About the song

Some songs feel like conversations we never got to finish — “Ships” by Barry Manilow is one of them. Written in 1979, it’s a song about distance, not measured in miles but in years, misunderstandings, and the quiet gaps between a father and son.

“Ships” isn’t loud or dramatic. It begins softly, like two souls meeting again after too long, both unsure of what to say. The lyrics capture that fragile moment when you realize how much time has passed — when you’ve become adults leading separate lives, each carrying your own storms. “We’re just two ships that pass in the night,” Barry sings, and suddenly, the metaphor says everything: we love, we try, but sometimes we drift apart anyway.

Barry Manilow, known for his grand pop ballads and emotional storytelling, takes a different route here. His voice isn’t just powerful — it’s tender, weary, human. There’s a trembling honesty in his delivery, as if he’s not just singing about someone, but to someone. The song was written by Ian Hunter, but when Barry performs it, it becomes deeply personal — a reflection of his own complicated relationship with his father.

Musically, “Ships” is pure late-70s Barry Manilow: lush orchestration, heartfelt piano, and an emotional build that feels like it’s carrying you home. Yet, it’s not about resolution — it’s about recognition. The acknowledgment that love can exist even when words fail, that sometimes the best we can do is wave across the water and hope the other ship sees us.

It’s a song for anyone who’s ever looked back and realized how much they wanted to say — but never quite did.

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