Miami, Fla. — The last thing most Barry Manilow fans expect to hear him sing are songs about anti-Semitism and the Holocaust. Yet, the 58-year-old composer/musician/singer will be doing just that when he comes to Milwaukee’s Bradley Center on Oct. 22.
Manilow has recorded seven songs from his new Broadway-bound musical, “Harmony,” in his new CD, “Scores,” and wants to be known for more than the upbeat, sentimental songs that have sold more than 60 million records.
Set during the Holocaust era, “Harmony” is based on the true story of the Comedian Harmonists, a group of six German performers — three Jewish and three Gentile — who gained fame in Germany in the 1920s before becoming a threat to the Nazis in the 1930s.
Featuring music by Manilow and book and lyrics by Bruce Sussman (with whom Manilow won a Grammy Award for “Copacabana”), the show debuted in 1997 at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego.
“Without a doubt, this is the one piece of work that I want to be remembered for,” Manilow said during a telephone conversation from New York during a break from rehearsals.
“What inspired Bruce Sussman and me is to tell a story of a unique and talented group of individuals who touched the lives of millions in their time. They set out on a quest to find harmony in what turned out to be the most discordant chapter in history. The harmony they set out to find was so much more than musical harmony.
“The writing of the music has been the most challenging and creative journey of my career. I immersed myself in the musical style of the 1920s and ‘30s, including listening to klezmer and cantorial songs,” he said.
“Despite what happened, the story is uplifting. The tragic part of their story in the second act moves me because I’m Jewish and because my relatives went through the Holocaust.”
“What is ironic is that I have been turned off from Judaism for years, believing in the simple concept that if I wasn’t good, God would punish me. I feel different now. What we learned from the 9/11 tragedy … is that we all should be tolerant, accepting of ourselves and feel uplifted. It is the best way to fight tyranny,” Manilow said.
“I love all the work of Barry Manilow and am glad for him that his new musical is opening on Broadway,” said composer Marvin Hamlisch, winner of countless awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for “A Chorus Line.”
“It is rare for a new musical to open on Broadway because of the vast amount of money needed to open a show. Without a doubt, Barry has the drive and talent to be the next great Broadway composer,” he said.
Next week’s show may be one of his last in Milwaukee, Manilow said. “I am not saying I won’t be back, but after 30 years of touring, I want to enjoy my life at my home [in Palm Springs, Calif.] more than I have.”
Manilow’s long career has been fruitful. Acknowledged in record circles as the number one adult contemporary artist of all time, he has earned an Emmy Award (for his televised special in 1977), a Tony Award (for his Broadway concert in 1977) and an Oscar nomination (for his song, “Ready To Take A Chance Again,” from the 1978 movie, “Foul Play”). In 2003, he was inducted into the the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Despite his worldwide fame, Manilow’s roots are humble. Born in Brooklyn as Barry Alan Pincus, Manilow’s parents — a Jewish mother, Edna Manilow and an Irish father, Harold Kelliher, who changed his last name to Pincus — were divorced when he was two. Barry changed his last name to Manilow shortly before becoming a bar mitzvah.
Manilow’s mother and his Russian immigrant grandparents raised him — an only child — in a Williamsburg apartment.
“We were very poor but I never knew it. I was given a secure upbringing and I always felt loved and wanted. Grandma and Grandpa taught me Jewish traditions and raised me to be polite, caring and sensitive, a gentleman.”
Manilow began playing the accordian but discovered his love of music through piano. “I hated the accordian; it seems that every Jewish kid has to play one. But when I played the piano, I knew that music would be my passion and my ticket out of Brooklyn.”
Tickets range from $39-134. For more information, call 414-227-0797.
Marvin Glassman is a freelance writer based in Miami.
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