Category: Music (Page 36 of 37)

Happy New Year!

January 3, 2008 / Cher Scholar / 1 Comment

Take a deep breath everyone; it’s a new year. Last year was pretty good I must say, bumps aside. Took some good trips, made some money for a change, experienced career advancement, published some poems, made some pots, blogged about the Chermeister.

Ugh. I hate when people do that to proper names. I really do. Please accept my first apology of the new year. So far, it has been an uneventful one. My boyfriend (who stuck with me through the last weeks of moving drama) was sick over New Years just as I was starting to get back into the groove after the move from Venice to Redondo Beach. I was a whiny lump of exhaustion the whole time. We now have a yard (a patch of grass just screaming “I need a dog”), a garage to store all my Cher crap in and an extra meditation/martial arts room. Ahhhh – so nice! Only bad news: no kitchen counter space. My mother will be upset when she visits this year but we will deal.

This was my major Cher-thought over the holiday as I was listening to The Very Best of Cher (I played it about seven times — very much a coping exercise as I was hauling my own furniture down the Pacific Coast Highway in Bluebelle, my Chevy Cavalier.

The Cher-thought: Who would have guessed a match up between Cher and Giorgio Moroder would turn out to be so boring? I’m speaking of the song “Bad Love” of course from the Foxes soundtrack. I mean, what a kewl early-80s match-up to be made in a post-disco-pre-new-wave sort of heaven? It was such a particular musical era between Donna Summer and Duran Duran, a time where Flashdance was king Cher was mostly MIA. What a dud that song turned out to be. I don’t blame the songwriting skillz of Cher (which I kind of dig, frankly) or Moroder-magic. Solid building blocks for something off the charts, right? Am I right? I guess the irony is these gargantuan parts managed to sabotage the actual sum of those parts.

Sadness and How It Makes Me Soft on Elijah Blue

December 7, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 0 Comments

I’ve been steeped in sadness this last week over my move and sudden unexpected (and profoundly disappointing) interpersonal dysfunctions in relation to said move. I’ve been watching YouTube Cher videos to cheer up.

First , S&C singing Little Man – look at those hilarious earrings: are they fuzzy dice? I love how intimate S&C seem in this video, how even then Sonny is trying to fix Cher’s hair, his wacky suit and how in love and in sync they seem at this moment in time.

Cher sings Fire in Monte Carlo – I truly love how that dress moves.

Sonny & Cher Mike Douglas Interview from early 70s

Part 1; Part 2 and Part 3

Watch what a bad job Sonny does lip syncing and his follow-up comments about being a better producer/writer than a singer – which is remarkably different from the interview he did as Cher’s guest on The Mike Douglas show in late 70s where they tell him he should continue producing and he says he wants to perform. I think he must have missed all the spot-light rigmarole and hullabaloo.

Next S&C sing The Beat Goes On – oh those hilariously animated French people. I love Cher’s hair swinging around in this one and her crazy hippie dancing.

Insane Cher wig alert! Cher is such a better lip sync-er than sonny.

To prove what a sad state I’m in, I actually enjoyed this Elijah interview from earlier this year. I chalk it up to not being in my right mind. It still irks me that Elijah can’t give Cher artistic cred. I know its hard in comparison to his Dad (who has built-in-coolness) but it would be so truly antagonistic (since it’s his job to be an antagonist – which is an interesting idea) to give his mom some props beyond pop lite throw-off compliments. Undercore is an interesting term, the constantly moving edge. I’m not sure I can connect it yet to what I’ve seen from Deadsy and I’m still uncomfortable with his critiques of women’s value and intelligence as he has not yet proven himself to be brilliant.

Here he is on Howard Stern late last year. I actually like Howard’s show, exactly because it takes the piss out of celebrity interviews and inverts the power structures of those interviews. We see Elijah shares the Cher trait of abbreviating names needlessly. Paris becomes Pare. It was also interesting (in a kind of icy way) hearing Elijah describe living in a Cher house, where there could be 50 people roaming around and you wouldn’t see anyone for days. That’s so fucking depressing. (I think that’s my moving stress talking). Elijah had good words for Cher’s boyfriends: Rob, Gene and Tom Cruise. Tom Cruise? I thought that was just a rumor. I feel all like Mrs. Spencer Tracy now. “Katharine Hepburn: I thought you were just a rumor.” Snap.

