Curating the Manilow collection...

[a***@gmail.com]

For some reason I decided to acquire all of Mr M's albums in the form of CDs.

I owned much of Mr M's early work on vinyl, and of course there was the cassette period.......and wasn't that true for all of us......anyway, the vinyls and the cassettes are long gone.

Many of the more recent albums live only on my iTunes; I have no hard copy.

While I already own a good number of Mr M's CDs, I'm looking to fill out my collection, particularly the earlier albums, but some of the later ones as well, for example, a CD copy of 15 Minutes. And I discovered I don't own the Greatest Songs of the 60s or 80s, in any form. ( I KNOW, RIGHT?!! )

Anyhoooo in the process of going through my CD collection to determine what I already own, and what I need to hunt down in an Amazon-fueled frenzy, I discovered duplicate copies of:

*Ultimate Manilow
*The Greatest Songs of the Fifties

I mention this because I will be happy to send these off to a good home. Just message me a mailing address and they are yours.

Best,
Annie

[D]

Post by a***@gmail.com
For some reason I decided to acquire all of Mr M's albums in the form of CDs.
I owned much of Mr M's early work on vinyl, and of course there was the cassette period.......and wasn't that true for all of us......anyway, the vinyls and the cassettes are long gone.
Many of the more recent albums live only on my iTunes; I have no hard copy.
While I already own a good number of Mr M's CDs, I'm looking to fill out my collection, particularly the earlier albums, but some of the later ones as well, for example, a CD copy of 15 Minutes. And I discovered I don't own the Greatest Songs of the 60s or 80s, in any form. ( I KNOW, RIGHT?!! )
*Ultimate Manilow
*The Greatest Songs of the Fifties
I mention this because I will be happy to send these off to a good home. Just message me a mailing address and they are yours.
Best,
Annie

Annie...

I've been putting some of my Manilow stuff up on eBay; if there's something specific you're hunting for, I can check through what I've got. (Not sure about 15 Minutes but I'll look... anything else?)
Depending on your criteria, you'll have to get import copies of Barry, Here Comes the Night, and 20 Greatest Hits. Those were never issued on CD in the States.

The only one I'm still hunting for is a promo copy of "Welcome Home" with an exclusive radio edit. I know it exists but I've never found a copy.

[a***@gmail.com]

Post by D

Post by a***@gmail.com
For some reason I decided to acquire all of Mr M's albums in the form of CDs.
I owned much of Mr M's early work on vinyl, and of course there was the cassette period.......and wasn't that true for all of us......anyway, the vinyls and the cassettes are long gone.
Many of the more recent albums live only on my iTunes; I have no hard copy.
While I already own a good number of Mr M's CDs, I'm looking to fill out my collection, particularly the earlier albums, but some of the later ones as well, for example, a CD copy of 15 Minutes. And I discovered I don't own the Greatest Songs of the 60s or 80s, in any form. ( I KNOW, RIGHT?!! )
*Ultimate Manilow
*The Greatest Songs of the Fifties
I mention this because I will be happy to send these off to a good home. Just message me a mailing address and they are yours.
Best,
Annie

Annie...
I've been putting some of my Manilow stuff up on eBay; if there's something specific you're hunting for, I can check through what I've got. (Not sure about 15 Minutes but I'll look... anything else?)
Depending on your criteria, you'll have to get import copies of Barry, Here Comes the Night, and 20 Greatest Hits. Those were never issued on CD in the States.
The only one I'm still hunting for is a promo copy of "Welcome Home" with an exclusive radio edit. I know it exists but I've never found a copy.

Thanks, D. I spent some of my "hazard pay" on an Amazon buying frenzy the other night and I found most of what I was looking for.


The fun part is my purchases are all from different vendors so I will be receiving daily packages for a while.


Today was the first Amazon Prime delivery: 2:00AM Paradise Café.

Haven't listened to it yet - tonight was date night, social distance style: take-out Chinese food and a bottle of wine by the pond.


Tomorrow, though, I'll be revisiting the Paradise Café!


Annie

[h***@aol.com]

Post by a***@gmail.com

Post by D

Post by a***@gmail.com
For some reason I decided to acquire all of Mr M's albums in the form of CDs.
I owned much of Mr M's early work on vinyl, and of course there was the cassette period.......and wasn't that true for all of us......anyway, the vinyls and the cassettes are long gone.
Many of the more recent albums live only on my iTunes; I have no hard copy.
While I already own a good number of Mr M's CDs, I'm looking to fill out my collection, particularly the earlier albums, but some of the later ones as well, for example, a CD copy of 15 Minutes. And I discovered I don't own the Greatest Songs of the 60s or 80s, in any form. ( I KNOW, RIGHT?!! )
*Ultimate Manilow
*The Greatest Songs of the Fifties
I mention this because I will be happy to send these off to a good home. Just message me a mailing address and they are yours.
Best,
Annie

Annie...
I've been putting some of my Manilow stuff up on eBay; if there's something specific you're hunting for, I can check through what I've got. (Not sure about 15 Minutes but I'll look... anything else?)
Depending on your criteria, you'll have to get import copies of Barry, Here Comes the Night, and 20 Greatest Hits. Those were never issued on CD in the States.
The only one I'm still hunting for is a promo copy of "Welcome Home" with an exclusive radio edit. I know it exists but I've never found a copy.

