Gay bathhouse (陣屋)" were built in the 1970s. Singer Bette Midler is well known for getting her start at the famous Continental Baths in New York City in the early 1970s, where she earned the nickname Bathhouse Betty. It was there, accompanied by pianist Barry Manilow (who, like the bathhouse patrons, sometimes wore only a white towel), that she created her stage persona "the Divine Miss M." On getting her start in bathhouses, Midler has remarked: Despite the way things turned out [with the AIDS crisis], I'm still proud of those days [when I got my start singing at the gay bathhouses].
The Best of Bette (1981 album) single mix with an additional verse making its second appearance on a compilation album. The pictures used for the cover of the K-Tel version of "The Best of Bette" show Midler in concert, taken from the movie "The Rose". The compilation is sometimes listed as having been released in 1980, other times in 1981. Considering the fact that the "Divine Madness" album was released worldwide in November 1980 it was more likely issued in 1981. The first Bette Midler "greatest hits" compilation to be released worldwide, including the US and Canada, was 1993's "Experience the Divine". Side A Side B