KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The first time Barry Manilow played a concert in Kansas City was in 1976 at Municipal Auditorium, right after the release of his fourth studio album, “This One’s For You.”
Who would’ve imagined that 48 years later, Manilow would return to Kansas City and perform songs from that album once again?
The 81-year-old pop legend wowed the T-Mobile Center crowd one last time Sunday night for over 90 minutes with his enthusiasm, energy and fancy suit jackets. Manilow played some of his biggest songs, even the ones he wrote for other artists that later became huge hits.
“We’ve known each other for 48 years, and I still look fabulous and so do you,” Manilow said to the crowd.
Manilow’s career dates to the 1960s as a commercial jingle writer, writing timeless tunes like the State Farm catchphrase, “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.”
Many in attendance grew up listening to his pop hits and have passed that love onto the next generation in their families.
With so many romantic records in his catalog, Manilow might have predicted seeing a bunch of Barrys and Mandys running around by now.
There’s no better example than Mandy Worthy from Kansas City, Kan.
She was at the show with her “grannie” Mary Balandron, mom Karen Balandron, aunt Kelli and niece Alyza Gonzalez. Worthy said the Manilow song played a role in picking her name. Her family said that when she was 3 years old, she thought he was singing to her. The song was later played at her 16th birthday and wedding.
“My grannie named me because of the song,” Worthy said. “I still think he’s singing it to me every time.”
“Glad we were able to make it to the last show here in Kansas City.”
Gonzalez was the youngest of this group at 21 years old, but she wasn’t the youngest in attendance. Kids were spotted all around the arena, excited to share this moment with their parents.
Manilow brought the flair of a Las Vegas residency to Kansas City with the live band in the background and an intimate stage setup. The backup vocalists helped lead the way on the few dance routines, and he led a crowd singalong for “I Can’t Smile Without You,” displaying the lyrics on the screen.
He changed suit jackets quite a few times throughout the show. He opened the show wearing a purple jacket, switched to red, white, blue, and donned a jacket with rainbow frills to end the night with”Copacabana.” When he would sit down to the play the piano, the crowd sat with him and stood up every time he stood up to sing.
The Fanilows (the term used for Manilow superfans) also brought out their best sequin jackets and dresses, feather boas and custom-made T-shirts. Brothers Adam and Matt Swanger surprised their mom Carol with a matching Barry Manilow shirt and tickets to the show for her birthday.
Others, like Christine McCurdy, made custom shirts Friday for her friend group to wear to the show, each one featuring a lyric to a Manilow song on the back, including:
- Patty Ganaden had “her name is Lola, she was a showgirl” from “Copacabana”
- Stephen Mark had “Looks Like We Made It,” from the song of the same name
- Kara George had “I am stuck on Barry,” in reference to the Band-Aid jingle he wrote
- Jahanna Griffin had “I Made It Through The Rain,” from the song of the same name
“People commented on our shirts all night long, even on the streetcar going back to our parking,” Griffin said in a text message. “We were still getting people commenting on how much they loved our shirts.”
While this is the last time Manilow will play a show in Kansas City, he has plenty of shows lined up for a residency in Las Vegas in 2025. Griffin said her friends go to Las Vegas every year and would like to see him again there.
“Thank you for coming and giving us your time,” Manilow told the crowd.
What songs did Barry Manilow play?
Manilow opened and closed the show with “It’s A Miracle,” and in between played some of his greatest hits and popular television jingles. Here’s what Manilow played in Kansas City:
- “I’m Your Man”
- “Somewhere in the Night”
- “Daybreak”
- “Looks Like We Made It”
- “Can’t Smile Without You”
- “This One’s for You”
- “Bandstand Boogie” (Les Elgart & His Orchestra cover)
- “Even Now”
- “All the Time”
- “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” (Frankie Valli cover)
- “A Weekend in New England” (Randy Edelman cover)
- Band-Aid jingle
- State Farm jingle
- “Could It Be Magic”
- “I Made It Through the Rain”
- “Mandy” / “I Write the Songs medley”
- “Copacabana (At the Copa)”
