MasterClass Monday: Barry Manilow’s Heartfelt Recording Of The Mercer/Manilow Classic “When October Goes”

Thank Heavens for the musical gift known as Barry Manilow.  He is a legend, a unique and sensitive performer who has always valued the importance of the creative process when writing or performing his music.  He is and will always remain a class act in every sense of the word. 

Additionally, he is a consummate professional and completely and utterly devoted to his fans. This is the reason why, after so many years in the business, he still has a huge following of fans from all over the world. His love for the music and for the fans is authentic and steadfast. 

And so I thought that, since it is Monday, October 30th, I would treat you to a real gem of a song , “When October Goes“, penned by Barry Manilow and Johnny Mercer – another musical legend.  

Here is the fascinating and heartwarming background story regarding the original recording  of this song (Source: Wikipedia)

“When October Goes” is a ballad based on a lyric Johnny Mercer had written but did not complete. It was matched up to a melody by Barry Manilow and published in 1984, becoming one of the top Adult Contemporary hits of that year in the United States.

In his last year, as he was dying from brain cancer, Mercer became extremely fond of Manilow, in part because Manilow’s first hit record was of a song titled “Mandy“, which was also the name of Mercer’s daughter. After Mercer’s death, his widow, Ginger Mehan Mercer, arranged to give some unfinished lyrics he had written to Manilow to possibly develop into complete songs. Among these was “When October Goes.” Manilow applied his own melody to the lyric and issued it as a single in 1984.

The song has since been recorded by Kevin Mahogany,[2] Rosemary Clooney, Nancy Wilson and Megon McDonough. Thomas Anders (of Modern Talking fame) recorded his version in 1997 on the album Live Concert. Recently, Lea Salonga performed the song on her album Inspired.”

This song first appeared on the album 2:00 AM Paradise Cafe.

This is also the title of an album put out by Rounder Records and produced by Christine Lavin, which features the title song and other fall related songs by singer/songwriters.”

One musical legend passing the baton to another musical legend.  How beautiful is this story? 

And I could go on and on with the sensitivity and care he infuses into this number. It is perfect in every way. Barry Manilow wears his heart on his sleeve when he performs and draws you in like a musical magnet. 

His technique is solid – the sustained vowels, the musical manner in which he approaches his phrases, the clear articulation of his words. It certainly doesn’t get any better than this. 

Musically, this is a very sophisticated composition.  I once wrote a musical arrangement for a quartet of singers and, I must say, it took me longer than I thought it would.  The chord progressions are tricky.  But the final product was pretty neat and I could kick myself for not recording it.  

Please do yourself a favour and download or stream this song or any of Barry Manilow’s incredible music on iTunes or Apple Music. 

Has anyone seen Barry in concert?  If so, please share your stories below.  All respectful comments are always welcome.