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"Mandy"
#1 weeks: 1
weeks: 1975-01-18
genre: pop
artist: Barry Manilow
album: Barry Manilow II
writers: Scott English, Richard Kerr
label:
formats: 7" vinyl

"Brandy" is a 1971 hit for songwriters Scott English and Richard Kerr. It reached number 12 in the UK Singles Charts, but the fast-tempo version was a flop in the United States. In 1974, recorded by Barry Manilow as "Mandy", the song was Manilow's first number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and Easy Listening charts, and his first gold single.

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.

In the three years between English's 1971 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. Manilow originally recorded it as an up-tempo 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. It was Manilow's first hit single and the first song on Clive Davis' Arista Records label (formerly Bell Records) to hit the Billboard Hot 100.

There have been several other notable cover versions, including Andy Williams (1975), Richard Clayderman (1994), Johnny Mathis (1997), Me First and the Gimme Gimmes (1997), Bradley Joseph (2005), Raymond Quinn (X Factor runner-up 2006), Donny Osmond (2007).

The song was also a hit for the Irish group Westlife. "Mandy" was the second single released from their album Turnaround.