Before they made it BIG
January 31, 2011
Written by Michelle Brockman
So, I think it’s pretty safe to say that we have all heard the saying ‘climbing the corporate ladder’. That doesn’t just apply to normal, average, every day people. At one point in time some of the most famous, critically praised and fan-adored musicians were at the bottom of that allegorical ladder looking up.
Of course we don’t usually think about this when we are racked with excitement and standing among thousands of mutual fans in a packed-to-the-gills stadium concert we are about to enjoy by one of these talented artists. The iconic Barry Manilow was in town Jan. 28-29 with performances in Sunrise and Coral Gables. I’m sure that most of his fans weren’t sitting at the BankAtlantic Center thinking ‘Wow, has Barry come a long way!?’
In fact, Barry Manilow started out in the New York CBS mailroom. He then worked his way up to doing some musical arranging for CBS TV, wrote several popular product jingles for television commercials and then was commissioned by Bette Midler to be her pianist and musical director. He went from ‘Sold Out’ tours with Bette to working with Tony Orlando on his first demo tape. It’s 40 years later and he still packing stadiums!
If you missed Barry this weekend, there are some other huge acts coming to town soon that have an interesting story that you might want to check out. Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks will be co-headlining the ‘Heart and Soul Tour’ kicking off on March 20, also at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise.
It seems that Rod Stewart (who was born Roderick David Stewart) was almost destined to have anexplosive career and personality. He was born during WWII and only a half hour after a German bomb fell on his hometown’s local police station. Rod dropped out of school at 15 and tried everything from silk screen printing to grave digging (it’s a dirty job but hey, somebody’s got to do it!) before he began dabbling in the musical arts. Rod actually was, for a very short time, a member of the Ray Davies Quartet which then went on to become the popular British pop-rock band The Kinks. He went on to play smaller gigs with people he knew in other bands until finally contributing to the formation of the band Steampacket (I’m guessing someone was intoxicated while picking that one out). Steampacket joined the Rolling Stones on their 1965 British Tour. While the band was only together about a year it gave Rod a taste of the limelight and of what was to come. Rod Stewart had his first US No. 1 single and No. 1 album in 1971.
Stevie Nicks got her first big break as a member of the band Fritz which was a very popular live act in the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s. Fritz was an opening act for the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. They disbanded in 1972 and Stevie joined Fleetwood Mac in 1974. If you are reading this and have a pulse (hopefully!) you probably know how huge Fleetwood Mac was in the 70’s and 80’s. Well not only was Stevie able to keep up with all of the demands of her ‘day job’ but in 1981 she launched an ‘in addition to’ solo career. Do to creative differences and controlling bandmates, shall we say, she did depart with the group and further pursue her solo career (though eventually she did make her way back into the band). But hey, if you are a Stevie Nicks fan you have a lot to be excited about this year: a co-headlining tour with Rod the Mod and a brand spankin’ new album titled ‘In Your Dreams’ that drops in May.
I hope that maybe this little story on humble and slow beginnings makes you think twice the next time you see someone you admire or enjoy the talents of. Everyone that got somewhere started somewhere. Maybe we can find inspiration for our lives in the aspirations that they had and have for their lives. After all, there is most certainly a little rock star in all of us!
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