Barry Mann

Barry Mann (born Barry Imberman; born February 9, 1939)[1] is an American songwriter and musician, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.

Barry Mann
Mann in 1974
Background information
Birth nameBarry Imberman
Born (1939-02-09) February 9, 1939
Brooklyn, New York City, U.S.
GenresPop, country pop, rock
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • songwriter
InstrumentsPiano
Years active1958–present
Associated actsCynthia Weil, Carole King, Gerry Goffin, Carole Bayer Sager

He has written or co-written 53 hits in the UK and 98 in the US.[2]

Early life

Mann was born to a Jewish family[3] in Brooklyn, New York City. He was born two days before fellow songwriter Gerry Goffin.

Career

His first successful song as a writer was "She Say (Oom Dooby Doom)", a Top 20 chart-scoring song composed for the band The Diamonds in 1959. Mann co-wrote the song with Mike Anthony (Michael Logiudice). In 1961, Mann had his greatest success to that point with "I Love How You Love Me", written with Larry Kolber and a no. 5 scoring single for the band The Paris Sisters, (seven years later, Bobby Vinton's version would score in the Top 10). The same year, Mann himself reached the Top 40 as a performer with a novelty song co-written with Gerry Goffin, "Who Put the Bomp", which parodied the nonsense words of the then-popular doo-wop genre.[1][4]

Despite his success as a singer, Mann chose to channel his creativity into songwriting, forming a prolific partnership with Weil, a lyricist he met while both were staff songwriters at Don Kirshner and Al Nevin's company Aldon Music, whose offices were located in Manhattan near the famed composing-and-publishing factory the Brill Building. Mann and Weil, who married in 1961, developed some songs intended to be socially conscious, with successes such as "Uptown" by The Crystals, "We Gotta Get out of This Place" by the Animals, "Magic Town" by The Vogues, and "Kicks" by Paul Revere & the Raiders. (Mann and Weil were disturbed when "Only In America", a song they had written with the team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and conceived originally for and recorded by the Drifters as a protest against racial prejudice, was re-worked by Leiber and Stoller into an uncontroversial success for Jay & The Americans.)

As of May 2009, Mann's song catalog lists 635 songs.[5] He has received 56 popular music, country, and Rhythm & Blues awards from Broadcast Music Inc., and 46 Millionaire Awards for radio performances numbering more than one million plays.[6] The song "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'", co-written with Weil and Phil Spector, was the most played song of the 20th century, with more than 14 million plays.

Mann has composed songs for movies, most notably "Somewhere Out There", co-written with Weil and James Horner, for the 1986 animated movie An American Tail. Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram performed the song as a duet during the movie's closing credits; their version was released as a single, which scored No. 2 on the Billboards charts and became a "gold"-scoring record. "Somewhere Out There" would win two 1987 Grammy Awards, as Song of the Year and Best Song Written for a Motion Picture or Television. "Somewhere Out There" was also nominated for a 1986 Oscar as best song, but lost to "Take My Breath Away" from "Top Gun" (a film that featured the Weil-penned "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" in a key scene). Mann's other movie work includes the scores for I Never Sang for My Father and Muppet Treasure Island, and songs for National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and Oliver & Company.

Carole Bayer Sager, Carole King, Cynthia Weil and Mann in 2012

Mann co-wrote, with Dan Hill, the song "Sometimes When We Touch," which scored No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 1987, Mann and Weil were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[1] In 2011, they received the Johnny Mercer Award, the greatest honor from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[7]

Mann and Weil were named among the 2010 recipients of Ahmet Ertegun Award from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[8] Mann and Weil now operate a publishing company named Dyad Music.[9]

Personal life

Mann married Cynthia Weil in August 1961. They have one daughter, Jenn. They reside in Beverly Hills, California.[10]

Songs written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil
Main article: List of songs written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil

Awards

References
  1. Steve Kurutz (February 9, 1939). "Barry Mann | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  2. "The People Who Created The Soundtrack To Your Life eBook: stuart devoy: Amazon.co.uk: Books". Amazon.co.uk. September 9, 2009. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  3. Crescent City Jewish News: "History of Jewish songwriters told in ‘Beautiful’By ALAN SMASON March 18, 2017
  4. Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 90. CN 5585.
  5. "Barry Mann Song Catalog". Songwriters Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on May 11, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  6. "Barry Mann's Bio". Archived from the original on May 20, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  7. "Garth Brooks, Billy Joel perform together during Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony". Soundspike.com. June 17, 2011. Archived from the original on October 4, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  8. "Congratulations to the 2010 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees!". Archived from the original on December 23, 2009. Retrieved December 15, 2009.
  9. "Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil Contact Info". Archived from the original on May 8, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  10. Coleman, Laura (November 13, 2015). "Beverly Hills Musicians Weil, Mann Honored By Women's Guild Gala" (PDF). The Beverly Hills Courier. Beverly Hills, California. p. 1. Retrieved November 26, 2015.

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