ThAnKs FoR StOpPiNg By!

Hi there!
I'm Debbie from Illinois.
As you can see in my photos, even as young as 5, I was a Barry fan. There's a shot of me on vacation in Tarpon Springs proudly wearing my Barry t-shirt (one of 3...I was a growing girl and had one made every year until the t-shirt store closed.) Not shown here was that I used the same decal for my school bag!
There is, and always has been, something about Mr. Manilow's music that has meant something special to me. It moves me on a level most music doesn't. When I hear my favorite song by him ("A Linda Song" from the "Even Now" album,) I'm transported to sitting on a storyteller's lap. More vivid yet is "Here at the Mayflower," where I see the acts on a stage in my mind. I SEE the song. I know the people in it. That's the sign of an amazing musician, in my book.

People have already commented on my profile's photo and I must share that story here. I'll paste it from my MySpace blog, so I hope it's legible here!

Wednesday, November 7th: The only thing we had concrete plans for this trip was to happen tonight...Barry's "Music & Passion" at our hotel. Our tickets were bought & we were scheduling everything around that. We started the morning with breakfast at Paradise Cafe (no, it wasn't 2 a.m.! Ha ha ha!). We gambled a bit at the Hilton & hit the strip. We took the Monorail to Harrah's & walked around there & Imperial Palace (I wanted to see the Dealertainers). We started drinking a bit early, but then again, it is Vegas! We walked across the street to the Caesar's Forum shops. Too much money for all that stuff, so I'm not impressed with the stores themselves, but the architecture was gorgeous. We walked through for a while, stopping as we went to take pictures. After Caesar's, Mom's knees were uncomfortable again, so we got her to rest at Casino Royale before heading back to the hotel. Now, Casino Royale has a deal for new players card owners. The deal is you are given $50 in free slots. However, the money can be used only on certain machines & the money cannot be cashed out. It must either be spent completely or a jackpot must be hit for someone to get the benefits. Well, my $50 went quickly, as did Sis's. Mom's on the other hand, were taking her forever. She sat at the slot machine for 2 1/2 hours hoping for the jackpot before finally spending her entire winnings. I think that she would still be sitting there if I hadn't been getting nervous enough about getting to the hotel to prep for Barry! We were only going to sit there for a few moments...and when that turned into hours, I thought we'd miss the show!!!
We FINALLY left Casino Royale after my Mom's successful, yet fruitless, run at the promotional slot machine. I was starting to get small butterflies in my stomach, knowing that within just hours, I'd be in the front row onstage seeing Mr. Manilow, but I had to force them to rest so I could get through the next hours with no stress.
We all returned to the hotel room, which suddenly seemed crowded with three grown women vying for bathroom space. One after another, we took our showers & got all fancied up for the show. I debated between two green blouses I bought and gave a mini fashion show for advice. Green has ALWAYS been my color, so I needed as much luck as possible! Anyhow, At 7, we went downstairs to be seated. The line was quite long, even though it was an hour before showtime. Sis went upstairs to the balcony & Mom & I were shown to our seats onstage. When we were directed there, I had thought our seats were a few down from where we were shown...which was important to me since the one time I saw Barry in June, he chose from closer to those seats. I was worried this changed my chances of being chosen, but had to deal with it. Beggars can't be choosers, after all. I sat sipping champagne with Mom, talking with her about how the music would get louder just before he takes the stage. As we talked, a couple sat next to Mom. The woman, whose name I can't recall, said that she was in for her 40th birthday & was a big fan. We got to chatting a bit when I realized, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the railing right in front of me open. There was a gate DIRECTLY in front of my seat. Now, this was a good sign...especially since it opened completely unprovoked! I leaned over to close it while Mom began to get excited, saying, "Honey, it's a sign!." I didn't want to get my hopes high at all, but smiled and tried to get it out of my head. The gate began to swing open again, & again, I closed it. Security in the wings saw that I was playing with it, I'm sure thinking that I was a crazed fan trying to rig it up so it would open for my attack onto Mr. Manilow! They came and played with it for a bit, locking my gate (but locking the other gates in our row, so I felt like all odds were even!). Then, the photographer who had come around to take professional photos for purchase after the show opened it, teasing me by saying, "I'll keep this open for Barry to get to you." HOORAY, I thought. My chances just got slightly improved. I had to stop with the champagne early as I wanted to make sure those butterflies wouldn't return. The music began to thump, just like I warned Mom it would, and the house lights began to dim. The show was finally here!