The Internet, Video and Links

November 1, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 1 Comment

I don’t feel much like blogging today but here goes. Yesterday as part of a work excursion I attended part of ICANN’s (Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers) 30th public meeting. You probably don’t know ICANN (and their name isn’t very sexy for sure) but they do things like run the Internet – make sure it works and isn’t hacked into and all that sort of thing. It was fascinating – the three session I attended.

The Internet is one of those things you take for granted but is so crucial to life in the modern world. My favorite quote from the meeting was from ICANN-ite George Sadowsky who said “All forms of human behavior have moved to the net and magnified.” And he went on to say how that included both good and bad forms of human behavior, saints and thieves. Do you consider how important the Internet is to your modern life and how crucial it is that it doesn’t break down?

I definitely feel mentally exhausted today. The energy there was calm but intense and now my brain is completely fried. Just listening to the translations was exhausting but very cool.

I’ll just leave you with these links for thoughts…

Cher single "Believe" was huge. Least we forget how big it was, this Today in Music article coves the basics, how it was the dance record of the 90s and probably the biggest selling dance record of all time.

Here’s more news on Cher swearing on TV and whether or not that’s a good thing or a bad thing according to US courts. Ugh! I wish this story would just go away! I’m so friggin over it already. Grant on Ghost Hunters says "What the Frig!" all the time and I think it’s so funny. My bf said yesterday that he was suffering from a bad case of the friggits.

Here’s a clip of Sonny & Cher singing "We’re Gonna Make It." Wow! First of all, didn’t we associate that song with the Allman and Woman album. Sonny & Cher did it too? Just like "You Really Got a Hold on Me." Was Cher trying to recreate Sonny & Cher with Allman duets? It seems so beyond comprehension – how could we have considered it? Or did Sonny & Cher cover so many friggin songs it would be impossible not to re-cover her covers? Of course, Cher and Allman didn’t make it, Sonny and Cher didn’t make it either but it would be hard to top their version. Bobby Sherman, that ridiculous dance, the screaming kids, the sudden appearance and disappearance of backup singers (if it wasn’t the 60s I’d think they were CGI’d in there), Sonny going absolutely crazy at the end. Wow!

This last clip is about a Joni Mitchell impersonator. It’s tone irked me…a lot. The article begins by indicating how high class it is to be a Joni Mitchell impersonator and how that possibly elevates the act to cabaret. First of all, you could argue that a Joni Mitchell impersonator is even more ridiculous of an act than a Cher impersonator…that is if you think impersonations are ridiculous in the first place which you probably do if you’re a close-minded Joni Mitchell fan. Then there’s the implication that other impersonators are of a lower-caste, being reduced to hand out pamphlets on the streets of Provincetown to their shows because “Ms. Mitchell appeals to far more rarefied tastes.” I can personally attest that you can be both a fan of Cher and Joni Mitchell. (I have her collected lyrics in my library for frig’s sake!). This was a subtle Cher-shaft in action and I had to say something.

The picture above is Bar Ilan University‘s map of the Internet. The Internet. What an awesome thing. Just this one post has brought us a blog conversation, a youtube video, factual information on a pop song and potential opinions blossoming out of billions of brains worldwide.

New Sonny & Cher Compilations

October 28, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 3 Comments

September 2007 gave us two new Sonny & Cher compilations. I was a little hesitant to buy Forever Sonny and Cher by Warner Custom Products because I could find no picture online. I’ve been burned before on these fly-by-night compilation CDs. But then it arrived and I was so excited. The CD comes in a tin! A Sonny & Cher tin!! Glory-be! The booklet inside is pretty spartan (considering it comes in a tin!) and spells Cher’s last name Lapierre and calls her an aspiring singer. But there was a picture in there I hadn’t seen before with Sonny & Cher lying on the floor of their house, Sonny in what looks like snake skin boots. This is one of those rare pictures showing Sonny in mustache and Cher still in her 60s bangs.

