Sonny & Cher's LOOK AT US
Cher posted that today on YOUTUBE. She's performing Hedy West's "500 Miles" on her variety show CHER from 10/5/75.
I was not aware she did that solo. So this is where I get to write -- Had to stop and jump over to The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to vote for Cher. You can vote once each day. Cher needs to be in the hall.
This post is about when Cher started her recording career with Sonny.
In 1965, Sonny Bono and Cher recorded and released their first album LOOK AT US. (Cher also released her first solo album ALL I REALLY WANT TO DO.) At that time, albums were largely just on vinyl. There were 8-tracks and there were reel-to-reel tapes but most people bought vinyl. Singles sold better than albums. That was starting to change -- album artists like The Beatles, The Mamas & The Papas and others would move us away from AM radio hits.
Pop -- popular music -- was pop, soul, folk, rock and roll, jazz, showtunes, comedy tracks ("Hello Muddah, Hello Father"), etc. As music grew up rock and roll became rock and folk became folk rock. Sonny and Cher were pioneers of folk rock and are often not given credit for that.
LOOK AT US still holds up. Twelve strong tracks including "I've Got You Babe."
That was their monster hit.
They say we're young and we don't know
We won't find out until we grow
Well, I don't know if all that's true
'Cause you got me and baby I got you.
The label released "It's Gonna Rain." Sonny said no, that's not the hit. He called in favors at an LA radio station and got them to play "I Got You Babe" instead (he'd been a promo man for Phil Spector).
Sonny was right. "I Got You Babe" was a smash hit. An instant number one hit on the pop chart -- it even made it to number 19 on the R&B chart.
"Unchained Melody" follows. Cher had sung back up on many of Phil Spector's hits including the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'." Multiple people had hits with the song in the 50s but, in 1965, it became a hit for the Righteous Brothers (their version is used in the film GHOST with Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg). Cher had a deep voice and that might be why they recorded it (this is a solo Cher song). The Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me" comes next -- and you'll note, again, Cher has a deeper voice than Sonny.
"Sing Cest La Vie" comes next and appears to be Sonny attempting to do a "Que Sera Sera." It features a great vocal by Cher and strong comedic touches by Sonny. Then "It's Going To Rain" and finally side one closes out with "500 Miles."
That's a fun one to sing along with.
Side two opens with "Just You" which was a top 20 hit for the duo. "The Letter" follows and it made the top 100. They do a great job on the standard "Let It Be Me." "You Don't Love Me"? I like it when I hear it but I always forget it's on the album between listens. But the album really ends on a solid note with two strong punches. "You Really Got A Hold On Me.
Smokey Robinson wrote that classic and, while it's a song that's hard for any artist to mess up, I really think Sonny & Cher nail it.
"Why Won't They Let Us Fall In Love" closes the album.
Ronnie Spector was the lead singer of the Ronettes. Cher sang back up on their number one hit "Be My Baby." Phil recorded the song with Ronnie solo (Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich wrote the song -- Phil claimed a songwriting credit but really didn't do anything to write the song). He didn't release it -- he loved to play mind games with Ronnie. Sonny & Cher knew the song from their Spector studio work. Now that they were a duo, and out of Phil's orbit, they decided to record it for their album. Trivia note -- this is one of three songs Cher has recorded that Ronnie recorded first. Name the other two.
In 1974, she moved to WARNER BROTHERS as a solo artist and it was decided that she should work with Phil Spector producing her. One of the three songs she recorded with Spector was a cover of the Ronettes' "Baby I Love You."
The third song? In the eighties Ronnie Spector released an album in 1987 entitled UNFINISHED BUSINESS that included Desmond Child and Diane Warren's "Love On A Rooftop." Two years later, the song was the sixth track on Cher's monster selling album HEART OF STONE which included the hits "If I Could Turn Back Time," "Just Like Jesse James," "Heart of Stone" and her duet with Peter Cetera "After All."
"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):
