Barry Manilow

From ArticleWorld

Barry Manilow is an American singer and songwriter. He was born Barry Alan Pincus on June 17, 1943 in Brookl;yn, New York into a Russian-Jewish family. He changed his last name to his mother’s maiden name of Manilow after his parents divorced. He began singing and playing the accordion at the age of 13, right after his Bar Mitzvah.

Early in his career, Manilow accompanied Bette Midler at a gay bathhouse in New York City. He went on to work as a producer, pianist, and arranger. Before beginning in the music career he supposedly wrote Playboy to ask for advice on music.

During the 1970’s, Manilow was at the front of the soft rock. He had numerous chart topping hits and multi-platinum albums. Two of his biggest hits are Mandy, I Write The Songs, and his biggest hit, Copacabana (At The Copa).

Manilow has crossed genre borders many times in his recordings since 1971. His first string of singles contained a piano style pop, big band remix, and guitar style rock. During the early 1980’s, Manilow turned to a more jazz driven style and then began working on a pop album. In the mid80’s he worked on international music with songs and duets in French, Japanese, Portuguese and Mandolin.

Manilow’s music was made popular for a new generation when a British boy band rerecorded Could it be Magic in 1992 and again when an Irish boy band remade Mandy.

In 2000, Manilow left his current record label, Arista, for a jazz-oriented label, Concord Records. He began another mixed style album, which he composed nearly all of. Over the course of his long career he has released many singles, albums, live albums, Christmas albums, and compilations.