Is Bette Midler the greatest singles singer ever?

How are you measuring your claim? Madonna has at least four signature songs.

Just waiting for the crazy Janet Jackson troll to arrive....

It’s funny 😁 that you named the 5 that really could top Bette.

Madonna has Like A Virgin and Vogue. None of her other many hit songs rise to signature level.

Material Girl, Like a Prayer...

Live to Tell

OP has disturbed the BeyHive. He'll be ripped to shreds by the Hive.

I guess we know already what's on OP's iPod. The Bette Midler Singles Collection. Do we want his things when he's been trampled to death by the hive?

Ray of Light

Hmmm...

Madonna: Like A Virgin, Papa Don't Preach, Vogue

Mariah Carey: Vision of Love, Fantasy, One Sweet Day

Whitney Houston: I Will Always Love You, Saving All My Love For You, I Wanna Dance With Somebody

Celine Dion: The Power of Love, My Heart Will Go On, Because You Loved Me

Adele: Hello, Rolling In the Deep, Someone Like You

Janet Jackson: Nasty, Love Will Never Do Without You, That's The Way Love Goes

Hall & Oates: Private Eyes, Kiss On My List, Maneater

George Michael: Faith, Father Figure, I Want Your Sex

Michael Jackson: Billie Jean, Beat It, Thriller

Mariah: Hero, All I want for Christmas is you, We Belong Together, Fantasy

Bette Middler has only those three hit songs. That's why they're signature. Not a lot of options, which was mostly her choice since she chose acting to be her main career.

Tonti Braxton: Another Sad Love Song, Breathe Again, Unbreak My Heart, You Makin' Me High

Tina Turner: WLGTDWI?, Private Dancer, Simply the Best

Elton John: Benny and the Jets, Rocket Man, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.

I hear Bette's vibrato is now so wide even Sophie could fall through it.

R9 clearly does not understand the definition of a signature song.

And I love Bette especially her more cabaret bathhouse era, but my god, From a Distance and Wind Beneath My Wings are such hallmark drivel.

Bugie Wugie Bugle Boy

Fleetwood Mac: Go Your Own Way, Don't Stop, Dreams

Donna Summer: Love to Love You Baby, She Works Hard For the Money, Bad Girls

Eurythmics: Sweet Dreams, Here Come The Rain Again, Would I Lie To You?

R15/OP, enlighten us with your definition. We are too stupid to understand.

Donna Summer: Last Dance, Hot Stuff, She Works Hard for the Money (to name few). You could also add in Bad Girls and I Feel Love, MacArthur Park....

Please see Wikipedia definition.

^^^ Funny...Bette Midler isn't even ON that list...

Hopefully R15/OP realizes their idiotic statement and how wrong they are based on all the other examples in just a few short replies.

Babs: People, Way We Were, Evergreen

💜 Bette! But R9 does seem on target 🎯

Aretha: Respect, Natural Woman, Think, Chain of Fools

OK, I’ll admit defeat. Miss Streisand is also worthy based upon the widely agreed-upon definition. .

None of the others are.

Connie Francis owns this thread.

When she performs a medley of her hits, it's impressive.

R14, Wider than mine?

Madonna-Into the Groove

Holiday, Lucky Star, Borderline...

"OK, I’ll admit defeat. Miss Streisand is also worthy based upon the widely agreed-upon definition. None of the others are."

Have you also admitted defeat to your grammatical abilities...???

My favourite Bette Midler hit is "Superstar"... Oh, wait...

Madonna-Nasty, My Heart Will Go On, Single Ladoes, Bad Romance

The Beatles?

[quote] OK, I’ll admit defeat. Miss Streisand is also worthy based upon the widely agreed-upon definition. .None of the others are.

Got something against Gentiles, OP?

Midler is like Cher. She has a surprisingly slim hit singles discography.

Signature songs should also, by definition, be popular hits. Let's look at Midler's discography:

Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (1973) : reached #8 in the US top 100, so I think we should include the song that put her on the map.

The Rose (1980): reached #3 in US top 100

Wind Beneath My Wings (1989): #1

From A Distance (1990): #2

I'm not a Midler fan--I loathe singing voice. But I must give her credit for her unusual success--4 top 10 hits over 18 years. Very few of her other successes even broke the top 50-100. She's also had 4 albums break the top 10.

She’s not a good singer at all. She’s a great song stylist and fantastic entertainer, but her voice is not very good.

editing end of R38:

I'm not a Midler fan--I loathe her singing voice. But I must give her credit for her unusual success--4 top 10 hits over 18 years. Very few of her other singles even broke the top 50-100. She's also had 4 albums break the top 10.

From A Distance won the Grammy for Song of the Year. Wind Beneath My Wongs won the Grammy for Record of the Year. Bette won a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance - Female for The Rose.

Joni: Clouds, Help Me, Big Yellow Taxi...

...just sayin'...

