MEET BIZ: RESIDENT FANILOW

They call themselves The Fanilows: Fans Who Would Lay Down Their Life for He Who Writes the Songs (Who Writes the Songs!)

Biz is a Fanilow.


I realised that I never asked her: how long has this been going on? Today I wanted to find out - in a Princess Pony Party Amazing exclusive!

(To give the impression that I'm interviewing Biz in person and not by correspondence, I will pepper this Q & A with 'stuff' as if we're at the same place at the same time.)

....Haha! Oh hello! You caught Biz and I sharing a Park Slope, N.Y. moment over a cup of Celestial Seasonings Bear Odyssey Urine Tea. We're talking about this and that...life's lessons....coccaine....you know what? (Out of the blue?) I think it's time to ask Biz some questions about where her love for Barry Manilow started!

J: Do you remember the first time you heard Barry Manilow?
B: Not really. But I remember being about 8 years old and at the mall withmy grandmother. I was visiting her in the big city of Birmingham and it is a rule that when you visit your grandmother in the big city you go to a mall.

J: Uh-oh! Did we have the same grandma? Look out!

B: We were at the music store and I was rummaging though the tapebin and remember holding the Barry Manilow (Greatest hits Volume I) in my hand and it being mine shortly thereafter.

J: Did you grow up in a Manilow household?
No...no one was really a big fan. My sister was more into Neil Diamond,though she appreciates the Barry. I never heard my parents listen tomusic. (weird)

J: You want weird? We're drinking bear pee! Were you closeted for a while, or were you always upfront with your love for the Manilow?
B: At first I didn't realize there was anything wrong with Barry. Then in middle school people started giving me the "you like Barry Manilow"look...but this look was similar to the "why are you talking to me nerd?" look which I got all the time, so early on I decided that popularity be damned, I loved Barry Manilow and you can take your ChakaKahn and cram it. No one is asking me to the dance anyway.

J: Well, they're stupid!

B: By the end of high school, I had a huge Barry Manilow record collection becausefriends would give me their parent's albums so they would be out of thehouse. Ha ha ha!

J: If Barry could serenade you with just one of his songs what would it be?
B: Hmmmmmm....there have been many bright and dark days, my friend, that I could have used Barry singing one of his songs to me. I get teary just thiking about it...but I guess it would be "I Made It Through The Rain."This was sort of a personal anthem when I felt bad or that I couldn't "do it" or if I was upset because I thought people didn't like me or didn't get what I was trying to do...from back when I was in Jr high in my purple themed bedroom to basically a few weeks ago in my kitchen. Here are the lyrics. They read a little corny, but add in some killer Barry Manilow crescendos and you have a tear maker!

J: Let's hear it!

We dreamers have our ways
Of facing rainy days
And somehow we survive
We keep the feelings warm
Protect them from the storm
Until our time arrives
Then one day the sun appears
And we come shining through those lonely years

J: This is great! Do you have a quarter?

I made it through the rain
I kept my world protected
I made it through the rain
I kept my point of view
I made it through the rain
And found myself respected
By the others who
Got rained on too
And made it through

When friends are hard to find
And life seems so unkind
Sometimes you feel so afraid
Just aim beyond the clouds
And rise above the crowds
And start your own parade
'Cause when I chased my fears away
That's when I knew that I could finally say

J: Thanks! You look great today here in New York!

I made it through the rain
I kept my world protected
I made it through the rain
I kept my point of view
I made it through the rain
And found myself respected
By the others who
Got rained on too
And made it through

J: What covers would you like to see him do?
B: What a fun question!

J: I know, isn't it?!

B: As I also worshipped the Monkees (I still have that tape collection) so it would be fun to have Barry rock Day Dream Believer. I could suggest more obscure Monkees' songs (and brother, I know them)---

J: Ahhh! I love "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"! I love how Davy Jones emphasises the hard 'T's on the word 'little'...like 'liT-Tle'.

B:---but he would sound really great singing Daydream Believer.Also he would rock Lonely Boy by Andrew Gold.

J: I love the end of that song! The last line:"....Oh what a lonely bohhhhhhhhhhhhyyyyyyyyy?!" It reminds me of Julianne Moore in 'Boogie Nights' when her son calls on the phone and she misses the call because she's hiding out doing coccaine. Sorry. That would be a fantastic song for Barry to do. Which bands would you like to see cover Barry?
B: I would love to see Blink 182 or Green Day cover Barry. I think punk Barry would be fun.

J: Have you ever met him?
B: Only in my dreams. I have seen him 6 times now (we are practicallycommon law!) The last time was in Vegas and my true love Stefan---

J: Yay Stefan!

B:--- got us seats so close that I could have poked him with an extended broomhandle. He is going to be in New York next week and my birthday is this weekend--

J: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

B:---so I asked for tickets but only if my folks or Stefan (or everybody chipped in) could get me tickets on the first couple of rows. In Vegas, people did not encourage dancing in our section, so it wouldbe really cool to be right at the front in Madison Square Garden standing up and dancing with all the other crazies. Up until about 5 or 6 years ago, he would pick someone from the audience to come up on stage and sing "Can't Smile Without You" with him. People would show up at concerts with posters (some with battery operated lights) asking to be picked. I was always too far away to do this. At his last concert in NYC he picked someone...for the first time in years. People went nuts!IF...IF I go and I am as close as I can be, then I will have my sign,and I will wear my Barry Manilow t-shirt and I will get picked to sing that song with him and I will freak the fuck out and probably faint on stage and it will be AWESOME.(Note...if I am not able to go to Barry it is fine. I have seen him alot and can live without seeing it again. This is just fun.)

J: What would you like to say to him right now?
B: I have been saying this since I was 12..."Barry Manilow is the only manwho understands me." PS. Currently 90% of my ringtones are Barry Manilow. I Made It Through the Rain is the general tone.

PSS. Are you asking me all these questions because you are secretly in touch with Barry Manilow and are setting up backstage passes for me inNYC right now?

PSSS. Maybe Barry Mailow will see this blog and will reach out to me andgive me and Stefan backstage passes so we could sip champagne in the general vicinity of Barry.

PSSSS. You can watch a clip from the Oprah show with Barry...where they surprised fans with Barry. Sadly this is just a clip, but you can get ataste for the hysteria that I go through when watching Barry. (I have just watched this clip 18 times in the last hour.)

That's why we love you, Biz.

If anyone can actually find the footage online of the "surprising section" of that show send it to me!http://www2.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200409/tows_past_20040915.jhtml

J: This bear urine is making me all fidgety. I should go. Thank you so much for sharing your Barry memories, Biz and Happy Birthday. I wish I had a Barry suprise for you.

So there you have it, kids!

Are you a superfan of something?
Anything?
Write and tell us!:
Biz & Barnes
Princess Pony Party Amazing
Fangtooth, USA

J.