The Betty Carter Album Explained

The Betty Carter Album
Type:	studio
Artist:	Betty Carter
Cover:	thebettycarteralbum.jpg
Released:	1976
Recorded:	Before 1975
Genre:	Jazz
Length:	39:44
Label:	Bet-Car MK 1002/Verve 835 682-2
Producer:	Betty Carter
Prev Title:	Now It's My Turn
Prev Year:	1976
Next Title:	The Audience with Betty Carter
Next Year:	1979

The Betty Carter Album is a 1976 album by Betty Carter. It is unique among her albums in its use of overdubbing on some tracks to allow her to record multiple vocal lines. It was also her first album for which she wrote the majority of the songs herself.^{[1] [2]}

The album was originally released on Carter's own Bet-Car label. It was first reissued on CD by Verve in 1988.^[3]

Reception

The singer Bilal names it among his 25 favorite albums and one of the first jazz records he purchased, citing Carter's vocal stylings.^[4]

Track listing

1. "You're a Sweetheart" (Harold Adamson, Jimmy McHugh) – 3:57
2. "I Can't Help It" (Betty Carter) – 2:45
3. "What is It?" (Carter) – 5:35
4. "On Our Way Up (Sister Candy)" (Freddie Roach) – 1:36
5. "We Tried" (Carter) – 5:53
6. "Happy" (Carter) – 2:08
7. "Sunday, Monday or Always" (Sonny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen) – 4:19
8. "Tight" (Carter) – 1:36
9. "Children Learn What They Live" (Dorothy Law Nolt) – 4:16
10. "Sounds (Movin' On)" (Carter) – 7:17

Personnel

• Betty Carter - vocals
• Danny Mixon - piano
• Onaje Allan Gumbs - piano (tracks 1, 3 and 7)
• Buster Williams - double bass
• Louis Hayes - drums
• Chip Lyle - drums (tracks 2, 8, 9 and 10)

Notes and References

1. Bauer, William R. Open the Door: The Life and Music of Betty Carter (Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 2002), 398.
2. Carter, Betty (1976). The Betty Carter Album [CD liner notes]. New York: Polygram Records, Inc.
3. Web site: Betty Carter - The Betty Carter Album at Discogs . 1976 . discogs.com. 3 March 2017.
4. Simmons. Ted. February 26, 2013. Bilal's 25 Favorite Albums. Complex. August 28, 2020.