The Manhattan Transfer at The Old Grey Whistle Test (22 February 1977)

[@hyn1801]

The Transfer gave their final performance yesterday at the Disney Hall, wrapping up a 50 year career.

[@johnwillis782]

The best group ever

[@Jettypilelegs]

I adored this band as a kid in the 70s and it led me directly into becoming a jazz singer myself. 🥰

[@JosephL-uc4tf]

Awesome, @Jettypilelegs!! 👍😏

[@Pete-ba253]

Beautiful. . . Cheers x 🇬🇧

[@themanhattantransferfanpage]

Hello, guys! Thank you so much for all of your support and appreciation for this video! I never thought that this video would have so many views and likes! To the haters who are taking their precious time to comment that it's "awfully cheesy", "boring" and "crap", you should spend your precious time doing something else, thank you! 😉 And to the fans and people who appreciated this video, thank you so much for your kind comments!

[@Steeyuv]

This is Music. We absolutely love it. We should pity those who don’t get it. Then ignore them.

[@kdknyc]

These four are brilliant. Always were and always are.

[@cargo71]

This video was a treasure found. Even though I listened to some songs on radio from time to time, it was this year that I started to search for videos of the group on KZbin. This was the video that hooked me the most! Now I love them, specially the ladies, who sing heavenly.

[@sudelaine8653]

Look, I LOVE everything MT did. To me, they're uniquely talented, way above the pack. But other people don't like them, or their kind of music, or whatever. And you know the saying, "It's a free country.” Disliking something and saying so doesn't make one a hater--in MY opinion, of course.

[@phillipbonner9944]

I've always loved Manhatten Transfer, brilliant music.

[@warrend7635]

Omg.. this is amazing, live singing with such harmony, superb

[@t_barraca]

What a woman!! Laurel in "Heart's Desire"

[@RonHernandez-sd8fx]

I was fortunate to see them live in Denver Colorado in 1985 they're the best American has.

[@PeacefulBrother33]

TMT Fanpage, I cannot thank you enough for posting this RESPLENDENT performance! It is unbelievably gratifying to see this EXTRAORDINARY group so young and vibrant! Their smooth dance moves, vocal prowess and stage presence are other-worldly. The talent on that stage outshines the sun! I loved the entire concert. Highpoints were Laurel's heart-melting rendition of "Scotch & Soda", Janis BLOWING the roof off during "Operator", Alan Paul's dead-on channeling of John Travolta/Vinny Barbarino, and his stirring delivery of "Gloria". What a LUCKY audience!

[@themanhattantransferfanpage]

You're welcome!

[@anthonymussari8783]

Laurel not Cheryl

[@PeacefulBrother33]

@@anthonymussari8783Corrected.

[@andyblyth4519]

The Great Manhattan Transfer, talent talent talent. Young singers watch and learn. It takes incredible rehearsal to be as cool as they are and as polished. No autotune blah blah blah, just excellence.

[@simonf8902]

31:00. Is he divine or what ???❤

[@simonf8902]

No tatts. No piercings. Just functionally too harmoninic. ❤❤

[@allanh8227]

One of the true and pure pleasures in life is listening to Manhattan Transfer...just fabulous.

[@russs7574]

29:32 That is just about the best rendition of "Gloria" I've every heard.

[@joeyburrell3207]

I love Cheryl, but OMG! Laurel was incredible.❤👍👍👍

[@markzee6331]

Her debut solo album 'Alone Together' is well worth a listen !

[@JoePublic-g9h]

Yeah, it wasn't until I saw this performance & Je voulais te dire que je t'attends on the 2 Ronnies YT upload I realised that she was is probably the more gifted singer of the 2. But I love 'em both. LOL Also Alan Paul as Guido Banzini doing Gloria was amazing too.

[@Bcsmdm]

What a wonderful memories…..I saw them in NYC in the 80s……incredible voices….

[@chrishansen9357]

The beautiful Laurel Masse.