The compilation itself however is a bit crazy. The tin (a tin!) comes with three CDs, all with different labels, the last one being extra copies of that bad compilation from the 1990s All I Ever Need is You – a title which still confounds Allmusic guide. They think the 90s compilation is the same as the original 70s studio album. See, they’re not so smart.

The first two CDs catalog some S&C 60s hits but is by no means comprehensive or educational. Sprinkled in are some sub-hits and a few B-side rarities ("Good Combination," "Have I Stayed Too Long," "Love Is Strange" and oddly one of Sonny’s LP songs "Revolution Kind"). And there is an unusual representation of S&C songs from their freshman album Look At Us. The third disc picks up with S&C in the 70s and is the aforementioned left-over copies of All I Ever Need Is You including the misleading error that you will hear a version of "United We Stand" live. Back in the 90s I was so excited to read that when I plucked the CD out of a Tower Records bin in Yonkers, New York. But it was just a lie.

Disc: 1
1. I Got You Babe
2. Little Man
3. Just You
4. Good Combination
5. But You’re Mine
6. Beat Goes On
7. Have I Stayed Too Long
8. Beautiful Story
9. It’s the Little Things
10. What Now My Love

Disc: 2
1. Baby Don’t Go
2. Laugh at Me [Sonny Solo]
3. Living for You
4. Love Is Strange
5. 500 Miles
6. Revolution Kind [Sonny Solo]
7. Let It Be Me
8. Unchained Melody
9. Then He Kissed Me
10. You Really Got a Hold on Me

Disc: 3
1. All I Ever Need Is You
2. Cowboy’s Work Is Never Done
3. When You Say Love
4. Mama Was a Rock and Roll Singer and Papa Used to Write All Her Songs
5. You Better Sit Down Kids
6. Crystal Clear/Muddy Waters
7. Beat Goes On
8. I Got You Babe
9. United We Stand
10. Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)

The tin compilation however turned out to be quite normal compared to Sonny & Cher Classics released by Rhino Flashback records. This one is compilation very similar to the one Rhino Flashback did a few years ago I Got You Babe with S&C playing bongos on a red and white checkered background. This compilation spells her last name La Piere and contains only one S&C hit: "Baby Don’t Go." The other hit is Sonny’s "Laugh at Me" and the rest is a few aforementioned B-sides similar to the other compilation and again lots of Look At Us material.

At the end of the day these compilations make no sense, have no cohesion and contain negligible rarities.

Disc Tracks:
1. Baby Don’t Go.
2. Laugh At Me
3. Living For You.
4. Love Is Strange.
5. 500 Miles.
6. Revolution Kind, The
7. Let It Be Me.
8. Unchained Melody.
9. Then He Kissed Me.
10. You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me.

But I do enjoy rediscovering "500 Miles," the song they did made famous by Peter, Paul & Mary.

It’s Gonna Rain and the Sun Isn’t Coming Back…Ever

October 18, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 1 Comment

YouTube Master Tyler posted a link to Sonny & Cher singing "It’s Gonna Rain" — consider that this was going to be their first single if Ahmet Ertegun had won the first-single fight with Sonny. This video brings up these thoughts:

It’s interesting to me that Sonny would write a song like this living in a city where it never rains.
Sonny is terrible at lip syncing, worse than Britney.
This is the only part of the movie Wild on the Beach you ever need see.
You wouldn’t break a sweat dancing like Sonny & Cher. It’s a dance that says I’m groovy yet bored.
That woman dancing in her chair – too funny. I’m gonna try that out the next time I hit the clubs. Because I like dancing. But not as much as I like sitting.

I found these other links under related links. I wasn’t sure what they all had in common at first and then it occurred to me: they’re all weather-related Cher songs.

The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Mix

The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine from Top of the Pops

Master of YouTube

October 12, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 0 Comments

Cher fan Tyler is the master of YouTube. Over the last few weeks he has posted some fabulous links to the Cher Yahoo! Group. Speaking for myself, I am like a kid in a candy shop on YouTube. When I start surfing Cher videos, I soon get hyper and start foaming at the mouth as if overdosing on SweetTarts. Soon I’m on Ritalin with no TV privileges.

