KWXY Presents ● A Classic Interview with Barry Manilow

Barry Manilow / Station Publicity Photo - RCA Records / Garry Kief Management / IVOX MEDIA collection

Barry Manilow is a singer, songwriter, arranger, producer and philanthropist.  In addition to a string of hit albums and singles throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he wrote, arranged and/or performed corporate jingles as well, including jingles for McDonald’s (“You Deserve A Break Today”), State Farm Insurance (“Like A Good Neighbor, State Farm Is There”), Pepsi-Cola (“All Across the Nation, It’s the Pepsi Generation”) and Band-Aid (“I Am Stuck on Band-Aids, ‘cause Band-Aids Stuck on Me”).  He is one of the best-selling artists in history with worldwide record sales of more than 85 million. 

Manilow was born Barry Alan Pincus on June 17, 1943 in New York City, New York.  The name “Manilow” was the maiden name of his mother, Edna.  His father, Harold Pincus, went by “Harold Keliher,” his stepfather’s name.  He grew up in Brooklyn, graduated high school in 1961 and later studied at the New York College of Music and the Julliard School. 

His career began in 1964 at CBS with his original score for the melodramatic play, The Drunkard.  Throughout the rest of the 1960s, he was an active writer and singer of commercial jingles and in 1969, he signed with Bell Records as part of the studio musician group, “Featherbed.”

The group failed to make an impact on the charts, but Manilow’s fortunes turned for the better by 1974 with the number one hit, “Mandy.”  Originally titled “Brandy,” the name was changed to avoid confusion with 1972’s “Brandy (You’re A Fine Girl)” by Looking Glass.  “Mandy” became the first of a string of number one hits which included songs composed by other writers, among them “Weekend in New England,” “Ships,” “Can’t Smile Without You” and “I Write the Songs.”  Manilow, along with producer Ron Dante, were credited with producing and arranging. 

Manilow continues to record and tour.  He is also a benefactor of the arts through The Manilow Music Project, which donates instruments and other musical equipment to schools nationwide and which also provides music scholarships. To date, the project has awarded more than 300 scholarships and more than $10 million in instruments and other donations.

Listen to a Classic Interview with Barry Manilow today at 1pm on KWXY Music Radio 92.3FM ● 1340AM ● streaming at kwxy.com and ivoxradio.com