Remembering Mandy

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If you have forgotten or haven’t heard this song in a long time, you’re probably thinking, “Who is Mandy?” Well, all the way back in the last century, on January 18, 1975, a singer named Barry Manilow scored a number one hit with his song “Mandy.” During his career and while he was most popular, Manilow went on to sell over 75 million records. He was one of those singers who had hit-and-miss songs with me. I either loved a certain song he came out with or I hated it. Therefore, I never purchased any of Manilow’s albums; instead, when I loved a song, I bought the 45 R.P.M. record and later put it on tape. This was the prehistoric time before computers. Can you imagine that at one time Manilow was the piano player for another great singer – the Divine Miss M—Bette Midler? Later on she made him her musical director, and he arranged her Divine Miss M album and following tour with the agreement that during intermission he would be allowed to perform his own songs. From this, Manilow went on as an opening act for singer Dionne Warwick and finally arrived at Arista Records. From there on Manilow was unstoppable, and after “Mandy” he created and sang 21 more Top-40 hits between 1975 and 1983. For his most devoted fans, Manilow continues to perform even if the hits have stopped rolling in.