Customer Reviews

Barry Manilow: Manilow Live! [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

To be honest, I hadn't expected much that the concert would be enjoyable. I bought this blu-ray anyway because I wanted some new music experiences in hi-def. After watching, I was so impressed by Manilow's musicianship, showmanship, and his passion towards music. Despite of his aging, his performance is flawless and very entertaining. He knows what audience wants from a concert! He sings most his hits including Mandy, Copacabana, One voice, I write the songs, etc. I wished he'd sung Ships. The concert was well prepared and features an orchestra. I already saw this blu-ray a couple of times and I'm sure this will be one of my all time favorites.

The PQ is excellent with AVC coding on my Samsung LCD TV even though it's in 1080i. The DTS-HD MA audio track is stunning. No extras.

We've always like Barry Manilow's voice and songwriting ability. What was a surprise is how good a showman he is. Totally delightful show, and one we will watch again and again.

Nice to have Mr. Manilow living in our home town.

If you're not of fan of Barry Manilow then you probably aren't going to like the dvd but i am a fan and i liked it a lot. The idiot who gave this a one start review needs to understand that no one cares what a non-fan thinks. We love it because we love Barry. The same way i wouldn't bitch about a AC/DC concert dvd because i'm not a fan and have no right to complain. It's Barry being Barry...enjoy and sing along.

The Best of All Manilow DVD Concerts

I own many if not all of Barry's DVD concerts and I think this concert is the best for these reasons:

1) He pulled out all the stops, reached into his bank account, and hired a full orchestra to accompany him. The sound is much better than the usual machine-based musicians who accompany him. Barry obviously wanted this to be a special night that he would put in the time vault, and I'm glad he did;

2) This was the most personal of his concerts. In many concerts, the performers play song after song with some brief chit-chat in between. It gets a little predictable sometimes and you tend to tune out. But Barry includes some backstory and a few personal touches that give you a sense of his life and career, and that gave the experience more depth.

For example, he includes an old 75 rpm recording of when his grandfather tried to encourage him to sing "Happy Birthday" to his little cousin at one of those cheap recording booths in New York City when he was around 9 years old. It was really cute the way the then-shy Barry refused to sing. It apparently sparked Barry's love for music, and "This One's For You" was heartwarmingly dedicated to his grandfather;

3) The song list was the most comprehensive and personal for hard core Manilow fans. There's everthing here: his biggest hits, as well as some Broadway show tunes, some Sinatra, some Latin rhythmns (Copacabana). I don't really like the latter type of songs, but Barry does them in his unique style that makes them enjoyable for me anyway. I'm sure this is one of the reasons why he's widely known as the greatest showman in music.

I would have to agree. His love of Broadway musicals obviously influenced his musical writing, and you can hear the build-up of his songs toward the final resolution just as you would watch the build-up of a play towards the third act resolution. By the end, he finally hits the payoff and you leap up onto your feet with rousing applause at the third-act climax.

On another occasion, Barry revealed his love for odd musical instruments. He did some funny bits with an accordion and another funny-sounding instrument. It was good for some comic relief while bopping along with some silly but catchy tunes.

What I really appreciated was his including his lesser-known but more personal songs, like the beautiful "When October Goes" and "I Am Your Child". These types of songs aren't usually included in his more commercial concerts for more casual fans, and I'm glad they were included here. His music is unique in that it is for lovers, not fighters, and I'm glad he gave us a little extra something to make us happier this time around. That was not always the case.

In the late 1970's when I was in high school, Barry was in and so was the "Sensitive Male", as portrayed by men like Alan Alda and Phil Donahue. Around the late 1980's, our society started to change and adopt a more "Gordon Gekko" type of personna which resulted in a big backlash against sensitivity. Alan Alda eventually took on villanous roles. Donahue couldn't find another gig anywhere while Jerry Springer flourished. And the Chicago White Sox hosted an evening where they burned Manilow's albums at their stadium during a game. It was like a Hitler book burning.

Manilow admitted that he went into hiding and then into therapy during that time to deal with all the negativity. Who can blame him--first they loved him and then they hated him. The people who have a chic dislike for Manilow feel that way because they are insecure about their masculinity. It makes them feel more like men to say "I'm a fighter, not a lover", like when their heroes bite the heads off bats onstage. That's surely why out of all his hits, the only one to win a Grammy was "Copacabana" - a song that would not tread near the dangerous waters of intimacy.

