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"Mandy" was a 1974 hit song for Barry Manilow. It was his first number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts, and his first gold single. The song was written by Scott English under the title "Brandy", with music by Richard Kerr. Released by English in 1971, "Brandy" reached number 12 in the UK Singles Charts but was a flop in the United States.

The suggestion that Scott English wrote the song about a favorite dog is apparently an urban legend. English has said that a reporter called him early one morning asking who "Brandy" was, and an irritated English made up the "dog" story to get the reporter off his back.^[1] The line "you kissed me and stopped me from shaking" that appears in the lyrics has led some to believe that the song refers to alcoholism, specifically alcohol withdrawal.

In the three years between English's recording and Manilow's, Looking Glass had a hit song with "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)") in 1972. Therefore, to avoid confusion, when Manilow decided to make his record he changed the title to Mandy. It was Clive Davis who suggested that Manilow record the song.^[2] Manilow originally recorded it as an uptempo bubblegum pop tune similar to English's original, but he and the producer reportedly hated the way it turned out; thus, he sang it as a ballad and was much more pleased with the results.^[3]

There have been several notable cover versions, including^[4]:

• Bunny Walters (1972). This popular New Zealand singer recorded the " Brandy" version and had a minor hit in his native country. This led some listeners there to think Walters had written the Manilow version when it came out two years later.^[5]
• Andy Williams (1975)
• Richard Clayderman (1994)
• Johnny Mathis (1997)
• Me First and the Gimme Gimmes (1997)
• Box Car Racer (2002)
• Westlife (2003)
• Bradley Joseph (2005)
• Raymond Quinn (X Factor quarter final 2006)
• Donny Osmond (2007)

Contents 1 Westlife Version 1.1 Cultural references 1.2 Notes 1.3 External links

"Mandy"
Single by Westlife from the album Turnaround
Released	10 November 2003
Format	CD Single, Download
Recorded	2003
Genre	Pop
Label	Sony BMG
Writer	Scott English and Richard Kerr
Westlife singles chronology
"Hey Whatever" (2003) "Mandy" "Obvious" (2004)

In 2003, the song was recorded by Westlife and became a number one hit in the UK.

The CD Single was released in two formats. The tracklistings were
CD1

1. Mandy
2. Flying Without Wings (live)

CD2 (Enhanced)

1. Mandy
2. You See Friends (I See Lovers)
3. Greased Lightnin'
4. Mandy (Video)

The Strokes song "Razorblade" from the album First Impressions of Earth has a very similar chorus to Mandy as does the Kate Bush song Wuthering Heights.

The song featured prominently in the 1998 movie Can't Hardly Wait, as numerous characters speculated on the meaning of the song.

Murphy's baby in Murphy Brown would only sleep when Mandy was played.

The song was parodied on Gift Grub under the title "Andy", on The Drew Carey Show episode Check Out Drew's Old Flame where Mandy is replaced with Kyra, and on The Simpsons episodes The Last Temptation of Homer and Day of the Jackanapes.

The song is referenced several times as the favourite song of Angel, the fictional main character on the television show "Angel", created by Joss Whedon. Ironically, the song was playing on a jukebox at perhaps the lowest point in Angel's life (when he drank human blood from a corpse, an action which sent him on the downward spiral that left him as a derelict, as depicted in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Becoming"), making Angel's fondness for it in keeping with the self-loathing that sometimes motivated his character.

The song was played in the background of a scene of the movie, You, Me, and Dupree.

On a November 2006 episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode Happenstance, investigator Nick Stokes had to sing the first half of the chorus to finger print tech Mandy Webster before she'd give him the findings from an envelope he'd recovered.

Preceded by "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" by Elton John	Billboard Hot 100 number one single (Manilow version) January 18, 1975	Succeeded by "Please Mr. Postman" by Carpenters
Preceded by "Crashed the Wedding" by Busted	UK number one single (Westlife version) November 23, 2003 - November 30, 2003	Succeeded by "Leave Right Now" by Will Young

1. ^ Quoted in The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits
2. ^ http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=33:otdqoa9aii8r
3. ^ http://en.allexperts.com/q/Manilow-Barry-511/Barry-Manilow-Mandy-song.htm
4. ^ http://www.secondhandsongs.com/song/47.html
5. ^ http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2084

• Song review at allmusic.com (Manilow version)

v • d • e Westlife
Kian Egan • Mark Feehily • Shane Filan • Nicky Bryne Bryan McFadden
Studio albums	Westlife • Coast to Coast • World of Our Own • Turnaround • Allow Us to Be Frank • Face to Face • The Love Album • Back Home
Compilation albums	Unbreakable - The Greatest Hits Vol. 1
Singles	Swear It Again • If I Let You Go • Flying Without Wings • I Have A Dream/Seasons in the Sun • Fool Again • Against All Odds • My Love • What Makes a Man • I Lay My Love on You • Uptown Girl • When You're Looking Like That •Queen of My Heart • World of Our Own • Bop Bop Baby • Unbreakable • Tonight/Miss You Nights • Hey Whatever • Mandy • Obvious • You Raise Me Up • When You Tell Me That You Love Me • Amazing • The Rose • Home • Us Against The World
Related Articles	Discography • Simon Cowell • Louis Walsh • Ronan Keating • Steve Mac • Wayne Hector