[@hklinker]

I’m really happy to see/hear Laurel Masse live. That is some tone she had. It seemed pretty much effortless.

[@joeyburrell3207]

OMG! Tim was rapping before rap came out. These guys got overloaded when God was dishing out the talents. Incredible voices own their own, then together, OMG! an angelic choir. So heavenly.

[@frankstudent]

Hip hop began in 74, so not really, friend ;)

[@toomuchinformation]

Check out the Jubelaires with "Noah".

[@mrorinocobottle9371]

Who cares?

[@oughtssought1198]

thank you for this special treat

[@phila2361]

Cannot believe how much I smiled all the way through this! 4 extremely talented solo artists without the egos. Fantastic!

[@whitesauce923]

This performance is fantastic. I was a kid in the 70s and not familiar with this version of the group. Four Brothers -wow! Laurel is dynamic. Her energy is off the charts.

[@michaeld5888]

I never realised at the time the Old Grey Whistle was so flexible in its content . This really does hark back to a time when what we saw on TV was real life.

[@lindabriggs2380]

I had forgotten how much I loved listening to Manhattan Transfer!! Love this, I’ll have to find my CDs!

[@guruuDev]

OMG -- what a PHENOMENON -- absolute perfection!!

[@GeraldDollar]

I first heard "don't let go" by Patti LaBelle, however now that I've heard this rendition on here, it is now my FAVORITE!!!!!

[@esmolinodsouza7330]

You guys Manhattan transfer my hats out to you. I would. Never. Get. Bored listening. And. Still Am

[@paulrobertsonmusic407]

They look and sound amazing. The band is tight. What a performance.

[@carolechadwick4215]

Singing Four Brothers is so, so hard. First of all, to learn it. Then to get the right notes while moving so fast. Also, to stay in tune on all those notes. Tim Hauser had the hardest part, and I think even he went off a little bit. If you can sing this, you can sing anything!

[@justinnoble6506]

The Four Brothers performance was incredible. Foreshadowed their great vocalese songs.

[@phyl1042]

My husband and I saw them perform at the Waldorf Astoria back in the mid 70's and they were so great!

[@brucethomas5123]

I envy you greatly

[@katalincristofoli7740]

Múlt héten láttam a búcsúkoncertjüket Budapesten. Fenomenálisak!

[@ian1957ruth]

Superb, four people at the top of their game.

[@shyman99]

My goodness, they never looked more handsome. I'm just melting. Such a talented group.

[@KramerPacer2]

me at age 20 in 2010, got my first LP player and was going to our local record store. found that lp with the beautiful black and white cover in the shelve. never heard of that band, but judging by the cover it must be good, i thought. the music in it was even better. damn, i love this group.

[@RoryVanucchi]

sad to see Tim gone. i saw them circa 1976

[@SuperMering]

😢

[@jimpassa1]

I cannot thank you enough for posting this video. It brought back so many memories of the days when I worked for and with the group. I was lucky to be their first road manager back in 1974. When I played Four Bothers for them it was a two sided record by the Dave Lambert Singers. At the end of side one we are told to turn the record over to hear the second part of the song. The Manhattan Transfer decided that's exactly how they would perform the song. Thank you once again.

[@WPM_in_ATL]

Thank you for your comments, Jim. You bring a great perspective to this conversation.

[@jimpassa1]

I believe Laurel left the group sometime around 1979.@@WPM_in_ATL

[@natalieevelynagate2255]

I saw this extremely talented group, The Manhattan Transfer, in concert in New Zealand in the 70's. Unbelievable! Each one a talented singer in their own right....fantastic! ❤ Sweet memories...

[@bertspeggly4428]

I think I was there! I was helping out the monitor engineer. And I do remember one squeak of feedback. A long time ago now, thanks for this reminiscence.

[@slicksalmon6948]

These guys were great. I saw them at the Kennedy Center in the ‘70s, and it was a really professional show.

