My Town, sets up the album's musical journey through New York's five boroughs. The track was co-written by Barry Manilow "with my brilliant, long-time collaborator, Bruce Sussman. I'm very proud of the production, arrangement, orchestration and melody. And listen to Bruce's brilliant lyric. Only a New Yorker could have written that lyric."
According to Barry, "the album is like a melting pot – just like New York is. We take you from Brooklyn to Broadway to Birdland. We even wind up in Coney Island. Take a look at the titles and it really does look like you're going from place to place to place. There are different styles. There's pop, there's a little rock and roll, there's jazz, there's a little R&B, and Broadway. That's what I think of when I think of my home town and of New York."
This Is My Town: Songs of New York is the album Barry Manilow was born to make. A native New Yorker, Barry's been in love with the rhythms, melodies and music of the Big Apple since childhood.
Now, with the release of his new album, out on April 21 on Verve Label Group, he's "saying thanks to the city for giving me my ambition, my sense of humor and my decency" with a thematic song-cycle celebrating his home town.
"I'm grateful for having been raised there because I've always felt grounded," he says. "One of the things I'm most proud of is that having gone through the hurricane of success, I feel I'm still the same guy that took the subway every day to work in Manhattan. And I attribute that grounding to being raised in New York."
Pre-order the album on Amazon and iTunes (Get "This Is My Town" instantly).
More than a year in creation, This Is My Town: Songs of New York premieres ten new Barry Manilow studio recordings with the songs evenly divided between new original Manilow compositions and standards evoking the spirit and energy of New York City. While writing his own songs for the album, Barry made demos of the classic New York-inspired songs he loved to sing. "I didn't want to do a full original album," he says. "It felt like it would be cheating the public to not give them the old songs that they knew. I must have done 50 demos of standards as I was writing the original songs. That's what took the longest: to choose the standards. And, of course, to write the originals."
The title song, "This Is My Town" sets up the album's musical journey through New York's five boroughs. The track was co-written by Barry Manilow "with my brilliant, long-time collaborator, Bruce Sussman. I'm very proud of the production, arrangement, orchestration and melody. And listen to Bruce's brilliant lyric. Only a New Yorker could have written that lyric."
According to Barry, "the album is like a melting pot - just like New York is. We take you from Brooklyn to Broadway to Birdland. We even wind up in Coney Island. Take a look at the titles and it really does look like you're going from place to place to place. There are different styles. There's pop, there's a little rock and roll, there's jazz, there's a little R&B, and Broadway. That's what I think of when I think of my home town and of New York."
Having sold more than 85 million albums worldwide, Barry Manilow is one of the world's all-time bestselling recording artists. He's had an astonishing 50 Top 40 singles including 12 #1s and 27 Top 10 hits and is ranked at the #1 Adult Contemporary Artist of all-time, according to Billboard and R&R magazines.
He has been nominated for a Grammy Award in every decade since the 1970s and, in addition to winning the Best Pop Male Vocal Performance Grammy in 1979 (for "Copacabana"), is an Emmy, Tony and American Music Award winner three years in a row. Barry Manilow was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and has his own Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1978, five of his albums were on the best-seller charts simultaneously.
This Is My Town: Songs of New York is co-produced by Barry Manilow with David Benson. Except for "Coney Island" [is] co-produced with Michael Lloyd.
This is your chance to hear Barry Manilow's new single, This Is My Town, the first track from his upcoming album My Town: Songs of New York, due April 21. He's debuting it exclusively with USA TODAY.
“I’m a New York City boy; born and raised," he explained. "So when it came time to create a new album, I thought, 'How about celebrating New York?' How about saying thanks to the city for giving me my ambition, my sense of humor and my decency?"
Verve Label Group says This Is My Town sets up the album's musical journey through New York's five boroughs. So, think of it as running the New York Marathon without having to destroy your shins or hit the wall at Mile 18.
