Maps of Music

No Frills (1983)

Where the lyrics of No Frills take you, and where it was really made.

Midler's first studio album in four years barely charted in the US, yet it became her best-selling studio album to date in continental Europe and Scandinavia.

Key places

Recording at The Sound Factory, Hollywood (1983)

Recording site The Sound Factory — The Sound Factory in Hollywood, California, is one of the two studios credited with recording No Frills, alongside Clover Recorders. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording at Rumbo Recorders, Los Angeles (1983)

Recording site Rumbo Recorders — Rumbo Recorders in Los Angeles, California, is credited with recording No Frills, and the album was also mixed there. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• No Frills: sixth studio album by American singer Bette Midler
• Released 1 August 1983 on Atlantic Records
• Rock and new wave-influenced album
• Produced by Chuck Plotkin, known for his work with Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen
• Three singles: "All I Need to Know", a cover of Marshall Crenshaw's "You're My Favorite Waste of Time", and Midler's take on the Rolling Stones' "Beast of Burden"
• Ten tracks in total, five on each side
• First CD release in 1983
• Remastered version released by Atlantic Records/Warner Music in 1995

Background

• First studio album by Midler in four years
• Followed the films The Rose, Divine Madness!, and Jinxed!
• Midler originally intended to include Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac" instead of "Beast of Burden"
• Springsteen blocked the release, saying the song was not a "girl's song"
• Midler hastily recorded the Rolling Stones cover to fill the place of "Pink Cadillac"
• She still performed "Pink Cadillac" on her 1983 tour promoting the album

Recording

• Recorded at Clover Recorders and The Sound Factory in Hollywood, California
• Also recorded at Rumbo Recorders in Los Angeles, California
• Mixed at Clover Studios and Rumbo Recorders
• Toby Scott handled recording and mixing; Don Smith did additional recording and mixing
• Danny Goldberg served as executive producer and Brock Walsh as associate producer

Cover

• Cover photography by Greg Gorman
• Art direction and design by John Kosh and Ron Larson
• Cover art credited to Andre Miripolsky

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• 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.

Activism

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

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Midler's best-selling studio album to date in continental Europe and Scandinavia
• "Beast of Burden" was a top 10 single in many parts of Europe
• Promo video made during the early MTV era, with Mick Jagger in a cameo role as Midler's boyfriend
• The video's soundtrack, including spoken dialogue between Midler and Jagger, was released on the B-side of the European 12-inch single

Reappraisal

• Experience the Divine (1993), Midler's greatest hits compilation, included only one No Frills song, "Only in Miami"
• "Only in Miami" was never released as a single in the US or Europe
• A second edition of the compilation with a revised track list, released in 1996, added "Beast of Burden" and "Favorite Waste of Time"

Records

• US Billboard chart: peaked at #60, Midler's second lowest-charting album in the US
• Her 1979 disco album Thighs and Whispers charted at #65
• West Germany: #15
• Netherlands: #10
• Norway: #2
• Sweden: #1, outselling the Rose soundtrack
• The video for "Beast of Burden" was nominated for three MTV Video Music Awards in September 1984: Best Female Video, Best Choreography, and Best Stage Performance Video

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Springsteen blocked Midler's planned cover of "Pink Cadillac", saying it was not a "girl's song"
• Midler quickly recorded the Rolling Stones' "Beast of Burden" to fill the slot
• The "Beast of Burden" promo video features Mick Jagger as Midler's boyfriend
• Experience the Divine (1993) included only "Only in Miami" from this album
• The 1996 second edition of that compilation added "Beast of Burden" and "Favorite Waste of Time"

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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