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View Winners → Whenever I Call You Friend – Melissa Manchester Brings Fan onstage at The Rose
Arts May 01, 2018
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Need proof that dreams can come true? Pasadena singer-songwriter Johnny Schaefer is exhibit A. A fan of Grammy Award Winning singer/songwriter Melissa Manchester since his youth, Schaefer used to write songs and send them to her on cassette tapes, hoping to be able to meet her someday. So when Manchester announced a Video Cover Contest with a prize of getting to sing a duet with her live on stage, Schaefer sprang into action. “I’m a singer/songwriter, too, and mashed up two of Melissa’s songs for the contest. My husband, Paco Silva, was a photography buff and said he would make a video for me. I ended up being one of the winners and, after training with Crown City Media in Pasadena, Paco got so good at video production he has now made a couple of music videos for Melissa’s new album, The Fellas.” Schaefer mused.
On April 6, at The Rose in Pasadena, Manchester called Johnny to the stage to join her in singing her popular hit, Whenever I Call You Friend, which she penned with Kenny Loggins, “I met with Melissa’s former music director Stephan Oberhoff (also of Pasadena) so he could coach me on the song since he sang it with her for years. The preparation paid off, as I was relaxed and able to just have fun with it”, Schaefer said. highwiredaze.com called it “a stunning duet.”
