The crowd was wild again tonight. Even more so than last night! Barry really does seem to feed off the audience.

When Love Is A Many Splendored Thing starts, the backups huddle together and then "shuffle" in unison toward center stage with looks of absolute adoration on their faces as they watch Barry sing. Each of them does something different, so I still haven't managed to take it all in. Monica looks like she's about to faint, Keely and Melanie both look like they're in a daze... Unfortunately, the lighting is much too low for me to get good photos of that part of the show.

Speaking of poor lighting, it isn't the greatest during the 40's medley over on what used to be the Dew Drop side. You can barely see the horn section over there, and you can't really see the backups in the background, either. The lighting is good on the girls when they move to center stage for Chattanooga Choo Choo, but not good on Kye.

And another place where the lighting is just too low is when Kye is doing his "rap" while everyone else is up on the platform. I know that our attention should be on the platform, but what Kye is doing during that time is amazing - he deserves some attention, too. I've even tried turning on the flash on my camera, but I still can't get a photo that does justice to his performance.

And yet another spot where the lighting could be a little better (what am I? the light police?? LOL) - when the girls are each getting their moment and Barry and Kye are singing Where Did Our Love Go in the background. I know it's the girls' moment - but couldn't we have just a tiny bit more light on Barry and Kye? Ok, I admit - I want to take a picture of that and there's just no way with the amount of light they have on them. What can I say?

There was a very funny human-Barry moment during the show. I normally leave his "human" moments out of the reviews, but this one is just too funny to leave out. Just before Moonlight Serenade started, Barry said "I'm leaking" and walked back to blow his nose. He made the usual jokes about "with this nose it may take a while" and told the band to "play something, play anything". But then he walked over in front of Ron W. and started jumping up and down, over and over and over. If he was blowing his nose, then I'm impressed, because I'm not coordinated enough to blow my nose while I'm jumping up and down! LOL! At any rate, he had Ron W. laughing. The audience was cracking up as Barry walked back out and started singing the song. He was back in the proper mood for the song long before the audience was! Looking back at the photos I took, though, he had that twinkle in his eye during the song that said he was still amused, too. In spite of all the comedy that started the song, it ended up being very romantic and beautiful.

Another cute moment during Bandstand Boogie. This time when Kye slid Keely through Barry's legs, Barry bent over watching as she went through. Hmmm... None of that came out exactly like I intended it to - just go look at the photos!

Are You Lonesome Tonight was beautiful - not quite as emotional as the previous two nights, but still lovely and still managed to evoke an emotional response from me. He's been asking us to listen to the lyrics. He said he never really "got it" until he did. Judging from what he's done with this song over the last several months, I'd say he definitely "got it". I guess I have, too - I never liked the song until he pulled me into it with him.

Barry said something different tonight as he started the 60's skit with the funny cigarette. I couldn't hear it clearly - it sounded as if he might be responding to something someone in the audience said. I'm not sure. I got the impression it had something to do with the cigarette. Although the skit is hilarious, I'll admit that it kind of bothers me when I look back at my photos and can see the cigarette glowing and the smoke coming out of his mouth - it just looks too real! At any rate, he did seem to cut that part a little short, seemed to go into Yesterday more quickly than he usually does.

Instead of I Made It Through the Rain tonight, he sang Looks Like We Made It - it had the same sexy groove that he started using on that song a couple of years ago. The audience really came alive (as if they weren't already) when he got to the end and started his classic thigh rub. Boy, did he get into it - and so did the audience - gave me goose bumps! LOL!

And then Barry said, "I'm changing the program". He walked back and said something to Ron P. and then walked over to Ron W. and said something. Then walked over to the side of the stage and picked up the mic stand. At that point I had a big grin on my face because I had a pretty good idea of what he was going to do - or at least I was hoping. Then the band started playing Who's Been Sleeping In My Bed. The audience went wild - I went as wild as I'm going to in a public venue (LOL - that only means that you would be able to distinguish me from a mannequin sitting next to me - LOL). I haven't seen Barry perform that song since just before his hip surgery (and I still feel guilty for enjoying that last performance so much now that I know how much pain he must have been in while he was doing it). It was the highlight of the evening! When he finished the song, I looked at the backup singers - the girls were fanning themselves as if to say, "Wow, was he hot or what?"

He closed out the show with the standard songs. I didn't have a good view of the platform any night this week. I had a great view as he went up the steps, but could only see a little of the rest. Kye was a real live wire with his dancing. He was all over that stage.

Is it March yet?? I'm ready to see the show again!

Another fantastic show! Had a friend with me who had never seen Barry perform live before. When the Midnight Special portion of the show started, I turned to her and asked "Are you hooked yet?" - she responded "A long time ago!" LOL! Barry *does* have that effect on people.

It was a very lively crowd. When Barry started into Somewhere in the Night, someone in the crowd let out a "Whoop!" - he raised his eyebrows and got an expression on his face that seemed to say, "Oh, yeah? Sexy, huh?". It happened again when he walked over to change jackets during Singin' With the Big Bands. I managed to get photos both times.

Still love that diagonal pattern behind him while he's doing Singin' With the Big Bands. I got a good photo of it this time.

