Published: Friday, March 13, 2009
Hard-working Manilow's riding high these days
The numbers show Barry Manilow -- he of the mellow pop hits and the elfin features -- enjoying his greatest success in decades.
In the past three years, four of his albums cracked the top 20 on the Billboard 200. One even landed at No. 1, his highest debut ever.
Don't call it a comeback, though. Manilow has been here for years.
"When you say, 'You're back,' the albums are just one little aspect of it," said Manilow, who plans to play Comcast Arena on Sunday. "Because I'm always working, I'm always doing something."
That's true enough. Even during his years out of the limelight, Manilow helmed a successful stage musical in London and some cable specials in the United States. But the pop star has seemed unusually bulletproof lately, thanks to a series of late-career chart toppers.
Manilow, 65, was a force in the 1970s, with hits such as "Mandy" and "I Write the Songs" establishing him as one of the decade's premiere pop crooners, love him or hate him.
In the 1990s, though, his career slowed down. The low arguably came in 1998, when "Manilow Sings Sinatra" peaked at No. 122 on the Billboard 200.
Then something funny happened. A greatest hits compilation, "Ultimate Manilow," went platinum. Manilow launched a successful Las Vegas act. And Clive Davis, a friend from his heyday, had an idea.
Davis, the producer behind Rod Stewart's career-rejuvenating "Great American Songbook" albums, thought Manilow should interpret oldies. The result was "The Greatest Songs" series, which began in 2006. Each album has tackled a specific decade, and each debuted in the top 20.
The fourth and most recent installation, 2008's "The Greatest Songs of the Eighties," found Manilow covering Phil Collins and Cyndi Lauper. Sadly, no Michael Jackson tracks made the final cut, although Manilow did try out "Rock With You."
"A white Jewish boy singing 'Rock With You,' it was just, I couldn't pull it off," Manilow said from Palm Springs, Calif. "It wasn't awful, but it wasn't great."
Now a staple at the Las Vegas Hilton, Manilow uses part of his show to sing those covers, while devoting the rest of his set to his hits. He said the Everett concert will be a blown-up version of his Vegas show.
"I can add five, six more songs, more talking, more stuff on the stage," he said. "I don't have to watch the clock."
The Comcast Arena show is also a benefit for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Manilow said as long as he draws a crowd, he will consider the concert a success.
"Come on and support this organization to try and wipe out this disease," he said. "Even if you don't like me, I promise you'll have a good time."
Andy Rathbun: 425-339-3455, arathbun@heraldnet.com.
Barry Manilow
8 p.m. Sunday, Comcast Arena, 2000 Hewitt Ave., Everett; $52 to $252; comcastarenaeverett.com, 866-332-8499
In the past three years, four of his albums cracked the top 20 on the Billboard 200. One even landed at No. 1, his highest debut ever.
Don't call it a comeback, though. Manilow has been here for years.
"When you say, 'You're back,' the albums are just one little aspect of it," said Manilow, who plans to play Comcast Arena on Sunday. "Because I'm always working, I'm always doing something."
That's true enough. Even during his years out of the limelight, Manilow helmed a successful stage musical in London and some cable specials in the United States. But the pop star has seemed unusually bulletproof lately, thanks to a series of late-career chart toppers.
Manilow, 65, was a force in the 1970s, with hits such as "Mandy" and "I Write the Songs" establishing him as one of the decade's premiere pop crooners, love him or hate him.
In the 1990s, though, his career slowed down. The low arguably came in 1998, when "Manilow Sings Sinatra" peaked at No. 122 on the Billboard 200.
Then something funny happened. A greatest hits compilation, "Ultimate Manilow," went platinum. Manilow launched a successful Las Vegas act. And Clive Davis, a friend from his heyday, had an idea.
Davis, the producer behind Rod Stewart's career-rejuvenating "Great American Songbook" albums, thought Manilow should interpret oldies. The result was "The Greatest Songs" series, which began in 2006. Each album has tackled a specific decade, and each debuted in the top 20.
The fourth and most recent installation, 2008's "The Greatest Songs of the Eighties," found Manilow covering Phil Collins and Cyndi Lauper. Sadly, no Michael Jackson tracks made the final cut, although Manilow did try out "Rock With You."
"A white Jewish boy singing 'Rock With You,' it was just, I couldn't pull it off," Manilow said from Palm Springs, Calif. "It wasn't awful, but it wasn't great."
Now a staple at the Las Vegas Hilton, Manilow uses part of his show to sing those covers, while devoting the rest of his set to his hits. He said the Everett concert will be a blown-up version of his Vegas show.
"I can add five, six more songs, more talking, more stuff on the stage," he said. "I don't have to watch the clock."
The Comcast Arena show is also a benefit for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Manilow said as long as he draws a crowd, he will consider the concert a success.
"Come on and support this organization to try and wipe out this disease," he said. "Even if you don't like me, I promise you'll have a good time."
Andy Rathbun: 425-339-3455, arathbun@heraldnet.com.
Barry Manilow
8 p.m. Sunday, Comcast Arena, 2000 Hewitt Ave., Everett; $52 to $252; comcastarenaeverett.com, 866-332-8499
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