Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook

Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook
Studio album by Bette Midler
Released	September 30, 2003
Recorded	2003
Length	30:51
Label	Columbia
Producer	Barry Manilow, Robbie Buchanan, Exec Producer Jay Landers, Garry Kief, Assoc Producer, Scott Erickson, Marc Hulett[1]
Bette Midler chronology
Bette (2000) Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook (2003) Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook (2005)
Singles from Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook
"White Christmas"

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]

Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook is an album by the American singer Bette Midler. It was produced by Barry Manilow and marked the first time that Midler had worked with Manilow in more than twenty years. It was also Midler's first album for Columbia Records after nearly 30 years recording for Warner Music Group (being signed at times to both Atlantic Records and Warner Bros. Records). Columbia Records is owned by Sony Music Entertainment.

After the death of singer Rosemary Clooney in the summer of 2002, Manilow claims to have had a dream that he would produce a tribute album and Midler would be the singer on the album. In the liner notes, Midler writes, "When Barry approached me ("I had this dream!") about recording an album of Rosemary's standards, I was excited, but apprehensive. I wanted to be respectful, but I felt we had to find something new to say as well, and in these (mostly) new arrangements...I believe we have."

Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook was Midler's first album with Columbia Records after being dropped by Warner Bros. in 2001 for declining record sales. The album peaked at #14 on The Billboard 200 with 71,000 copies sold in its initial week of release,^[3] and been certified Gold by the RIAA. (As of August 2005, the album had sold 721,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan).^[4] It was followed up with Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook, which was somewhat less successful.

Track listing

1. "You'll Never Know" (Mack Gordon, Harry Warren) – 1:44
2. "This Ole House" (Stuart Hamblen) – 3:02
3. "On a Slow Boat to China" (Frank Loesser) – 2:31 – Duet With Barry Manilow
4. "Hey There" (Richard Adler, Jerry Ross) – 3:30
5. "Tenderly" (Walter Lloyd Gross, Jack Lawrence) – 3:11
6. "Come On-a My House" (Ross Bagdasarian, Sr., William Saroyan) – 1:50
7. "Mambo Italiano" (Bob Merrill) – 2:50
8. "Sisters" (Irving Berlin) – 2:53 – Duet with Linda Ronstadt
9. "Memories of You" (Eubie Blake, Andy Razaf) – 3:20
10. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" (Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer) – 2:44
11. "White Christmas" (Irving Berlin) – 3:16

Personnel

• Bette Midler – vocals
• Dean Parks, George Doering, Michael Thompson – guitar
• Randy Waldman, Barry Manilow, Steve Welsh, Robbie Buchanan – piano
• Chuck Berghofer – bass
• Gregg Field, Vinnie Colaiuta – drums
• Herb Pedersen – banjo
• Kenny Blackwell – mandolin
• Beverly Staunton, David Steele, Hans Stamer, Warren Stanyer – background vocals
• Jorge Calandrelli, Patrick Williams, Ray Ellis – conductor

Charts

Certifications

References