''I'd Rather Believe in You'' is the 13th studio album by American singer-actress Cher, released in October 1976 by

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

. This album was a commercial failure and failed to chart.

Album information

Because ''Stars'' was such an abysmal financial failure, Cher was put back with narrative pop songs on her next album. The album garnered no attention, and as such did not chart. Producer Michael Omartian attributed this to "a lack of promotion." Cher recorded this album while she was pregnant with Elijah Blue Allman, her second child. She wrote a dedication to him on the back-sleeve of the album: ''And a special thanks to Elijah for waiting until the day after I finished my album. Cher''. Only one single was released, "Long Distance Love Affair" (b/w "Borrowed Time"). It was performed twice on her TV show, but charted nowhere. "I'd Rather Believe In You" was planned as the second single from the album, but it was cancelled after the first single failed. A different version of the song, in which the lyrics are directed toward God instead of a lover, was recorded by the contemporary Christian singing group the Imperials for their 1980 album ''Priority'', which was also produced by Omartian. In 1976, Cher recorded two other songs: "A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knockin' Everyday)," a duet with

Harry Nilsson Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), sometimes credited as Nilsson, was an American singer-songwriter who reached the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. His work is characterized by pioneering vocal ov ...

, and "Pirate" (from her album '' Cherished'' which was released a year later), the latter of which starts off the album on some editions. The album has never been released on CD, and the only CD versions in circulation are bootlegs. According to '' Billboard'', Cher owned this album's master rights and Warner had no right to reissue. On 30 July 2021, it was announced that a restored & remastered version of the album would be available exclusively on Cher’s official

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

channel on 6 August 2021.

Track listing

Personnel

*Cher - lead vocals *

Dean Parks Weldon Dean Parks (born December 6, 1946) is an American session guitarist and record producer from Fort Worth, Texas. Albums Parks was member of the North Texas State One O'clock Lab Band before moving to Los Angeles to work with Sonny and Cher ...

, Lee Ritenour - guitar *

Jay Graydon Jay Joseph Graydon (born October 8, 1949, Burbank, California) is an American songwriter, recording artist, guitarist, singer, keyboardist, producer, arranger, and recording engineer. He is the winner of two Grammy Awards (in the R&B category) wi ...

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, mandolin *Ben Benay - guitar, harmonica * David Hungate,

Lee Sklar Leland Bruce Sklar (born May 28, 1947) is an American bassist and session musician. Sklar rose to prominence as a member of James Taylor's backing band, which coaleced into a group in its own right, The Section. This group of musicians so fre ...

, Scott Edwards - bass guitar * Michael Omartian - keyboards, backing vocals *

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (; April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work with the rock band Toto but is one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working o ...

- drums *

Steve Barri Steve Barri (born Steven Barry Lipkin in Brooklyn, New York on February 23, 1942) is an American songwriter and record producer. Career Early in his career, Barri was a staff writer with Dunhill Records. He produced such huge hits as " Dizzy" ...

Victor Feldman Victor Stanley Feldman (7 April 1934 – 12 May 1987) was an English jazz musician who played mainly piano, vibraphone, and percussion. He began performing professionally during childhood, eventually earning acclaim in the UK jazz scene as ...

- percussion * Chuck Findley, Lew McCreary,

Nino Tempo Nino Tempo (born Antonino LoTempio; January 6, 1935) is an American musician, singer, and actor. He was a duet partner with his older sister April Stevens as well as the frontman for a 1970s funk band, 5th Ave. Sax. Career Antonino LoTempio w ...

, Steve Douglas, Steve Madaio - horns *Dan Walsh, Gene Nelson, Ginger Blake, Jim Haas, Julia Tillman Waters, Kerry Chater, Maxine Tillman Waters, Michael Price, Stephanie Spring - backing vocals ;Technical *Steve Barri -

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

*Michael Omartian - record producer *Phil Kaye - sound engineer *Ed Thrasher - art direction *

Norman Seeff Norman Seeff (born March 5, 1939, in Johannesburg, South Africa) is a photographer and filmmaker. Since moving to the United States in 1969, his work has been focused on the exploration of human creativity and the inner dynamics of the creative ...

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employe ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1976 albums Cher albums Albums produced by Michael Omartian Warner Records albums