Barry Manilow and subsequently as a producer on both her debut and sophomore record albums "The Divine Miss M" (1972) and "Bette Midler" (1973). as well as act as her musical director on the eventual tour mounted for the former. In 1973, Manilow was nominated for the Album Of The Year Grammy Award for his production role on 'The Divine Miss M'. Manilow worked with Midler from 1971 to 1975. After the Featherbed singles failed to impact on the music charts, in July 1973, Bell Records released the album, "Barry Manilow", which offered an eclectic mix of piano-driven pop and guitar-driven rock
Bette Midler was an early choice for Miss Hannigan in the 1982 film "Annie". During those four years, she concentrated on her music career and in 1983, released the album "No Frills", produced by Chuck Plotkin, who was best known for his work with Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen. The album included three single releases: the ballad "All I Need to Know", a cover of Detroit native Marshall Crenshaw's "You're My Favorite Waste of Time"—which Midler fell in love with after flipping his 45 of "Someday Someway"—and Midler's take on the Rolling Stones cover "Beast of Burden". She also released an all-comedy