[@williamb4335]

I'm tearing up. I just found this performance of the Manhattan transfer. First time hearing one of the original member live. I have my popcorn ready. Thank you for this wonderful masterpiece.

[@RADLADRICK]

Incredible. The amount of hard work and dedication they have is over the top.

[@MsGrockle]

Ohhhhh Scotch and Soda, I haven't heard that in so long. Time to rummage through my vinyls :)

[@oglemansviews675]

What a treat to hear them in this early incarnation, particularly since they won't be touring any more after this year. Legendary comes to mind and it fits them to a tee. Thanks for sharing this.

[@knockshinnoch1950]

Terrific time capsule that show cases the Transfer at their peak. This really is an incredible live performance. 4 superb vocalists and perfect 4 part harmonies. Amazing to think they were celebrating the music of the 1940s in 1977- it's now 2022 and almost 50 years since this performance- they were actually so much closer in time to the 40s than the present day. I just couldn't imagine the same nostalgia today for the music of 30 years ago!

[@CelticSaint]

Oh I don't know there is a lot of nostalgia for the music of the 80's and 90's today. Primerally because the music today is so dire.

[@Steeyuv]

Singing through four key changes per bar…in awe…can you imagine if the Mahavishnu Orchestra had vocals? I would die of gasping.

[@mickymikado1887]

Wow - super show 🤍!

[@TheMusicianTom]

As a British kid I was only aware of Chansons d’amore. Many years later I heard MT’s albums and was blown away. A thrill to watch this.

[@martinplatt5928]

Walk in love? Another fabulous track by this hugely talented group.

[@PaulT.McKenna]

I forgot how amazing this group were, and after a trip down memory lane, it brings 😍😍back such sweet memories.

[@lowwhistler_]

This is AMAZING. It was this very show that got me into Manhattan Transfer. Haven't seen it since, and here it is in fantastic quality (probably better than I saw it in 77). Wow!

[@promerops]

What a group! Each member is first class, but Janis really was/is something! Fine band supporting them, too. Thanks for posting!

[@anonymusum]

Yeah, Janis is primus inter pares, so to speak.

[@promerops]

@@anonymusum She certainly is!

[@doc8000]

Janis was definitely my favorite. I loved when she used her nose as an instrument on “A Tisket A Tasket.”

[@mlbrooks4066]

She's one of the best pop singers ever. That Piaf sound on Chanson d'Amour is classic.

[@kathowed]

I had the good fortune to see and hear them, live, in Melbourne in the late 1980s… the blissful sensation of being wrapped in the warmth of such joyful (and skilled) harmonies will stay with me till the Big Dirt Nap.

[@tomeemerson]

My wife and I attended a performance around that time, Chandler Arizona US. I was transported to heaven, oh my their voices and harmonies still simple perfection! From the ‘70s I had many of their records, never had the opportunity to see a live performance. Incredible talent over decades!

[@UsterKoolageArt]

So glad you uploaded this concert! One of my favorite groups! So extremely talented! 🎶 Java Jive "I Love Coffee" "I Feel High" ...such great tunes. Such fantastic jazz singing. Thank you MT you are still loved and appreciated.

[@S2NAZ]

They were so entertaining. I saw them live front row in Portland Oregon decades ago.

[@doraldeddy1836]

This has just dropped into my choices! Bought back memories of a job selling wine in 1977/78. Driving my Mazda estate car around Cornwall. I had a tape (one of very few!) of ManTran, and several of these songs were on it. Would sing along and knew most of the words! Where have those 45 years gone to? 👍👍👍👍

[@tr24291]

Loved them. Still love them.

[@lfwaterloo]

I saw what you did during 'Heart's Desire', Lauren... 😉

[@brucethomas5123]

I saw it to,the mic had a smile on its face

[@BogdanKhmelnitsky-r3m]

It was Tim Hauser who became the founder of the band we know as The Manhattan Transfer! We remember and love. These are diamonds!

