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He was approached by Bro Herrod, the director of CBS, who asked him to organize songs for a musical adaptation of a CBS original drama, for which, he wrote an entire score. It became an instant hit overnight. In 1967, he became the musical director of the CBS network television show and thereafter, began writing a number of well-known jingles for commercials for ‘Band-Aid’ and ‘Dr. Pepper.
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In the early 70s, Manilow worked with Bette Midler as he helped her with her sophomore releases ‘The Divine Miss M’ and ‘Bette Midler’. During this time, in 1973, he released his debut album, ‘Barry Manilow’, which was then remixed and re-released two years later. Meanwhile, he also released his second album, ‘Barry Manilow II’. In the late 70s, he starred in and produced four television specials for the ABC Network, one of which was known as ‘The Barry Manilow Special’, which had over millions of viewers.
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Barry Manilow recorded and released 47 Top 40 singles, including 12 that hit number one and 27 of which appeared within the top ten, and has released many multi-platinum albums. To date, twenty-nine albums by Manilow have been certified platinum, while Barry Manilow/Live (1977), Even Now (1978), and Greatest Hits (1978) are each certified triple platinum.
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The young Manilow honed his skills on Madison Avenue, penning brilliant jingles that continue to be used today. You undoubtedly know his "Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there." But did you know there were originally poetic verses, too? “We all hope the good times never leave us behind / We face our tomorrow with some peace of mind / No man has a promise of a life without care,” the tune mused.
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Another (literal) commercial hit was his infectious refrain, "I am stuck on Band-Aid brand, 'cause Band-Aid's stuck on me." In a 2011 interview with Vanity Fair, Manilow recalled, "Writing jingles was a very competitive field. You had to write the catchiest melody in 30 seconds or less and make it better than the other guy’s. I learned a lot about orchestration, about song structure and arrangement."
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In 1985, Manilow brought the musical back to television with his Copacabana film. Even the critics applauded him, at last. The New York Times wrote at the time, "Mr. Manilow is to be congratulated for reminding us that, given imagination and talent, the form can still work on television." Promoting the movie on The Tonight Show, Manilow noted that the movie was shot in a mere three weeks, as opposed to the months afforded to big screen productions. The teleplay adaptation was written by James Lipton, of Inside the Actors Studio fame.
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