Thanks, D. I spent some of my "hazard pay" on an Amazon buying frenzy the other night and I found most of what I was looking for.
The fun part is my purchases are all from different vendors so I will be receiving daily packages for a while.
Today was the first Amazon Prime delivery: 2:00AM Paradise Café.
Haven't listened to it yet - tonight was date night, social distance style: take-out Chinese food and a bottle of wine by the pond.
Tomorrow, though, I'll be revisiting the Paradise Café!
Annie

OMG, Annie! You're going to LOVE this one! Paradise Cafe' has to be one of my favorite Manilow albums ever! I found that listening to it in the dark with headphones on was the ultimate way to hear this one. And if it a warm summer night, listen to it on your headphones outside under the stars! It doesn't get any better than that!

Christine

[h***@aol.com]

Post by a***@gmail.com

Post by D

Post by a***@gmail.com
For some reason I decided to acquire all of Mr M's albums in the form of CDs.
I owned much of Mr M's early work on vinyl, and of course there was the cassette period.......and wasn't that true for all of us......anyway, the vinyls and the cassettes are long gone.
Many of the more recent albums live only on my iTunes; I have no hard copy.
While I already own a good number of Mr M's CDs, I'm looking to fill out my collection, particularly the earlier albums, but some of the later ones as well, for example, a CD copy of 15 Minutes. And I discovered I don't own the Greatest Songs of the 60s or 80s, in any form. ( I KNOW, RIGHT?!! )
*Ultimate Manilow
*The Greatest Songs of the Fifties
I mention this because I will be happy to send these off to a good home. Just message me a mailing address and they are yours.
Best,
Annie

Annie...
I've been putting some of my Manilow stuff up on eBay; if there's something specific you're hunting for, I can check through what I've got. (Not sure about 15 Minutes but I'll look... anything else?)
Depending on your criteria, you'll have to get import copies of Barry, Here Comes the Night, and 20 Greatest Hits. Those were never issued on CD in the States.
The only one I'm still hunting for is a promo copy of "Welcome Home" with an exclusive radio edit. I know it exists but I've never found a copy.

Thanks, D. I spent some of my "hazard pay" on an Amazon buying frenzy the other night and I found most of what I was looking for.
The fun part is my purchases are all from different vendors so I will be receiving daily packages for a while.
Today was the first Amazon Prime delivery: 2:00AM Paradise Café.
Haven't listened to it yet - tonight was date night, social distance style: take-out Chinese food and a bottle of wine by the pond.
Tomorrow, though, I'll be revisiting the Paradise Café!
Annie

OMG, Annie! You're going to LOVE this one! Paradise Cafe' has to be one of my favorite Manilow albums ever! I found that listening to it in the dark with headphones on was the ultimate way to hear this one. And if it's a warm summer night, listen to it on your headphones outside under the stars! It doesn't get any better than that!
Christine

[D]

Post by a***@gmail.com

Post by D

Post by a***@gmail.com
For some reason I decided to acquire all of Mr M's albums in the form of CDs.
I owned much of Mr M's early work on vinyl, and of course there was the cassette period.......and wasn't that true for all of us......anyway, the vinyls and the cassettes are long gone.
Many of the more recent albums live only on my iTunes; I have no hard copy.
While I already own a good number of Mr M's CDs, I'm looking to fill out my collection, particularly the earlier albums, but some of the later ones as well, for example, a CD copy of 15 Minutes. And I discovered I don't own the Greatest Songs of the 60s or 80s, in any form. ( I KNOW, RIGHT?!! )
*Ultimate Manilow
*The Greatest Songs of the Fifties
I mention this because I will be happy to send these off to a good home. Just message me a mailing address and they are yours.
Best,
Annie

Annie...
I've been putting some of my Manilow stuff up on eBay; if there's something specific you're hunting for, I can check through what I've got. (Not sure about 15 Minutes but I'll look... anything else?)
Depending on your criteria, you'll have to get import copies of Barry, Here Comes the Night, and 20 Greatest Hits. Those were never issued on CD in the States.
The only one I'm still hunting for is a promo copy of "Welcome Home" with an exclusive radio edit. I know it exists but I've never found a copy.

