Customer Reviews

Tryin to Get the Feeling

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

 

 

The pop juggernaut that Barry Manilow has become was really starting to hit its stride in this, his third album (and his first for the fledgling Arista label in 1975). Having established his hit power with "Mandy", Manilow expanded his impressive production and songwriting capabilities in such over the top fare as "New York City Rhythm" and concefrt favorite "Bandstand Boogie" (which was used for years on Dick Clark's "American Bandstand").

The highlight of course, is current Beach Boy Bruce Johnston's "I Write the Songs", which was another major hit for his Barryness. Whether you see this song as schmaltzy dreck or 70s pop at it's finest, it is undeniable that Manilow had "it" in the "Afternoon Delight" decade.

My personal favorites are the rarely heard tracks "As sure as I'm Standing Here" (co-written with "Could it be Magic" collaborator Adrienne Anderson) and Larry Weiss' "Lay Me Down (and roll me out to sea)".

Impeccably crafted and arranged, "Tryin' to Get the Feelin' Again" is a classic example of Barry Manilow's early pop career.

Another great Barry CD! This is early-Barry, from 1976, but re-mastered to accomodate today's Fanilows. 13 tracks, a wee bit over 47 minutes total. Old favorites/Manilownian classics are: "New York City Rhythm, Tryin' To Get The Feeling Again, I Write the Songs, Bandstand Boogie", and "Beautiful Music." Some other popular Barry tunes heard less often are: Why Don't We Live Together," "As Sure As I'm Standin' Here," "Lay Me Down," and "You're Leavin' Too Soon". A few that I had not heard before are: "She's A Star, A Nice Boy Like Me, I'll Make You Music, and Marry Me A Little".

A great collection, it includes an 8-page booklet with a couple of young Barry photos and the words to all the songs, so you can sing along. There is also a photo of young Barry with his beagle Bagel. Barry's Bagel-Beagle, I mean, Barry's Beagle Bagel. In the booklet, Barry tells us he got to use his own band on this CD, augmented by by New York studio musicians. It was a dream come true for him.

I initially ordered this cd about a year ago but since there were no copies available, I cancelled my order. Thank God they released this remastered version which is why I immediately ordered a copy. The main reason I bought this CD is because of the song "As Sure As I'm Standing Here." Unfortunately, this song has never appeared in any of Barry's greatest hit collections so I finally got a copy through this CD. "As Sure As I'm Standing Here" is a gem. Beautiful melody and lyrics about assurance. It came out in 1975 and I grew up hearing this song because it is a huge radio favorite here in the Philippines similar to Elton John's "Skyline Pigeon" and the Carpenters' "Love Me For What I Am" and "Goodbye and I Love You" which are songs that have never appeared in any of their greatest hits collections but are huge radio and karaoke favorites here in the Philippines. Based on form and content, I could have rated this total package 5 stars since these timeless songs were packaged in a cd with a nice booklet with lyrics. However, I am disappointed with the sound quality. It's not as clear as the sound quality of other Barry cds. Even "I Write the Songs" was disappointing and sounded better in Barry's other collections. I expected better sound since this is a remastered package but the sound quality pales in comparison to my other cds of artists from the 70s. A perfect example is the excellent sound quality of "Anthology" by Bread and "America's Greatest Hits" which were both released in the 1970s and pressed in Germany. Anyway, many thanks for releasing this cd. At least, I now own a cd copy of my favorite Barry song which remained elusive all these years. :-)

Okay, so I'm just being honest: songs like Why Don't We Live Together are too cheesy, even for this diehard Fanilow. But songs like Lay Me Down and Trying To Get The Feeling move me each time, and Bandstand Boogie and New York City Rhythm get me moving. Much more to love about this album than not, and it's much better than just the greatest hits compilations that always leave out Lay Me Down, which I think is one of his absolute best best best. The album is worth it just for that tune! In short, this album is worth it, period. Enjoy!

Barry performed great in his unique fashion combining both hit songs and not so famous songs. He has a beautiful voice that brings joy when he sings

Luis Mejia - This album is particularly brilliant because it encompasses every aspect of such a polifacetic artist as Barry Manilow. The ballad sector is astonishing ("Tryin' To Get The Feeling", "I Write The Songs", "As Sure As I'm Standing Here"), the swing-like pieces are moving and memorable, specially in the disco tune "New York City Rythm" and the cheerful "Bandstand Boogie" prove Manilow as a perfectionist arranger. Apart from the hit songs, the rest are somewhat forgetable, although "Lay Me Down" and "You're Leaving Too Soon" are very sentimental, and "Beautiful Music" is one of the artist's favorites (as you can notice in most of his live albums). Plus I am impressed by the quality of the demo extra tracks, in a whole, this is a difficult album to name due to the number of similar hits throughout his career, but in terms of quality, this album sets the perfect example of Barry Manilow's accomplishments.

1 New York City Rhythm
2 Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again
3 Why Don't We Live Together
4 Bandstand Boogie
5 You're Leavin' Too Soon
6 She's a Star
7 I Write the Songs
8 As Sure as I'm Standin' Here
9 A Nice Boy Like Me
10 Lay Me Down
11 Beautiful Music