[@if6was929]

Love the Manhattan Transfer! I saw this lineup with Laurel Masse at the Waldorf Astoria, NYC in 1975 and at the Ogden Theater in Colorado in the early 1980's, after Laurel Masse had been replaced by Cheryl Bentyne.

[@jamesmcnicholas4259]

Timeless class. Magnificent.

[@jimguitarfan]

Absolutely amazing group. I remember watching this and going straight out to buy the first album. One of the very best live bands I ever saw, and this great show is evidence of that one ! Thank you for sharing this slice of magic.

[@markzee6331]

Jukin' is a great record, but a different group apart from Tim Hauser. They're about to hit London for one UK date of their final tour - 24/11/22 QEH

[@aileen694]

@@aileen9553 from another Aileen, hi! Just scrolling through some old jazz videos and saw my name...but realized I had not yet seen this one:)) Yes, I wasn't really impressed with this, maybe it was the material they used- very "showy". Also, the singer in the white dress was too determined to show off her legs, diatracting :( My old fav was always The Singers Unlimited. I'll try to find some music by the group you mentioned. Cheers!

[@swbbreps8464]

The best there ever was. Friggin beyond beyond!

[@FelicMore24]

What a treat👏👏👏👏👏

[@skatingwillers]

Wow Saw them a month or so after this as a 17 year old at the London Palladium! What an absolutely fabulous evening this performance has been etched on my phyche ever since❤❤❤❤

[@jonldn]

I was thinking the same thing about the timing and seeing them at the London Palladium…. What great concerts we had the ability to attend …..

[@mochalocha6458]

They’re such babies!

[@dzamb]

Ages: When this was performed Laurel Masse was 26, Tim Hauser was 36, Janis Segal was 25 and Alan Paul was 28.

[@brianmarshall4753]

I remember the jazz group Manhattan transfer i saw them on top of the pops in 1978 when I'm a little kid

[@larrymay269]

I always new how amazing they were . I just found this my God wonderful! love them 🥳

[@eugeneplaud2131]

Wonderful ride

[@innerpeace5913]

Manhatten Transfer were one of my father's favourite bands and played them in the car a lot. Like others who've commented here, they were a big influence for me too. I love the tightness and timing. Just superb.

[@YAMISOOLD2009]

This is what I have been looking for! The group when they were new and young and full of energy and singing the early hits that made them famous! I really enjoyed this and thank you for posting it. They are fantastic!

[@AnthonyHolmes-q1z]

One of the very best OGWT performances.

[@Paul-yc1gc]

What a sound. Unbelievable

[@JodyGibson-bt5zz]

GD, you might be the best group that has ever lived! Thank you!

[@josephparry2229]

Unbelievable group!!!what a fantastic 👏 song

[@djesasono6237]

Masterpiece

[@osamuaiba5160]

every time they came to Japan, i went to their concert though, before that time Laurel Masse had changed her part to Cheryl Bentyne so i know Masse only with her voice in their 3 LPs. i'm so happy with watching Masse's live performance. thank you for uploading this precious vidio!

[@cheeselewoo4825]

What a fantastic performance that I've never seen before. We were not interested in TV and we never bought one in those days as we were out and about living but we would have seen them on TV in a Pub back then and bought their records. Soooo smooooth 🤩 Thanks so much for sharing this 🤩

[@MrNorcal81]

0ne of the best vical groups to ever grace a stage or a recording studio. I still have my Manhattan Transfer CDs and spin them peridically.