If by “signature” you mean 3 songs she’s known for, then yeah, she has exactly 3 songs that she’s known for.

Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B reporting for duty.

I like Millworker (from about 0:50).

Diana Ross has an enviable songbook. She had 6 #1 solo songs, more than many listed here (not all). She had an additional 12 #1 songs as the lead for The Supremes.

'I'm Coming Out'—'Upside Down'—Ain't No Mountain High Enough'—'Theme from Mahogany'—‘It’s My Turn’—‘The Boss’— 'Chain Reaction'

Chain Reaction never made it to #1 in the U.S. It petered out at 65.

The Boss stalled at #19 according to Billboard Hot 100.

[quote] From A Distance won the Grammy for Song of the Year. Wind Beneath My Wongs won the Grammy for Record of the Year. Bette won a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance - Female for The Rose.

Babs can match that. Best Pop Vocal Female for "People" and "Evergreen". Both "Way We Were" and "Evergreen" won Song of the Year at the Grammys as well as Best Original Song at the Oscars.

Pretty Legs, Great Big Knockers is her best

Bette Midler is only the greatest singer in the room when she is alone.

Linda R- Different Drum, You're No Good, Blue Bayou........

Elder gay, please.

Mariah had Vision of Love (amazing vocals), Fantasy (catchy, uptempo pop), Always Be My Baby, We Belong Together, and Hero.

Linda's best work was on her albums, r52. In no way was she the "greatest singles singer ever." She hated most of those songs.

And, Mariah wrote hers. Better writes angry tweets.

R53 you is a doll and a devoted lamb. I thank you.

I would say something about this Better Midler person but I don't know her

The only song of Mariah's anyone remembers is that annoying "All I Want for Christmas" -- everything else is thoroughly forgettable.

I rarely like and then come to loathe a singer like I do Midler.

I grew up as a huge Streisand fan. Being a 70s kid, her pop work was ubiquitous. Then I discovered her earlier (better) work from the 60s around the time of her first Broadway album in the 80s. I remained a huge fan... until her comeback concert in the 90s. She, and her voice, lost most of the appeal for me. But I can still go back through her 1960s/mid-70s catalogue and enjoy the singer she once was, if not quite so passionately.

I discovered Midler's first few albums when I was coming out (in late adolescence) which coincided with her movie career. I was charmed by her voice, her presentation, her selection of material... then just a few years later (BEACHES or later), BOOM... it all vanished. I wondered what it was about her uneven screech of a voice or her abrasive persona that I liked in the first place. I cannot bear to listen to the early albums that I once loved. I couldn't imagine jumping on the bandwagon of adoring fans who paid top dollar to see her HELLO DOLLY revival.

Call me fickle, I guess. That's diva love for you.

R47 is correct. Chain Reaction never hit number one. Fun, novel throwback song.

Her six number one SOLO songs (more than Babs, Bette, Cher etc) are:

Touch Me In The Morning, Endless Love, Upside Down, Love Hangover, Theme From Mahogany, Ain’t No Mountain High Enough

If the person is posting for the UK, then yes, "Chain Reaction" topped the charts. As did "I'm Still Waiting."

*posting from the UK

Are you hot R44?

[quote]Connie Francis owns this thread. When she performs a medley of her hits, it's impressive.

Hold my purse.

Who R63?

I agree about Connie....although I think her performances on many of her LPs are far greater. However, the singles were where the mainly was and Connie had the single hits galore.

Connie's single still influencing...Cruella and Who's Sorry Now!

A signature song isn't necessarily chart success. Elton John had seven No. 1 songs, but none of them would be considered his signature song. But Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Your Song probably would. Billy Joel's sig song would not be any of his 3 number ones, but the low-charting Piano Man would. The Carpenters had 3 number one songs (Close To You, Top Of The World and Please Mr. Postman), but their signature song would probably be We've Only Just Begun.

Very well put r67, totally agree with this, and good examples given!

I also think there are signature songs in popular music culture, and then in gay music culture. For example Diana Ross "The Boss" is definitely a signature song in gay music culture but not general pop culture.

I think Donna Summer wins here--she has at least four by either definition, "Love To Love You Baby", "Bad Girls,""Last Dance" and "She Works Hard For The Money". Add gay culture and "I Feel Love" and "MacArthur Park Suite" also qualify.

Shingles shinger.

Disagree about "Close to You." It could absolutely be considered Carpenters' signature song.

Dolly Parton

[quote]Jolene, Coat of Many Colors, I Will Always Love You, Nine-to-Five,

No one under 60 knows who she is.

Don't even try, Clyde.

"My Way."

"New York, New York."

"Fly Me to the Moon."

"Strangers in the Night."

"All the Way."

"High Hopes."

"Come Fly With Me."

Also Judy Garland: You Made Me Love You, Man That Got Away, The Trolley Song , Over The Rainbow

[Quote] No one under 60 knows who she is.

Bless your heart.