Singer-songwriter Melissa Manchester burst onto the music scene in the 1970s with the albums Home to Myself, Bright Eyes and Melissa, with its hit single Midnight Blue. Manchester's success as a writer and recording artist was preceded by thorough preparation. She published her first poems at 15, studied acting at New York's High School of the Performing Arts and songwriting at New York University, in a class taught by Paul Simon. She honed her craft playing piano and signing in the nightclubs of Greenwich Village and gained national exposure as a member of Bette Midler's back-up...