Barry Manilow first became famous when I was a senior in high school, with "Mandy" (which is on GHV1). I can still remember falling asleep in my first college dorm room listening to the long version of "Could It Be Magic" on my headphones--loving it because my first name is Melissa and it was like he was singing it to me and me alone. During college, I was more "into" rock and rhythm and blues, but Barry's music was just the thing for the ups and downs of my college romances.

Twenty years later, I finally made it to one of his concerts with a couple of girlfriends. It was like being 19 all over again. On Monday, after the concert on Saturday, I went out and bought Greatest Hits, Volume 2--just to have "Could It Be Magic" on CD. But the rest of the album is great, too. "Somewhere In the Night" is seductive in a classy way--one of the sexiest songs I've ever listened to. "All the Time" speaks to anyone who's ever felt insecure (and I'm convinced, the older I get, that even so-called popular kids and folks with the world by the tail have moments in their lives when this song applies to them). "Weekend in New England" has the neatest "music box" intro and Barry always has fun singing this in concert. As for "Copacabana"--as he said at his Indianapolis concert last year, "eat your heart out, Ricky Martin!" And maybe he didn't really write the very first song, but when you hear "I Write the Songs," you almost believe it. "Beautiful Music"--which was a gem from the "Trying to Get the Feeling" LP--says it all for those of us for whom making music was a lifeline during unhappy teenage years. Music is among the best of my blessings.

So is this CD. Of all the music I owned in college, there are only three artists or groups I still enjoy enough to buy their CDs and still listen to: The Eagles (together or solo, it doesn't matter); the Lettermen; and now, Barry Manilow. Twenty-five years after I first heard it, "Could It Be Magic" still sounds like it was written just for me!

I Write the Songs was one of the main reasons I wanted the cd. It isn't that he claims to have written all the songs, he says distinctly in the song that "he is music". Just like an actor pretends that he is the character he is playing, he is pretending that he is "music" personified, and speaking from "music's" point of view. Time in New England is the prettiest song I have ever heard, and Copacabana, eventhough kind of weird talking of a woman who went crazy, it is a fun song to sing (he isn't talking about anyone in particular). If you like Barry, you'll like this one.

I am totally in love with this CD. It has all my favorites including "Could This Be Magic?" and "Weekend In New England". No one has written songs this uplifting and passionate in years (with one very rare exception--"My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion). Like the song "Somewhere in the Night" says, I play it over and over again. If you like good music, you'll love this CD. Don't listen to what other people say when you buy this. For starters, they never listened any of these songs so they wouldn't know if they were any good or not. They're just repeating what their friends told them about Barry. If they give you any back talk, tell them that their CD Collection totally sucks and that no one died and made them Music Dictator.

All the songs are classic Manilow, with his trademark polished arrangements and passionate interpretation. If you like real music, buy this CD. Even if you haven't heard any of these songs before, you'll realize that if they are brand-new songs just released today, they would dominate the charts and steamroll the weak melodies and thin orchestrations of what's in the radio these days.

OK, let's end the confusion about these Greatest Hits CD's. The original 1978 Greatest Hits album was a two record set. The second Greatest Hits album was a single record released in 1983. Well, for some reason, in 1989, the powers that be at Arista decided to break up the first album into two separate CD's. They became what we now no Today as Greatest hits 1 & 2. This means that the original Greatest Hits Vol. 2 became Vol. 3. Why Arista couldn't just leave well enough alone is beyond me. Maybe more money in 3 CD's rather than just two? This is actually the second record of the original Greatest Hits Package. It also includes the bonus track 'Jenny. I just wish Arista would have left the original packaging of the CD's alone. It was fine the way it was. The first double album fit nicely on one CD. And for the songs? These are true Manilow classics. Say what you want about Barry's music. But the fact still remains that he can really write and sing songs that actually say something. And while you're at it, pick up volume 1 to make this set complete. Music doesn't always have to address the political issues of the day. Sometimes it's just meant to be fun!