Despite Bette Midler's bawdy, cartoonish image, her albums are almost always classy A/C collections that are often buried under overproduction. So on Some People's Lives, one of the singer's strongest collections, it isn't surprising that the only hit, "From a Distance," a song of hope and peace, is in keeping with much of her material -- namely poor production that is buoyed by her sterling vocals and strong lyrics. Aside from that, however, Some People's Lives is a smooth collection of standards like Cole Porter's "Miss Otis Regrets" and contemporary cuts like Diane Warren's "Moonlight Dancing." Kicking off with the punchy "One More Round," Midler sets the stage for sassy up-tempo numbers, then slides into the title song, a haunting ballad of despair that shows she is on more solid ground than ever. This is Midler at her best -- playful, yearning, brassy, regretful -- and that is mostly because producer Arif Mardin surrounds his star with respectful production that matches her talent while accenting her strengths. Standouts are the title cut, "Miss Otis Regrets," "He Was Too Good to Me/Since You Stayed Here," and "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most." ~ Bryan Buss, All Music Guide
Marc Shaiman (Vocal Arrangement), Michael Boddicker (Synthesizer), Jamey Staub (Assistant Engineer), Jack Joseph Puig (Mixing), Eugene VanBuren (Vocals (Background)), Ron Carter (Bass), Marsha Burns (Production Coordination), Robbie Buchanan (Programming), Gene Orloff (Orchestra Contractor), Tom Kelly (Vocal Arrangement), Robbie Buchanan (Arranger), Gene Orloff (Concert Master), Cissy Houston (Vocals (Background)), Marc Shaiman (Conductor), Nino Tempo (Soloist), Andy Snitzer (Sax (Soprano)), Steve Skinner (Arranger), Arif Mardin (Producer), Neil Stubenhaus (Bass), Marc Shaiman (Associate Producer), Marc Shaiman (Piano), Nino Tempo (Sax (Tenor)), Ula Hedwig (Vocals (Background)), Tom Kelly (Vocals (Background)), Gabriel Moffat (Assistant Engineer), Jack Joseph Puig (Engineer), Greg Gorman (Photography), Grady Tate (Drums), Robbie Buchanan (Keyboards), Joe Mardin (Mixing), Andy Snitzer (Soloist), Arif Mardin (Orchestral Arrangements), Joe Mardin (Soloist), Andy Snitzer (Saxophone), Marc Shaiman (Rhythm Arrangements), Jay Leonhart (Bass), Andrew Gold (Soloist), Arif Mardin (Arranger), Joe Mardin (Arranger), Joe Mardin (Programming), Phil Bodner (Soloist), Michael Landau (Guitar), Lisa Maldonado (Coordination), Radio Choir of New Hope Church (Vocals (Background)), Phil Bodner (Clarinet), Ed Korengo (Assistant Engineer), Clif Norrell (Assistant Engineer), Arif Mardin (Conductor), Anthony Saunders (Assistant Engineer), David Lasley (Vocals (Background)), Doug Sax (Mastering), Joe Mardin (Engineer), Marc Shaiman (Arranger), Joe Mardin (Keyboards), Gene Bertoncini (Guitar), John West (Vocals (Background)), Vicky Germaise (Coordination), Myrna Smith (Vocals (Background)), Gary Coleman (Percussion), Bob Loftus (Assistant Engineer), Ken Felton (Assistant Engineer), George Merrill (Vocals (Background)), Joe Mardin (Conductor), Guy Roche (Programming), Maria Vidal (Vocals (Background)), Frank DeCaro (Orchestra Contractor), Jo Ann Harris (Vocals (Background)), Gene Orloff (Conductor), Andrew Gold (Guitar), Billie Hughes (Arranger), Rob Harvey (Assistant Engineer), Bernie Layton (Piano), Bruce Dukov (Concert Master), Dean Parks (Guitar), Michael O'Reilly (Mixing), Arif Mardin (Orchestration), Nick Sansano (Engineer), Nick Sansano (Mixing), Sid Page (Concert Master), John McCurry (Guitar), Eddie Garcia (Mixing), Michael O'Reilly (Engineer), Carlos Vega (Drums), Eddie Garcia (Engineer), Bette Midler (Vocals), Steve Kroon (Percussion), Charlotte Crossley (Vocals (Background)), Joe Mardin (Vocals (Background)), Bob Defrin (Art Direction)
"Moonlight Dancing" (also released as an extended dance remix which sampled the 1973 recording "Do You Want To Dance"), "Night and Day" and "The Gift of Love" were all issued as singles, but the biggest hit that the album produced was undoubtedly Midler's interpretation of Julie Gold's anti-war anthem "From a Distance" featuring The Radio Choir of New Hope Church, paradoxally released shortly before the breakout of the first Persian Gulf War. The single reached #2 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, #1 on Adult Contemporary and #6 in the UK and was later certified platinum in the US, making it Midler's second millionseller within the space of two years following "Wind Beneath My Wings" from the Beaches soundtrack. The song has since been recorded by a large number of other artists and Midler herself included an alternate version with partly re-written lyrics on her 2006 album Cool Yule.
The Some People's Lives album itself also became one of the biggest commercial successes of Midler's musical career, peaking at #6 in the US and #5 in the UK and it was later awarded double platinum by the RIAA for sales of over two million copies in the US alone.