Glen Campbell’s Good Time Hour
I loved this clip so much I went out and bought the whole DVD. This is an early 70s Cher appearance on Glen Campbell’s variety show (yes, everyone who was anyone had one). And it’s an amazing thing. They sing Dylan’s “All I Really Want to Do” and punch life into the dern thing. Never before have I dug this song so much, has it seemed so buoyant. I love the horns! It also shows Cher in pre-TV-show innocence, slacky hair, not much confidence with the camera, and all that innocent clapping. Also of note is the easy and casual relationship between Cher and Glen. It’s lovely to watch. And his set! Is that a bed they’re sitting on? That would be scandalous! Is this some swinging bachelor pad he’s lured Cher into? All I really want to do indeed. I don’t buy it for a minute. I’ve seen his Surreal Life lair!

Live in Monte Carlo
I haven’t seen this whole show from start to finish, I’m very sorry to say, only clips and chunks. Maybe someday the Monte Carlo Gods will smile upon me and I will snag a bootleg copy. In the meantime, Tyler posted a clip of “Easy to Be Hard.” I’ve heard versions of Cher singing this song on both a bootleg of this Monte Carlo show and on out takes from the Jackson Highway album. And I have to say I just can’t get comfortable with Cher singing it for some reason. There is something too pedestrian about those lyrics (I love this song, by the way – have the Broadway and Movie soundtracks to Hair…but I love the movie version the best). Cher seems too exotic to pull it off…no matter how down to earth she may be behind closed doors. It just feels funny. I like all the copious amounts of audience shots in this live special, however. What are they eating do you think?

We also have “Take it To the Limit” from the same show. Is that Cher sweating?? Cher sweats??? I don’t believe it. See for yourself.

Celebration at Caesars
Then there’s the Celebration at Caesars version of “Take it To the Limit” which we’ve all come to know and love.

The Tonight Show
But here is the gem: The Tonight Show version of “Take it to the Limit” circa 1983 (not sure on that date). This is the most yummy version ever in the whole world-wide tarnation of Cher versions of this song. The outfit so perfect for the Vegas show, so brazen for The Tonight Show. Her phrasing and singing on this version are almost perfect. And that pink 80s makeup is so…well 80s!

Cher sings another Eagles song on The Tonight Show, “Those Shoes.” I can’t believe they got that big shoe moved all the way over to the Burbank studios. Kudos! I love how the dancers come out of the wall. It doesn’t have the sexy lighting of the Vegas version but its fun.

These clips give me hope for the next incarnation of Cher in Vegas, if it ever arrives next year. Maybe she’ll have a big bolo tie this time or a big loafer or (dare I dream?) synchronized dancing!!

Here a video I found myself, one of my favorite things in this world. “I may not win…but I can’t be thrown!” No one can sing that like Cher.

Jackson Highway Album of the Day

September 6, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 0 Comments

Happily last week Cher’s album 3614 Jackson Highway was album of the day on the fabulous music site Allmusic.

Here’s their detailed review by Lindsay Planer which was quite positive. They give it 3.5 out of 4 stars and label it "earthy, intimate, ambitious, mellow and gritty."

Doubly happily you can learn more about Cher’s band for the album, The Swampers.

Here’s the clincher quote:

"…closer examination reveals that not only does Cher have soul, but The Swampers are the quintessential foil for her decidedly unique style. Like soul-music serpent charmers, they summon from Cher the most authentic, if not interesting work she has been responsible for."

I’m in Mashup Heaven

August 24, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 1 Comment

Geeze Louise! Pinch me!

REM vs. Cher by DJ Schmolli – "Losing My Believe"
Sex Pistols vs. Cher by Go Home Productions – "No Feelings 4 Cher" Allegedy this mashup "received the "full blessing" of both parties (or, in the former case, Pistols guitarist Steve Jones)." Found on the EP Pistol Whipped with other Sex Pistols mash-ups (including the Madonna Pistol Mash "Ray of Gob."
R.I.P. Mashup: Cher vs. Echo & the Bunnymen doing "I Believe in Killing Time" Message on the site from Mark Vidler: "Am I still allowed to mention this track? Was bloody pleased with this pairing and still listen to this one occasionally. Several months after making it available I was kindly asked by Echo & The Bunnymens people to remove it from the website. I politely obliged. August 2002" Pansy-assed dolts.
There are so many mashups in this one…I’m dizzy. Whitney Houston vs. Madonna vs. Cher in a "Believe" "Live a Virgin" "Somebody Who Loves Me" mashup called "Believe Somebody" by DJ Earworm
Alice Deejay vs.Cher doing "This is a Song for Those Who Are Better Off Alone" by Savvy DJ.

