Manilow released his recording, a single from the album Tryin' to Get the Feeling, in 1976. It peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.[1] An alternate version, including the original bridge, nearly a minute longer, appears on The Complete Collection and Then Some... Manilow says the bridge was eliminated in his release for timing reasons, but he tries to include it when performing live.[2]
Record World said that "this lush ballad will speak directly to a large audience."[3]
The Carpenters' version of "Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again" was recorded during the Horizon sessions in 1975, but it had been shelved as there were "one too many ballads". Years later, Richard was looking for the master backing track for "Only Yesterday" and discovered on that same tape the lost, earlier attempt at "Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again" with Karen's "work lead". (A work lead can easily be identified by such anomalies as Karen flipping a sheet of paper over at about 1:50 into the play time as she sight-reads and sings.) Richard felt that the vocal was good enough to finish production and release the song, as he did in 1994, almost 20 years after it was recorded. The Carpenters' version includes the original bridge.
Pomeranz wrote the song during a time of stress in his marriage, referring to its ups and downs. He notes that he rewrote the song several times, and that his version, the Manilow version, and the Carpenters version each include different verses. [12]
