The Humble Boston Gig That Launched Barry Manilow’s Legendary Career

Barry Manilow has been performing in one capacity or another for more than 60 years. At 82, Manilow has embarked upon a farewell tour, though he maintains a "lifetime residency" at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

My wife and I will be in the audience at the Westgate on Valentine's Day.

The Brooklyn-born Manilow now lives in California, but has traveled the world performing while also churning out hit song after hit song.

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According to Billboard, Manilow has had 51 Top 40 hits on the Adult Contemporary chart, with 13 of those reaching No. 1. The 1970s and early '80s belonged to Barry Manilow.

Manilow has had 27 Top 10 hits and 36 songs that reached the Top 20. According to Billboard, he has had 25 Top 40 hits on the Hot 100 chart.

That's not a bad record for a guy who had no interest in being a singer. Manilow was a writer, producer and arranger before happenstance threw him into the recording spotlight.

From Writer to Performer

Manilow's first performance as a soloist was on March 4, 1974, at a small club called Paul's Mall in Boston. "It was pretty bad," Manilow wrote in his autobiography Sweet Life: Adventures on the Way to Paradise.

A Rough Start in Boston

"The club was a real dump," he wrote. "The ceiling was extremely low and there were holes in it. It rained on our opening night and water kept dripping on all of us."

From Boston to the Big Time

The first time Manilow performed in Massachusetts after making it big was on July 31, 1978, at Harvard Stadium in Cambridge, as part of the "Even Now Tour." Again, it rained.

Before he played Harvard, Manilow's tour landed at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island for three shows, June 23-25, 1978.

Manilow's current single, "Once Before I Go," is working its way up the Adult Contemporary chart.