Thanks, D. I spent some of my "hazard pay" on an Amazon buying frenzy the other night and I found most of what I was looking for.
The fun part is my purchases are all from different vendors so I will be receiving daily packages for a while.
Today was the first Amazon Prime delivery: 2:00AM Paradise Café.
Haven't listened to it yet - tonight was date night, social distance style: take-out Chinese food and a bottle of wine by the pond.
Tomorrow, though, I'll be revisiting the Paradise Café!
Annie

OMG, Annie! You're going to LOVE this one! Paradise Cafe' has to be one of my favorite Manilow albums ever! I found that listening to it in the dark with headphones on was the ultimate way to hear this one. And if it's a warm summer night, listen to it on your headphones outside under the stars! It doesn't get any better than that!
Christine

I can't vouch for the "listening on headphones" part (living alone, why bother with headphones? LOL) but... yeah. Paradise is (IMO) Barry's absolute best album. That one and Because It's Christmas are the ONLY two that managed a total 100% "like" rating when I went through the entire collection a few years back. (How many songs I like / How many songs on album gives my "like" rating.)

For anyone wondering, my top ones turned out to be (your mileage may vary...)
1. 2:00 AM Paradise Cafe (100%)
1. Because It's Christmas (100%)
3. This One's for You (90.91%)
3. A Christmas Gift of Love (90.91%)
5. Barry Manilow I (1975 Arista) (81.82%)
5. One Voice (81.82%)
7. Barry Manilow II (80%)
7. Swing Street (80%)
7. This Is My Town (80%)
10. Night Songs II (76.92%)

[dcsharon]

Wow. YMMV is right!

Mayflower would have made my top 10 - easily. Maybe even my top 5.

Christmas Gift of Love(Boat), Night Songs, and This is My Town - no where near my top 10.

Good thing we have a CD case tower full of CD's to choose from! :-)

(DC) Sharon

[D]

Post by dcsharon
Wow. YMMV is right!
Mayflower would have made my top 10 - easily. Maybe even my top 5.
Christmas Gift of Love(Boat), Night Songs, and This is My Town - no where near my top 10.
Good thing we have a CD case tower full of CD's to choose from! :-)
(DC) Sharon

LOL Yeah, Night Songs I was nowhere near my top ten either, with a 37.5% rating. It managed to beat out 4 other CDs, though. SO78 - 33.33%, GS-50's - 23.08%, GS-80's - 14.29%, and of course the Nightmare Singalong at a total ZERO.

OTOH, Night Songs II was a bit of a surprise. I was really expecting I'd hate it as much as the first one. Similar situation with This Is My Town. After those damned decades albums, I wasn't expecting to like it, either. But it actually rises in the rankings if I use the QVC edition as my benchmark. (85.71% for the QVC edition vs. 80% for the standard release.)

I was also really surprised that Even Now and Mayflower didn't place higher, but they actually fell at #11 and #12, respectively. I think Mayflower's problem in my rankings is that some of the songs I like off of it are scattered across all the damn variations they decided to release. Regular, Kmart, UK, Japan... and the "Tour Exclusive" bonus disc. Maybe I'll have to try putting them all together as one and see how that changes things.

I LOVED Mayflower when it first came out. I remember almost crying during the first listen... after all those years of greatest hits, live albums, and cover albums... FINALLY an album of NEW material and GOOD material too... but using ONLY the standard US release, it limps in with a 68.75%, tied with Singing with the Big Bands.

"Christmas Gift of Love Boat"... OMG... ROFL!!!

[D]

Post by D

Post by dcsharon
Wow. YMMV is right!
Mayflower would have made my top 10 - easily. Maybe even my top 5.
Christmas Gift of Love(Boat), Night Songs, and This is My Town - no where near my top 10.
Good thing we have a CD case tower full of CD's to choose from! :-)
(DC) Sharon

LOL Yeah, Night Songs I was nowhere near my top ten either, with a 37.5% rating. It managed to beat out 4 other CDs, though. SO78 - 33.33%, GS-50's - 23.08%, GS-80's - 14.29%, and of course the Nightmare Singalong at a total ZERO.
OTOH, Night Songs II was a bit of a surprise. I was really expecting I'd hate it as much as the first one. Similar situation with This Is My Town. After those damned decades albums, I wasn't expecting to like it, either. But it actually rises in the rankings if I use the QVC edition as my benchmark. (85.71% for the QVC edition vs. 80% for the standard release.)
I was also really surprised that Even Now and Mayflower didn't place higher, but they actually fell at #11 and #12, respectively. I think Mayflower's problem in my rankings is that some of the songs I like off of it are scattered across all the damn variations they decided to release. Regular, Kmart, UK, Japan... and the "Tour Exclusive" bonus disc. Maybe I'll have to try putting them all together as one and see how that changes things.
I LOVED Mayflower when it first came out. I remember almost crying during the first listen... after all those years of greatest hits, live albums, and cover albums... FINALLY an album of NEW material and GOOD material too... but using ONLY the standard US release, it limps in with a 68.75%, tied with Singing with the Big Bands.
"Christmas Gift of Love Boat"... OMG... ROFL!!!

Replying to myself... LOL

I went back and recalculated Mayflower. By my count, among all the variations that got released, there were a total of 21 tracks. I like 16 of them, which gives it a combined rating of 76.19%

Which sadly isn't enough to pull it into the top ten. Only effect is that it flips places with Even Now... Mayflower moves up to #11 and EN slides to #12.

Sorry, Sharon... I tried! ;-)