The enduring music of Marilyn and Billy

MANILA, Philippines - With the all-time hits Up, Up And Away and Age Of Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In as signature songs, Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. helped turn The 5th Dimension into one of the most successful singing groups in the ‘60s.

As a duo and later on, as solo performers, they achieved immense success as they held the record of being the artists, performers and authors behind dozens of timeless hits that captured the exciting spirit and mood of the era.

Throughout the next 40 years, McCoo and Davis, Jr., the two former lead vocalists The 5th Dimension, have maintained an active and lasting presence in the contemporary music and entertainment scene as they continue to regale millions worldwide with the beauty and magic of their music.

McCoo and Davis, who co-founded the legendary quintet with three others in the ‘60s, will stage a concert on July 7 at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City. Dubbed as Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr. Live In Manila!, the one-night musical event to be mounted by Ovation Productions will showcase the vocal talent and style of the acclaimed couple as they perform the greatest hits of one of America’s most popular acts from the late ‘60s to the early ‘70s.

Also to be featured is local artist Arthur Manuntag.

Aside from Up, Up And Away and Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In, other songs to be performed by the couple include Workin’ On A Groovy Thing, Saving All My Love For You, You Don’t Have To Be A Star, I Hope We Get To Love In Time, Somebody Warm Like Me, If I Could Reach You, Last Night I Couldn’t Get To Sleep At All, No Love In The Room, One Less Bell To Answer, Wedding Bell Blues, Stoned Soul Picnic, Ashes To Ashes, The Two Of Us, etc.

The stint of McCoo and Davis with The 5th Dimension, which they formed in 1966 with Lamonte McLemore, Ron Townson and Florence LaRue, marked the beginning of a fulfilling four-decade long journey in the entertainment business.

In 1975, McCoo and Davis — who got married in 1969 — left The 5th Dimension and began performing as a duo, attaining immediate success with the single You Don’t Have To Be A Star (To Be In My Show), which became a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1977 and earned them a gold single and gold album as well as a Grammy (their seventh) for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

This year, they are celebrating their 42 years of marriage.

(Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr. Live In Manila! is produced by Ovation Productions in cooperation with RJ 100.3 FM, Talk TV, ETC, 2nd Avenue, Diva Universal, Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge. It is also supported by The Philippine STAR, BusinessWorld, The Rockwell Club, Edsa Shangri-La Manila, 97.9 Home Radio, Mellow 94.7, 105.1 Crossover, dwBR 104.3 and OptimaSignsolutions. Tickets are priced at P4,500, P4,000, P3,500, P2,500, P1,000 and P500 and are available at Ticketnet outlets located at SM Department Stores and at the Araneta Coliseum box office. For details, call Ticketnet at 911-5555.)