Or, like, for you, what is the creative process that you need in order to bring a, a song to light?

What I need is a job.

I don't like to write, uh, songs and, 'cause they n- never go anywhere.

And s- most of them are wonderful.

I think they're wonderful.

I only write these days if someone has a job and I know that it's gonna land someplace, then I, I do it.

But, uh, but for so many years I just would write a song or, I don't know, and they, they would go nowhere.

Yeah.

and one thing that has to be said about your music is that you're not just a singer your songs tell stories a lot of your songs are very poetic who's someone throughout your career and this can be one person or multiple people that you've really been able to bounce ideas off of when coming up with ideas for songs

well I have four that are my go-to lyric writers, which is a really wonderful way of being a songwriter because I can do it by myself.

I can write lyrics and I can do that, but it's much more fun for me if I have a collaborator to work with.

because we bounce ideas back and forth.

And each one of these geniuses that I work with have totally different styles, which means that my music is going to have totally different styles to match their lyric.

And it enables me to to dig deeper into my music.

And that's why all these albums that I used to make before I did the concept, they all sounded fresh because each song had a different style to it.

Was that intentional to appeal to maybe younger audiences?

How did that feel?

Uh, it was agony.

[laughs] I have no patience.

And I, I know the doctors said it, uh, it would take a while for everything to come back, but it was agony.

I ha- I hated just sitting and waiting.

It, they really did a number on me, and, uh, and it took a long time to, to recover from it.

It really did, longer than I thought.

Why do you think you inspire that devotion? Because not every artist has that.

They just pour out of you, don't they?

They do.

And, um, I like collaborating, so I always write with these four brilliant lyric writings.

And I love doing it because when they give me a lyric, they're always i- in a different style.

They, all four of them have different styles of writing, which means that I can write f- four different styles or even more.

You know, I've, I've written my, uh, songs by myself, and I, you know, they're good too, but it's much more fun to collaborate.

Once more, just once before I go.

her-Do you set out to write a particular kind of song when you start writing?

But will they hear his voice? Will anyone? Not even Barry can tell yet.

I looked at my band, and they were all looking at the floor.

Yeah, I, so [exhales] uh, that was the first hint something was not right.

I've always taken my voice for granted.

I don't take it seriously.

Now I do, [laughs] because it doesn't seem to be there the way it always was.

[gentle music]

Later, Manilow, who turns 83 this month, asking himself the big life questions.

But as he plays, Barry is aware that there's something missing.

My voice, I don't know whether it's coming back.

I did my first sound check about a month ago, and I didn't sound like me at all.

I just couldn't believe that, that it's over.

Manilow, who turns 83 this month, asking himself the big life questions.

Have I done everything I wanted to do? Have I been good to people? Um, have I made people feel good? That's all, all I ever wanted to do with my music.

The thing that shocked me was all the people around the world being concerned about me.

It was note after note after note, uh, about, you know, uh, "We're praying for you."

Go.From his new album, What A Time

... unreal.

I mean, I haven't had a, a top 10 single since, since Washington crossed the Delaware.

I mean, w- [laughs] I can't wait to get back.

I'm in great shape.

I'm ready to go.

I just hope my voice is.

Oh, it was incredible.