Melissa Manchester
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Melissa Manchester is an award winning American singer-songwriter and actress born on February 15, 1951 at New York, New York.
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[edit] About
Melissa Manchester was born in the Bronx area of New York. Her father was a bassoonist for New York Metropolitan Opera. She attended Manhattan School of Music and Arts to learn the piano and harpsicord. At 15, she began singing commercial jingles and soon became a staff writer for Chappell Music while attending High School Performing Arts. After taking a songwriting class under Paul Simon, she showcased her talents at the Manhattan club scene and got spotted by Barry Manilow and Bette Midler and hired as their back-up singer in 1971. At 1973, she recorded her debut album Home To Myself where she co-wrote some of its songs with Carol Bayer Sager. Melissa produced her first top ten hit Midnite Blue in 1975 and collaborated with Kenny Loggins to co-wrote the latter's 1978 duet hit with Stevie Nick's Whenever I Call You A Friend. A year after, Melissa returned to the top ten with her version of Don't Cry Out Loud for which she became nominated in the Grammy for Best Pop Female Performance. In 1980, Melissa became the first singer to received two movie themes nominated for Academy Awards - Through The Eyes Of Love (Ice Castles) and I'll Never Say Goodbye (The Promise). In 1982, her big hit and last top 40 hit You Should Hear How She Talks About You won a Grammy for Best Vocal Performance. On that same year, she married Kevin De Remer and won as Best Female Vocalist of the Year.
Through the '80s and '90s, Manchester replaced recording to scriptwriting and acting. Appearing in the film For The Boys with co-star Bette Midler and on the television series Blossom as the main character's mother. In spring of 2004, Manchester returned with the LP When I Look Down The Road, her first album in 10 years and also her first proper realease with Koch Records that includes collaborations with Beth Nielsen, Chapman & Keb'Mo.
[edit] Awards & Certifications
| Year | Award | Category |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Grammy Awards | Nominated for Best Pop Female Performance (in the song Don't Cry Out Loud) |
| 1980 | Academy Awards | Nominated Through The Eyes Of Love (from the film Ice Castles) and I'll Never Say Goodbye (from the film The Promise) for Best Movie Theme. |
| 1982 | Grammy Awards | Best Female Vocal Performance (for the song You Should Hear How She Talks About You) |
[edit] Chart Toppers
US Chart Singles
| Year | Title | Pop | Adult Contemporary | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Walk On By | - | 6 | Tribute |
| 1986 | The Music Of Goodbye | - | 16 | Out Of Africa (Soundtrack) |
| 1985 | Mathematics | 74 | - | Mathematics |
| 1984 | Thief Of Hearts | 86 | 18 | Thief Of Hearts |
| 1983 | No One Can Love You More Than Me | 78 | 34 | Emergency |
| 1983 | My Boyfriend's Back | - | 33 | Midnight Blue: The Encore Collection |
| 1983 | Nice Girls | 42 | 22 | Melissa Manchester - Greatest Hits |
| 1982 | You Should Hear How She Talks About You | 5 | 10 | Platinum & Gold Collection, Hey Ricky |
| 1981 | Lovers After All | 54 | 25 | For The Working Girl |
| 1980 | If This Is Love | 102 | 19 | For The Working Girl |
| 1980 | Fire In The Morning | 32 | 8 | Essence Of Melissa Manchester |
| 1979 | Pretty Girls | 39 | 26 | Melissa Manchester |
| 1979 | Through The Eyes Of Love | 76 | 13 | Ice Castles, Midnight Blue: The Encore Collection |
| 1978 | Don't Cry Out Loud | 10 | 9 | Don't Cry Out Loud, Midnight Blue: The Encore Collection |
| 1975 | Just Too Many People | 30 | 2 | Melissa |
| 1975 | Midnite Blue | 6 | 1 | Melissa |
[edit] News
[edit] Tours & Concerts
Melissa Manchester USA Tour
| Date | City | State | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01/20/07 | Arroyo Grande | California | Clark Center for the Performing Arts - Forbes Hall |
| 02/25/07 | Sarasota | FL | Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall |
| 02/26/07 | Vero Beach | Florida | Riverside Theatre |
| 04/11/07 | Longview | Washington | Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts |
| 04/12/07 | Whitewater | WI | Irvin L. Young Auditorium |
| 04/14/07 | Manitowoc | Wisconsin | Capitol Civic Center |
| 05/12/07 | Bremerton | Washington | Admiral Theatre |
| 05/19/07 | Richmond | Indiana | Civic Hall |
[edit] Announcements
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
 Released: 1973 Label: Bell, Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1974 Label: Bell, Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1975 Label: Arista, Buddha, Mobile Fidelity |
 Released: 1976 Label: Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1976 Label: Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1977 Label: Arista |
 Released: 1978 Label: Arista |
 Released: 1979 Label: Arista, Mobile Fidelity |
 Released: 1980 Label: Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1982 Label: Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1983 Label: Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1985 Label: MCA |
 Released: 1989 Label: Mika |
 Released: 1995 Label: Arista, Wounded Bird |
 Released: 1995 Label: Dove Audio |
 Released: 1998 Label: Angel, Capitol |
 Released: 2004 Label: Koch |
[edit] Singles
| Date | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | You Should Hear How She Talks About You | Arista |
| 2006 | My Christmas Song For You | Indie Pool |
[edit] Compilations & Live Releases
 Released: 1983 Label: Arista |
 Released: 1990 Label: Pair |
 Released: 1997 Label: Capitol |
 Released: 1997 Label: Arista |
 Released: 2001 Label: Collectables, BMG Special |
 Released: 2004 Label: Arista |
 Released: 2004 Label: JVC Japan |
[edit] Other artists
[edit] Similar artists
[edit] Influences
[edit] Contemporaries
[edit] Trivia
- Melissa was only one of nine applicants accepted at Simon's class out of over 100 applicants.
- Honorary attorney general of Encino, California
- Melissa was a guest host of Solid Gold (TV musical) show in 1985.
