Love him or hate him, you have to admire the tune Barry Manilow wrote for Johnny Mercer’s “When October Goes.”
Written toward the end of his life when he was fighting a losing struggle against brain cancer, Mercer expressed a fondness for Manilow. The first hit for Barry was “Mandy” — the name of Johnny’s daughter.
After Mercer’s death, his widow gave Manilow some of Johnny’s unfinished lyrics to work with. “October” was published in 1984 and was not only a big hit that year, but is an evergreen that surfaces every year on television, movies and in recordings.
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