[@birgerkagan6087]

Glad I came across this video- Remember clearly me and the mrs first encounter with the Manhattan Transfer. It was an unusually boring saturday evening in danish televison at the time where there was just one danish channel and or those of us liviging in the eastern part of the country there was 2 swedish channels normally only slightly more boring than the danish channel. Zapping around we suddenly found on swedish channel two a programme from "Berns Sonlonner" in Stockholm featuring the Manhatten Transfer. And that was it - sold forever more. Glad to have experiencend them a number of times in Copenhagen - 2 or 3 times in Tivoli Gardens, once in the Tivoli Concert Hall (when Joe Zawinul was their musical director which later made us Weather Report fans -you know, the Birdland and Spies in the night era) and once in 3 Falke Concert Hall

[@robbiedubdub]

I watched their two concerts when they performed in Manila, 1981 and 1992. Classic, classy, sophisticated. Loved them! Those two concerts had Cheryl Bentyne. Thought Laurel in this video was Cheryl. Wow, she had a fantastic voice as well.

[@ronaldomadrebien7045]

Wow, first time I’ve seen this concert, such a musical gift 🙏🏻

[@guruuDev]

Those four people are like one of those combos like the Beatles or The Who. They were put together by the Cosmos!

[@marksander7788]

Fantastic!!!!!!!

[@narzogarcia4212]

Genial grupo. Irrepetibles. Gracias por compartirlo es un paseo por los años 70 seguramente de las mejores décadas de la música y estos muchachos lo demostraron Abrazo desde Montevideo Uruguay 🇺🇾♥️ viva la música

[@seankm6nfo990]

Pure joy. Thanks.

[@ronojoysen5324]

Thanks - absolute treasure.

[@markweaver3352]

Nothing less than brilliant and beautiful!❤

[@andrewdoolan6096]

Gloria is simply brilliant! ❤

[@aliciapedrosnacher2321]

Magnificos como siempre. Excelentes voces. De los que no te cansas nunca de escuchar❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@aliciapedrosnacher2321]

Muchas gracias por esos lindos corazones,,,,no sé si sabré poner yo,,,pues no,,,saludos desde España

[@danielbisson8032]

talented group always liked thier music

[@kevinvanrensburg2468]

Fabulous harmonies, luv this group ❤

[@alemancostumbres5116]

GRANDIOSOS!

[@pearlspiers4779]

Love! love! love! Manhattan Transfer… those dulcet harmonies… bliss! My particular favourites: My cat fell in the well; Birdland; Java Jive; Chanson D’amour; A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square; Twilight Zone; and The Duke of Dubuque…

[@sudelaine8653]

Operator! Janis Siegel has one of the most extraordinary voices I've ever heard: rich, flexible, melodious, and powerful.

[@mlbrooks4066]

Laurel doing Scotch and Soda - interesting story behind that song. Dave Guard, one of the founders of the Kingston Trio, was dating a girl and took his buddy Bob Shane (also a founding member) to see her at her parents' house (the Seavers). Her parents knew Dave and Bob were singers and gave them this song, which they got from a lounge singer in Phoenix who failed to put his name on the sheet music, and the parents forgot who he was. We still don't know who wrote the song, but Dave put his name on it and sent all the money earned on it to his girlfriend's parents. This was back in the 50s when their son was just a kid and they sent him to college on it. Tom Seaver became a famous pitcher for the NY Mets (he died of Covid a couple years ago).

[@hklinker]

That is quite a story.

[@johnpapadopoulos9057]

Great song stylists.

[@shaygirl7673]

I finally got to watch TMT’s performance of “Candy” with Laurel Masse! And Four Brothers is amazing!

[@clivesmith9377]

Fantastic! The tall guy is all the Village People in one 😆

[@frankstudent]

I gave my heart to Laurel Masse on this day.

[@Tenortalker]

Awe - inspiring talent backed up by great arrangements , thorough rehearsal, a dash of spontaneity. The greatness of Manhattan Transfer.

[@JohnSmith-el6zc]

I'm not there, but I can't help but clap and move to Operator get me heaven!

[@mlbrooks4066]

Unique, and fantastic.

[@frankiesmart1113]

Yayyyy! Once again! Heavenly!

[@BBQDad463]

What an incredible performance! Brava! Bravo!