Love his hair this week, too. It's longer than usual, but I like it this way. Like the way his bangs fall across his forehead, too. Okay, I know this has absolutely nothing to do with his performance and the show, but whatever... I like it!

It seems as if Moonlight Serenade is currently one of Barry's favorite songs to perform. I really don't know if it is or isn't, but that's the feeling that comes across when you watch him perform it live. He seems to be "finding himself" in that song - more so each time he sings it. That's another song that I never really cared for, but I'm very much enjoying what he's doing with it in the show.

The standout of the night was definitely Are You Lonesome Tonight. He even topped last night's performance. At the end, it looked as if he would really start crying at any minute - I swear, I could see the lump in his throat and see him fighting back the tears. And it seemed to take longer than usual for him to come back out of it so that he could move on to the next song. It made your heart ache for him. When my friend and I were discussing the show the next day, we both just kept coming back to this particular song.

A close second was his performance of Tryin' To Get The Feelin'. He did the chords a little differently again, and changed the tempo up a little. But this time in the middle of the song the band stopped playing - it was just Barry and his piano. It was beautiful! Looking back, it's as if he invented the song all over again. There were so many interesting things in there - if you take a step back away from the beautiful music and passionate performance, it kind of blows your mind - he's really made it a very complex song. I think that's part of the reason why Barry is still so popular - he doesn't leave well enough alone. His music is dynamic.

I'm still amazed at how far Barry has come with his performance of You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'. It was never bad - but when he first included it in the show, it certainly wasn't what it is now. Someone else wrote in a recent review that they wished the recording of Are You Lonesome Tonight could have had the passion that the live performance does (agreed) - same kind of thing with You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'. When I first heard the recording, I thought that Barry had "turned loose" more with that song than with any other studio recording he's ever done. But he's gone even further with the live performance - it's very powerful.

It seems to me that Barry is trying to make the show a little more interactive by asking the audience to sing along with certain songs. He's always asked us to sing along with Can't Smile Without You and I Write the Songs - now he's asking us to sing the chorus of Can't Take My Eyes Off You. And he seems to be watching to see if we really are singing with him. It's kind of fun. Most of the time I'm too inhibited to sing along, but once in a while I do. I still hear a few people singing "I love you Barry" instead of "I love you baby" on Can't Take My Eyes Off You.

The show ended with the same songs as always. But, just like the opening of the show, I don't think that needs to be changed. Those are classic Manilow songs. They create the perfect atmosphere - you start the show on a high and you end it on one, too. I would certainly be very disappointed if he ever removed It's A Miracle - the show just wouldn't be the same without it.

Last night's show was fantastic! Couldn't have possibly been better. (Well, if Barry had come down into the audience to serenade each of us individually it could have been better, but other than that...) And apparently my mp3 player must know that it was a special night, because this morning it seems to be choosing Barry's most romantic songs to play (and it's in random mode!)

Barry opened in a jacket I've never seen before - black with orange trim. Nice looking!

I'm not sure if this is a change, but I don't recall ever seeing it before - I *think* it's during Singin' With the Big Bands - the pattern that was displayed behind Barry was really nice. I caught a couple of photos of it, but they didn't do it justice. A lot of gray/silver diagonals - really, really nice.

Moonlight Serenade was very nice - the mood he presented fit in great for Valentine's Day. Love that star background behind him.

The 50's segment has been changed a little - no Venus - he went straight into Love Is A Many Splendored Thing. But there were still some comical moments before he finished the song in a serious mode.

Last night's version of Are You Lonesome Tonight was exceptional. And I know I say things like that frequently - but can I help it if Barry doesn't seem to have a limit when it comes to taking something just a little bit further?? It was SO emotional - man, you could FEEL the longing, the yearning in his voice and see it in his eyes. WOW!

I like the new costumes for the 60's segment. I really like what the girls are wearing, and I think Kye's new jacket looks really classy. Based on the photos I had seen from the New York shows, I didn't think I liked Barry's new Nehru jacket. But I do - in person, it looks much better. And when the pink polka dots turn to blue toward the end of the segment, it really looks great against that backdrop.

He also changed up I Made It Through the Rain a little. He changed from the white jacket to what appeared to be a navy blue velvet one - might have been a royal purple. He started the song sitting on a stool by the piano. Then he walked around and started playing the piano. He did the Grandpa Joe bit - it seemed to be even more heartfelt than normal. He finished the song with a really big, no a HUGE ending - HUGE sound. And in the background there was a photo of Grandpa Joe and baby Barry. It was so touching.

And another "WOW" was Tryin' to Get the Feeling. He changed the arrangement a little, actually a lot. Some beautiful piano work - and you could really hear the piano. It's times like this I wish I had taken more music courses, because I lack the vocabulary to describe the things he did. But it seemed that I was hearing changes in chords, and changes in tempo - he changed it without changing it, if that makes any sense. So that part was very nice. And then the vocals! He topped himself again. An incredibly strong, powerful, passionate performance. As he finished the song, all I could do was sit there for a second and say "WOW". It was amazing. When it was over Barry said something to the effect of, "Wow, I didn't know the song would be so sexy".

At the end of the show, I believe as he was finishing Copa (after the platform), I looked over at the horn section - and it looked like they were head bangin'. LOL Wish I'd looked over sooner!