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Barry Manilow: Barry Manilow Special
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Barry [...] appeared on such big hits as "Murphy Brown," "Ally McBeal" and "Will and Grace." He did a special for PBS, "Manilow: Music and Passion." The DVD of that show [topped] triple platinum in sales. [Another] DVD, "First and Farewell," also went platinum. Recently Barry not only entertained on "American Idol," but he also schooled the contestants in his kind of music.
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In June 2000, DirectTV aired the two-hour concert special Manilow Live! where Manilow had his band, a 30-piece orchestra, and a choir. This HDTV special documented his most recent concert tour with the greatest hits of his career and was released to video. Also in 2000, he worked with Monica Mancini on her Concord album The Dreams of Johnny Mercer which included seven songs Manilow wrote to Mercer's lyrics. Meanwhile, Manilow's record contract with Arista Records was not renewed due to new management. He then got a contract at Concord Records, a jazz-oriented label in California, and started work on the long-anticipated concept album, Here at the Mayflower.
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With his career ... established, Manilow recorded an even stronger follow-up album in 1975's Tryin' to Get the Feeling. "I Write the Songs" (ironically, written by Beach Boys sideman Bruce Johnston) became his second number one pop hit in early 1976, and with the title track also hitting the Top Ten, the album went triple platinum. Manilow consolidated his emerging stardom with This One's for You, released toward the end of the year; it produced hits in the title track, the Top Ten "Weekend in New England," and the number one "Looks Like We Made It." In 1977, Manilow released the concert double-LP Live, which became his first and only number one album, as well as his biggest hit with sales of over four million copies. The same year, he won an Emmy for his first prime-time special on ABC (aptly titled The Barry Manilow Special); the network would air Manilow specials for the next several years. Even Now was another triple-platinum success in 1978; "Can't Smile Without You," the disco-tinged "Copacabana," and "Somewhere in the Night" all hit the Top Ten, with the first two marking a departure from Manilow's typical reliance on ballads for his hits.
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A television special taped for PBS took place in Manilow's home town, Brooklyn, New York. The show will appear on television soon. Although Manilow is now mostly located at the Las Vegas Hilton, he returned to the road in 2007. Several shows were played on the east coast of the United States in August of 2007. Four more shows are coming to Uniondale, New York, East Rutherford, New Jersey, Cleveland, Ohio, and Detroit, Michigan, all in December of 2007. Manilow launched another short tour in early 2008, visiting several large venues including the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, MN
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Inspired by his highly anticipated CD, The Greatest Songs of the Seventies, the television event features Manilow in concert, as well as sharing personal experiences. During the special, Manilow will perform his own songs from the seventies, as well as other favorites from the decade. This special presentation was taped in September before a live audience at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn, New York, the city where Manilow was born and raised.
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In conjunction with his long-term engagement, the Hilton has opened a Manilow retail outlet. A one-stop shop for everything Manilow, the store includes apparel, DVDs, jewelry, CDs, books, sheet music and Barry bobble-head dolls! There is even the opportunity for customers to sing along with their favorite Manilow tunes in the store's recording booth as well as preview songs from the tunesmith's entire catalog of music in special listening stations. Video screens feature clips from Manilow concerts. The centerpiece of the store is a large piano that serves as the desk, with a large neon "COPACABANA" sign hanging above it. When Manilow is performing at the Hilton, the store is open Sunday to Friday from 10:00 a.m. to midnight and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. When he is not performing, the store hours are 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily.
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