Bootleg Betty
Video – Bette Midler – One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show – 1998
By Mister D
July 30, 2026
Bette Midler performed “One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show” at the 1998 Billboard Music Awards (held December 7, 1998, primarily at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and broadcast on Fox).
The song is a cover of the 1955 Big Maybelle R&B track (written by Charlie Singleton and Rose Marie McCoy; it was the B-side of her version of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On”). It appears on Midler’s September 1998 album Bathhouse Betty (her Warner Bros. debut, which peaked at #32 on the Billboard 200 and was certified Gold). On the album, the track (produced by Ted Templeman) features the swing/rock band Royal Crown Revue; comments on performance footage note the same energetic backing and strong chemistry with a male singer during the awards show.
Midler performed the uptempo, sassy number via satellite from the Hard Rock Hotel. She later appeared in person at the MGM Grand wearing a literal billboard of the Bathhouse Betty album cover and quipped something to the effect of: “Well, it’s the Billboard awards. So, I thought you’d like to take a peek at mine.” Hosts included Kathy Griffin (who introduced the performance) and Andy Dick; other performers that night included Whitney Houston, Natalie Imbruglia, Shania Twain, Usher, and the Backstreet Boys.
The performance is available on YouTube (clips from fan/archive channels such as TheDivineBetteMidler and Bootleg Betty), and contemporary accounts and fan reactions describe it as a lively, classic Divine Miss M moment—catchy, full of attitude, and true to the song’s defiant “one setback won’t stop me” spirit. It fit the album’s mix of vintage covers and lighter material celebrating Midler’s early “Bathhouse Betty” persona from her Continental Baths days.
Sources: Las Vegas Sun, Wikipedia, Bootleg Betty
