The Audience with Betty Carter is a 1980 live double album by the American jazz singer Betty Carter.

Signatures

The album's first track, "Sounds (Movin' On)", is 25 minutes in length and features an epic scat solo. The use of the Academy Award-nominated classic "The Trolley Song", is a nod to the city of San Francisco, where the album was recorded. The second half of the album features several songs written by Carter. The penultimate track is a fresh take on Rodgers and Hammerstein's "My Favorite Things from The Sound of Music, far different from the version by John Coltrane on his 1960 album of the same name. The set ends with the plaintive "Open the Door," Carter's signature tune. The Audience With Betty Carter was first released on Carter's own Bet-Car Records and later reissued on Verve.

Reception

The Penguin Guide to Jazz awarded the album four out of four stars, including a special crown for a "recording of merit", an honor bestowed on fewer than 100 jazz recordings." Billboard magazine gave the album a lukewarm review on its release in 1980, saying that "She won't please all jazz fans - some of her affectations are annoying. But overall, it's a strong package." The Audience with Betty Carter was later included in an appendix to 1000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die.

Track listing

Disc One Disc Two

Personnel

(Recorded December 6–8, 1979, Great American Music Hall, San Francisco)