"The Justin Bieber of the '70s" thrilled fans at the Connecticut casino.
Barry Manilow, seen here in a January 29, 2013 performance on Broadway. UNCASVILLE, Conn. – It may be fashionable to dismiss Barry Manilow as irrelevant in the music industry, but the legion of “Fanilows” who turned out on Friday night at the Mohegan Sun Arena to listen to their hero sing were proof positive of his lasting endurance as an entertainer.
After all, how can you dismiss an artist who has sold more than 80 million records worldwide and who has won Grammy, Emmy and Tony Awards for his recordings and appearances on Broadway – where he returned triumphantly in January after over two decades – and his many television specials.
Manilow, who keeps writing the songs – in 2011 he released “15 Minutes,” a risky concept album of all new songs, his first since 2001 – is playing it safe on his current tour by performing the bevy of hits and recognizable tunes that most know.
Bursting onto the stage at 8:15 p.m. in a shiny blue coat – 15 minutes late, but nothing like the tardiness recently of Rihanna in Boston – Manilow began the evening with the thumping “It’s A Miracle” and “Could It Be Magic,” before telling his fans “It’s going to be magic tonight” and asking them if they “had gone to the bathroom,” referring to the nearly non-stop 90-minute hit factory he was about to perform.
Most of the favorites were there – “Even Now,” “Weekend in New England,” “This One’s For You,” “New York City Rhythm,” “Tryin’ To Get the Feeling Again,” “Mandy,” “I Made It Through the Rain,” “Can’t Smile Without You,” “Copacabana” and so many, many others.
Making use of a video screen behind him, which should have been used more throughout the evening, he rolled out clips of "American Bandstand" and the late Dick Clark when singing “Bandstand Boogie,” as well as his 1975 appearance on NBC television’s late night, musical variety show, "The Midnight Special," where he performed “Mandy.” Sitting down at the grand piano on center stage, Manilow performed a duet with himself on the television show in what was one of the highlights of the show.
What was missing from the show were any of the newer songs Manilow has written over the past decade featured on the albums “Scores,” filled with songs from his two musicals “Harmony and “Copacabana,” as well as “Here at the Mayflower” and his latest, “15 Minutes,” although he did perform “Every Single Day” from “Harmony.” He also bypassed, except for a cover of Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” all of the songs from his tribute albums to the music of the 1950s, '60s, 70s and '80s.
Manilow ended the evening with “I Write the Songs” before coming back on stage for a quick reprise of “It’s A Miracle,” but to say there was an encore, there really wasn’t.
Of course, Manilow is 69, but that doesn’t stop other aging music wonders such as Sir Paul McCartney or the Rolling Stones for rocking out for more than two hours.
Nonetheless, Friday night’s show proved the aging crooner still has it. In fact, comparing his voice to his appearance on the “Midnight Special,” it now has a more satisfying deeper and richer tone.
Yes, Barry Manilow doesn’t have to “try to get the feeling again” as he sings, he’s still got it. And he truly was, as he proclaimed on stage, "the Justin Bieber of the '70s."