Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

I do not consider myself a full fledged “Fanilow” since I only like a handful of his songs and let’s face it, he recorded a heck of a lot more than a few tunes in his day. But I am not a hater, either, nor can I forget that in the early 1970’s Barry Manilow was the pianist & musical director for The Divine Miss M, Bette Midler.

But I do remember the first track I ever heard by him. I completely swooned over the lyrics, especially the line “You kissed me & stopped me from shaking”. He performed it during his first US television appearance in March 1975 on the show he wrote the theme for, “American Bandstand”. It was the first #1 hit of his career, hitting the top spot for one week on January 18, 1975. All these years later, I still find it enchanting.

“I’m standing on the edge of time
I’ve walked away when love was mine
Caught up in a world of uphill climbing
The tears are in my mind and nothing is rhyming“.

Top (L-R_: Barry Manilow and Bette Midler circa 1973. Bottom (L-R): Manilow and Midler circa 2003. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Barry Manilow: “Mandy” (1974, written by Richard Kerr and Scott English).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.