From our seats, we couldn't see his entrance onto stage, but heard the rumble of excitement as those seated in the middle began their screaming & whistling. The music was thrilling, but not as much as seeing him emerge from the back of the stage. I couldn't believe how different it was to be in the front row onstage with him! We were at his eye level & I couldn't have been more amazed by our proximity! He opened his show with such energy, coming close to our section of seats a few times, but not close enough to touch him or reach out to him. I'lll be honest, if I could remember his playlist, this is where I'd put it, but I just plain blacked it out (maybe I'll be able to find it on a fan message board & edit this later, but for now, suffice it to say, he was kicking ass!). During one high energy song ("Jump Shout Boogie," I believe), he played an upright piano near our section...now close enough to see his dazzling eyes! WOW! He approached our seating section, noticing that the seat next to mine was empty. Front row...onstage...empty???!!!! I was in shock. He noticed it though and as he sang, made a look to me as if puzzled about no one being there. I shrugged my shoulders, puzzled along with him, and he smiled and kept singing, walking away as he did! I actually had two-way communication with BARRY! Mom, who I love dearly but drives me crazy at concerts, began to talk to me, glad that I had this Barry moment. I'm not one for talking during concerts, so I tried to rush her on from that point. I was excited, but also knew there may be bigger things in store. After all, as I calculated my odds for being chosen for the dance: there were 8 seats total in the front row; the 1 to my left that Barry noticed was vacant (now 1 in 7 chance); 2 seats were occupied by males, and, as heterosexist as this may be, I have not heard of Barry asking a male audience member to dance (now it's 1 in 5 chance). As Barry began his first set of covers, he began to stroll to the side of the stage opposite our seats. Mom nudged me, pointing to a dancehall ball lowering from the ceiling right in front of our seating area. This was it. I recognized the signs from June...he'd put on his white jacket, begin "Moonlight Serenade" after mentioning how he enjoyed his work on "Singin' With The Big Bands," and come to our section to choose a lucky gal. However, my odds were about to change for the worse. Remember that empty seat to my left? A lady strolled right to it and sat down JUST as he picked up his white jacket. I couldn't believe it! Mom turned to me, saying, "It's a plant." My heart dropped, but I couldn't let it take away the moments when he'd sing to our section at least. Maybe I'd extend a hand, hoping to touch him at the least. And so, it began...
White jacket in place, the band struck up Glenn Miller's theme and he began center stage. After having him sing to me in June, I had listened to the song many times since, so I could actually mouth th words correctly this time. I began swaying in my seat, swooning with my hand over my heart, as he slowly walked our way. He sang to every person in the front row, walking along the gate. Suddenly, I found my eyes fixed on his. He had stopped DIRECTLY in front of me at that previously pesky gate. He kept singing & I kept swaying, knowing with every second he stayed there staring at me, my odds were shooting through the roof. He came to the break in the song, leaned over the gate with extended hand, and asked "Would you like to dance?" Now, this is where things get blurry for me because I entered a dream at that moment. I couldn't help but take his hand and I floated out of my seat onto the dancefloor. I remember not knowing where to put my hands on him (after 5 years of marriage to your only dance partner, hands can wander...I could not let this happen here!). When I figured it out, I felt myself being pulled near him. I thought we were alone in the room until he broke the silence, saying, "I feel like I'm on 'Dancing With The Stars," to which everyone laughed (through their envy of me...hey, I had been there...I know!). We were cheek-to-cheek, rocking back & forth and all I could see was behind him. He pulled me away a bit to look at me while asking my name. I remember answering...and correctly, too! I remember hearing my voice amplified over the mic, but still feeling as if we were alone in this room. We never stopped dancing. He then asked me where I was from, pulling me close again & holding the mic to my mouth from his hand as we were cheek to cheek once more. I answered Chicago (close enough...I was 2 for 2). "Chicago, huh? So, how do you like Las Vegas?" he asked. "I love it NOW!" I replied, getting a strong giggle from those people I didn't even sense out there in the darkness. All I could feel was our dance and the spotlight. Sadly, it ended too soon, but not without a sweet kiss on my cheek (I gave him one, too), which is the picture my manic mother got (she was upset that she was so nervous that she didn't get the dance...I wouldn't trade in the kiss photo for any in the universe!). I walked to my seat, where Mom was having an attack of sorts. I had to ignore her...Barry was still serenading me as he walked across the stage. When the song ended, he blew a kiss straight at me. I caught it...still got it...hope to scrapbook it!

My night in heaven! And it went too fast. I am insatiable...I want so terribly to return to see him. From the front row. Nothing else will do! Hee hee. Anyways, 30 years in the making. A dream I'd had since I was 5 years old, literally! Those few minutes were fast, but amazing! Dreams do come true!