I always stuck with Manilow and his music throughout those lean years and I'm glad he made it to meet his loyal fans on the other side. Yes, Barry, it was them, not you. Manilow is probably the only artist out there who can give us a night of class, elegance, and heartfelt romance when we are sorely in need of it. And Barry - if you're ever in San Franciso, drop me a line so Chef Ted can say thanks with a great 5-course, 5- star dinner!

THIS BLU RAY CONCERT HAS GOT A RAZOR SHARP PICTURE QUALITY AND A GOOD HD MASTER AUDION 4.0.
ALL MY FAVORITE SONGS ARE HERE, REALLY LOVE THE ORCHESTRA ON THE BACKGROUND

Excellent audio quality due to DTS HD Master. Projecting in a 106" screen and PQ looks pretty good despite having 1080i as video.
Yes, let's put things in perspective, Barry's the man!

I've been passing over this DVD for months because I am not a Barry Manilow fan. His music always seemed over played and overrated to me. But I decided to give it a chance and am so glad I did.

Of course the blu-ray video is outstanding, but it was the performance that got my attention. This artist has alot of charisma, energy and way of interacting with the audience with that makes it a joy to watch.
The arrangements with live orchestra make it really special. It's not a studio sound - more casual, soothing and beautiful. The concert has so many songs I never heard and many I had forgotten.
Barry still looks great although his voice seems to have less spark. After all these years he's still an amazing entertainer! I thoroughly enjoyed the DVD concert.

After 30+ years in the music business, Manilow still sounds and looks better than ever on this BD. This concert was recorded in Nashville, TN in 2001. Manilow obviously spared no expense on this concert. It includes a 30 piece orchestra, along with the musicians who travel with him and they sound great in Dolby Digital 5.1!

Manilow's signature songs are all included on this BD including "I Write the Songs", "Mandy", "I Made it Through the Rain", plus he does a special tribute to Frank Sinatra with "That's Life", "Chicago", and a few others. One of my favorites on this BD is his opening number "Could This Be Magic". One might question whether this is a good opening number for a concert since the original version could be considered slow and sappy. Not so with this version. He starts it out with a bigger than life entrance with the chorus and then builds it up to an up-tempo version (kind of disco-like). It actually comes out sounding awesome with a great groove! The audience was obviously loving it!

If you have a blu-ray player, get the blu-ray version. It looks and sounds great! Otherwise, go with the DVD. Either way, you can't go wrong on this one!

Friends,

As an accomplished professional pianist, and one who owns the top 100 or so concert blu-rays that are for sale on Amazon's website, I can say, unequivocally, that if this DVD will not put you in a "happy place" there is utterly nothing that will. I run a top of the line home theater in my basement, and the sound and picture of this remarkable concert are second to none. Barry's many years of paying his dues in lesser paying gigs have brought him to this point - an utterly honed, ice-in-the-veins, polished performer. His vocal chops, piano technique, stories, engagement with the audience and his orchestra, deliver a second to none performance worthy of being on EVERY musician's DVD-shelf in addition to the non-musician music lover. The crisp visuals of Barry's expressions, the falsetto of the voice, the unbridled happiness and positivity of all of these tunes provide a performance that you will watch over, and over, and over - by yourself, with tears in your eyes, and with friends - with tears in all of our eyes. The Sinatra section is dazzling, with a particularly touching performance of "When October Goes" - Barry's music set to the incredible lyrics of Johnny Mercer. If that tune does not bring nostalgic tears to your eyes, I don't know what will. Hits like "Even Now" make one think back on every relationship that one has had in younger years - whether the relationship had painful points or not. The audience reveres in his wonderful story telling - from the buzzing electricity of Manhatten to his grandfather trying to coax a song out of him at a 25-cent recording-jukebox in Brooklyn, with Barry balking and crying about doing it. They actually play the recording of this nostalgia, with his Brooklyn-thick-accented grandfather trying to get Barry to sing "Happy Birthday" to his cousin when Barry is a wee-lad. You can see a picture of this event in his wonderful biography: "Sweet Life." "Can't Smile Without You" - one of his standards, is infinitely touching and heartfelt, with a sincere lady-fan (Michelle) from Arkansas, being the lucky one helping him, tearfully, through the duet. Mr. Manilow is the definition of showmanship - happy, positive, a million hits, and one who truly can engage his audience.

Had a DVD version of this recording before but the Blu-ray outperforms the DVD especially on a big screen and surround sound system.

Thoroughly enjoyed it.