Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Mandy
2. It's A Miracle
3. Could It Be Magic
4. I Write The Songs
5. Bandstand Boogie
6. Tryin' To Get The Feeling Again
7. Beautiful Music
8. This One's For You
9. Weekend In New England
10. Jump Shout Boogie
11. Looks Like We Made It
12. Daybreak
13. New York City Rhythm
14. Can't Smile Without You
15. Even Now
16. Copacabana (At The Copa)
17. Ready To Take The Chance Again

Disc 2:

1. Somewhere In The Night
2. Ships
3. When I Wanted You
4. I Don't Want To Walk Without You
5. One Voice
6. I Made It Through The Rain
7. Lonely Together
8. Old Songs
9. Somewhere Down The Road
10. Memory
11. Some Kind Of Friend
12. Read 'Em And Weep
13. When October Goes
14. I'm Your Man
15. Brooklyn Blues
16. Hey Mambo - Manilow, Barry & Kid Creole
17. I'd Really Love To See You Tonight

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29996 in Music
• Released on: 2006-09-25
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .26 pounds

CD Description
Even those who find Barry Manilow's music cringe-worthy arelikely to know the chorus to "I Write the Songs", or to recognize the opening bars of "Mandy". That's because Manilow held serious sway over the pop and adult contemporary charts throughout the '70s, ratcheting up an amazing string of hits, most of which became staples of the soft rock canon. It cannot be denied that Manilow is a talented tunesmith capable of crafting powerful melodies, both melancholic and jubilant; and he parlayed this talent into a hugely successful recording and performing career lasting well into the 2000s.
Arista has followed up the blockbuster sales of 2002's ULTIMATE MANILOW by issuing an expanded, two-disc greatest hits compilation dubbed THE ESSENTIAL. Naturally, the mega-hits--"Mandy", "I Write the Songs", "Looks Like We Made It", and thedisco anthem "Copacabana"--are here, but there is plenty offine material spread out over these 34 tracks, including energetic show stoppers from his 1977 live album. Disc two concentrates on the performer's output from the '80s, includingforays into lounge jazz ("When October Goes") and swing ("Hey Mambo"). This is a whole lot of Manilow, and should satisfy anyone looking for a comprehensive overview of the singer-songwriter's best material.

Customer Reviews

The magic of Manilow (corny I know)
Having first bought his music when I was 13 in the 70's it was great to have most of his best loved songs on one CD now that my tapes and records have worn out. For those of you who love Barry this CD is fantastic, with 34 songs all wonderfully produced. He still does it for me after all these years.

Excellent double-CD of Barry's music
In an age where most people placed more importance on the beat of a song than the song itself, Barry came along in the seventies to remind us what great songwriting is really all about. He wrote or co-wrote several of his classic songs but he was always willing to record quality songs written by others. Fortunately for Barry, there were still enough people around in the seventies and eighties who loved great songs, so he was able to become a major star despite being unfashionable in some quarters. Of course, he got - and continues to get - plenty of criticism from those with different musical taste, but the appreciation of his fans provides him with more than adequate compensation.

This compilation covering his most successful years contains many of Barry's classic songs including all his important American hits though there are some notable omissions from a British perspective. Although Barry had many UK hits, only one of them actually made the top ten (I wanna do it with you) and it's not included here. Two other major UK hits (Let's hang on, Bermuda triangle) are also missing. Nevertheless, this is a fine compilation and a class act like Barry should not be judged on hits alone.

Among the many classic songs included here are I write the songs (ironically, not written by Barry), The old songs, Somewhere in the night, I made it through the rain, Daybreak, Trying to get the feeling, Ships, Looks like we made it, Mandy, Copacabana at the Copa, Can't smile without you and Could it be magic.

This compilation provides a great introduction to Barry's music while being more comprehensive than the Ultimate single CD.