Cher Listed Among the Best Bob Dylan Covers

August 17, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 3 Comments

Now this is good news indeed! If only I understood how she made the list. Steve Meacham, a writer for the Syndey Morning Herald in Australia, recently posted a list of his favorite Bob Dylan covers. (Thank you Chergoup on Yahoo!, yet again, for the link).

Two things irk me about this article. One, his web links are wrong. He points us to dylancovers.com which is just a landing page with Google ads. The database of Dylan covers is at http://www.bjorner.com/covers.htm. This site is actually pretty cool. At a glance you can see Dylan’s amazing influential reach. The site also correctly identifies Cher’s whopping ten Dylan covers spanning a mere five years (http://www.bjorner.com/artistc.htm#_Cher) …although technically Cher renamed "Lay Lady Lay" to "Lay Baby Lay," and "Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You" (one of my favorites) is listed twice erroneously due to a compilation being taken into account. If we were to count Cher compilations, all the songs would be listed about 100 times. This site has this same problem with other artists, as well.

But back to Meacham’s piece…I doubt he’s heard every single Dylan cover under the sun. Yet he still comes up with a list that is basically the most successful and high-profile of the bunch. He doesn’t come up with much rationale for why he picks the the versions he picks (for instance choosing Neil Young & Crazy Horse’s version of "Blowin in the Wind" over Marlene Dietrich’s version because it’s "the finest cover." Finest at what?) It gets worse when he gets to Cher’s version of "All I Really Want to Do." I’m amazed he picked her version over the one charting simultaneously by The Byrds. Cher’s version beat The Byrds in sales but Dylan himself liked The Byrds’ version. Critically, I’d like to know why Meacham felt Cher’s was better. Is he finally a reviewer who will defend Cher’s music? Yet he provides no real defense! So close but no cigar.

It’s interesting that Dylan made his debut in 1962, just a mere 3 years before Cher. This helps to explain why folk was still so huge in the mid-60s and yet old enough to be taken mainstream by pop acts like Sonny & Cher.

Believe it or not (a new mashup)

July 13, 2007 / Cher Scholar / 0 Comments

Last week a concerned non-fan friend sent me the news that "Believe" made Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of most annoying songs.

I notice all the songs on this list were massive hits, thus probably most annoying due to being over-played. Some I’ve had the pleasure of never hearing. Some are sexistly annoying. Some are annoying just because people find Celine Dion annoying. And yes, some are probably inherently annoying. I’m going to remain silent on "Believe." It was never one of my favorite songs and it’s probably my least favorite among Cher’s iconic solo quad which includes "Believe," "Gypsies," "Half Breed," and "Turn Back Time" – although "Believe" gives "Turn Back Time" a run for the bottom spot in my list. I love "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves." I really do. But it would have probably have made Rolling Stone’s list in 1976.

Here’s the list:

The Black Eyed Peas – My Humps
Los Del Rio – Macarena
Baha Men – Who Let The Dogs Out
Celine Dion – My Heart Will Go On
Nickelback – Photograph
Lou Bega – Mambo No. 5
James Blunt – You’re Beautiful
The Spice Girls – Wannabe
Sisqo – The Thong Song
Cher – Believe

Cher fan friend JeffRey sent me another mash-up of "Believe," AC/DC-ized. You know I love mash-ups! This helps alleviate the annoyance quite a bit.

Download AplusD_YouBelieveMeAllNightLong.mp3

Category: Music (Page 36 of 37)

Happy New Year!

Sadness and How It Makes Me Soft on Elijah Blue

The Internet, Video and Links

New Sonny & Cher Compilations

It’s Gonna Rain and the Sun Isn’t Coming Back…Ever

Master of YouTube

Jackson Highway Album of the Day

I’m in Mashup Heaven

Cher Listed Among the Best Bob Dylan Covers

Believe it or not (a new mashup)

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