'Fanilows' Can Have Time Of Lives At Manilow Show

I had heard about the concept of "Fanilows" -- fans of singer Barry Manilow -- but I didn't really believe it.

Don't get me wrong, I like Barry Manilow. In fact, the very first concert I ever went to was a Manilow show in the late 1970s at the Five Seasons Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I practically wore out his "Live" album, and I performed several of his songs in swing choir.

(Yes, I'm a geek.)

But the thought that this 60-something-year-old lifelong bachelor could inspire feverish, almost rabid devotion among legions of middle-age and other women (and men) seemed like a bit of a joke.

Then I went to his concert at the Las Vegas Hilton.

I haven't seen a crowd reaction like that since seeing the clips of the teenage girls watching the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show. We're talking screaming, shaking, crying and standing ovations after every song. Seriously -- people stood up after every single song, and not just a few people. Fanilows exist and they are not to be messed with.

Not that it would've mattered if it had been otherwise, but Manilow is in fine form after all these years, and his ongoing show at the Las Vegas Hilton is an entertaining diversion even if you don't quite reach Fanilow levels of Barry worship. He looks and sounds great, has a friendly, self-deprecating stage presence and knows how to work a crowd into a frenzy. Although, again, with this crowd he probably could have done that just by standing there.

Let's not even talk about the parts where he took off his jacket.

The first and last thirds of the 100-minute concert consisted of his greatest hits, including "Mandy" (done as a virtual duet with a videotaped younger version of himself), "Daybreak," "Can't Smile Without You," "Jump, Shout Boogie," "This One's For You," "I Write The Songs," and "Copacabana" as the big show closer on a platform out over the top of the audience. It was satisfying in a retro-cheese kind of way and exactly what I wanted to hear from him.

But the middle third of the show dragged a bit for me. It was made up of lesser-known songs from his 2001 concept album "Here at the Mayflower" and a bunch of 1950s-era classics like "Unchained Medley" that seemed completely out of place until I heard a few days after the concert that he is planning to release an album of songs from the decade.

Although he hit all the right notes (both literally and figuratively) during this section, it left me a bit cold and longing for more of the classic Barry I was hoping to hear. Where were "Weekend in New England," "Ready to Take a Chance Again," "Somewhere Down the Road," "Ships," "One Voice," and "Even Now"?

Granted, with an artist who has had as many hits as this one it would be nearly impossible to cram them all into one show, and I can understand why a performer would want to mix it up a little -- how would you like to have to sing the same songs every night for 30 years? But fewer covers, less obscure material and more of the recognizable favorites would have made for a much more successful overall package.

Then again, I'm not a Fanilow.

Vegas4Visitors Grade: B

Barry Manilow
The Las Vegas Hilton
3000 Paradise Rd.
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(800) 222-5361
Web site Tickets: $85 to $225

Barry Manilow is currently booked at the Las Vegas Hilton through 2006, doing more than 100 shows, but note that he doesn't perform every week. Check the Las Vegas Hilton Web site for a schedule of performance dates.

The Full Story

• Harrah's Could Level Several Hotel-Casinos
• 'Fanilows' Can Have Time Of Lives At Manilow Show
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