Maps of Music

Bette of Roses (1995)

Where the lyrics of Bette of Roses take you, and where it was really made.

Bette of Roses closed Midler's run at Atlantic Records, and its remixed track "To Deserve You" became a major US dance hit.

Key places

Recording site MSR Studios — Listed as one of the recording studios in the Discogs credits for this album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording site Conway Recording Studios — Listed as one of the recording studios in the Discogs credits for this album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Bette of Roses: eighth studio album by American singer Bette Midler
Released by Atlantic Records on July 18, 1995, in the United States
The title is a play on the track "Bed of Roses"
Midler's final album for Atlantic Records
Released twenty-three years after her debut album The Divine Miss M
Her next two albums came out on sister label Warner Bros. Records
She left the Warner group completely in 2002, signing with the Sony-owned Columbia Records

Marked a change in musical direction
Contains only contemporary material by songwriters in the soft rock, country and folk genres
Songwriters include Cheryl Wheeler, Maria McKee, Bonnie Hayes, Marc Jordan, Tonio K, Andy Hill, Pete Sinfield and Roger Cook
"In This Life" had earlier been recorded by country singer Collin Raye on his 1992 album of the same name
According to AllMusic's review, Midler is said to have personally chosen the track listing from "hundreds and hundreds of songs"
Chiefly produced by Arif Mardin, as with Some People's Lives
Arrangements lean on guitar and sound more acoustic than synthesized
Mostly midtempo ballads and country rock tracks, aimed at American adult contemporary and adult Top 40 markets rather than the pop or dance charts

Credits list The New Hit Factory, Andora Studios, Right Track Recording, Conway Studios and Record One in Los Angeles as recording locations
Mastering by George Marino at Sterling Sound
Michael O'Reilly is credited for engineering and remixing

Born December 1, 1945 in Honolulu, Hawaii; American actress, comedian, singer, and author.
Moved to New York City in 1965 and began in off-off-Broadway plays, then appeared in Fiddler on the Roof and Salvation on Broadway in the late 1960s.
Rose to prominence in 1970 singing at the Continental Baths, a gay bathhouse in New York, where she built a core following.
Debut album The Divine Miss M (1972) earned the 1973 Grammy for Best New Artist.
Starred in the film The Rose (1979), earning an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe.
Won Record of the Year for "Wind Beneath My Wings" from the film Beaches (1988).
Has over 30 million records sold worldwide, with 14 solo studio albums since 1970.
Received a Tony Award for Hello, Dolly! (2017 Broadway revival) and a Kennedy Center Honor in 2021.

Founded the New York Restoration Project in 1995 to revitalize neglected parks in disadvantaged New York neighborhoods.

AllMusic (editor Peter Fawthrop): rated it four out of five stars and called it a "very focused album"
Los Angeles Times (critic Jean Rosenbluth): found the material shallow and the entertainment too mainstream, with the title as the only thing likely to raise a smile
Los Angeles Times: said the presentation was not much better than the material

PopMatters (Peter Piatkowski, retrospective review): called the album "a warm embrace"

Peaked at number 45 on the US Billboard 200 and number 55 on the UK Albums Chart
Lowest-charting studio album by Midler since 1983's No Frills
A steady seller, certified Platinum by the RIAA in 2001, six years after release
Certified Silver by the BPI in the United Kingdom in 2013

The remixed dance version of Maria McKee's "To Deserve You" was issued in Europe, Australia and New Zealand to promote a re-release of Midler's 1993 hits compilation, not the album itself.
The dance remix became a major US dancefloor hit in early 1996, reaching No. 1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart.
The remix used a 123 BPM mid-1990s dance production, and although it was styled after house music remixers, Arif Mardin remixed and re-produced it himself.
The promo video was re-edited to use the dance remix instead of the original album recording.
The album was Midler's lowest-charting studio album since 1983's No Frills.