''Cher'' is the eighteenth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by American singer-actress

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

, released on November 10, 1987 by

Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...

. The album has been certified Platinum in the US by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

and Gold in Australia by

ARIA In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

and the UK by BPI.

Background

Five years after the release of Cher's last album, '' I Paralyze'', and her decision to focus on a film career, Cher signed with

(which would later absorb one of her former labels,

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

) and was rushed to the studio to record what would become her comeback album. The album, ''Cher'', was released in the fall of 1987 and was produced by

Michael Bolton Michael Bolotin (born February 26, 1953), known professionally as Michael Bolton, is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton performed in the hard rock and heavy metal music genres from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, both on his early solo a ...

Jon Bon Jovi John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and Lead vocalist, frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was fo ...

Richie Sambora Richard Stephen Sambora (born July 11, 1959) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Bon Jovi from 1983 to 2013. He and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi formed the main songwriting unit for the ...

and

Desmond Child John Charles Barrett (born October 28, 1953), known professionally as Desmond Child, is an American songwriter and record producer. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. He has been nominated for four Grammy Awards, a Primet ...

. Among the notable guest artists,

Bonnie Tyler Gaynor Sullivan (née Hopkins; born 8 June 1951), known professionally as Bonnie Tyler, is a Welsh singer. Known for her distinctive husky voice, Tyler came to prominence with the release of her 1977 album '' The World Starts Tonight'' and its ...

and

Darlene Love Darlene Wright (born July 26, 1941), also known by the stage name Darlene Love, is an American R&B and soul singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the girl group the Blossoms and also a solo recording artist. She began singing as a ch ...

were backing vocalists on "Perfection". After a series of pop and disco records, Cher moved to a radio-friendly rock sound, which helped her get back onto the charts. The album includes a new version of her 1966 hit "

Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" is the second single by American singer-actress Cher from her second album, '' The Sonny Side of Chér'' (1966). It was written by her husband Sonny Bono and released in 1966. It reached No. 3 in the UK Singles ...

's " I Found Someone"—which Bolton and

Mark Mangold Mark Mangold is an American pop music, pop singer-songwriter, producer and keyboardist. A member of the band Touch (1980s band), Touch, as a songwriter Mangold's songs have been performed by Michael Bolton, Cher and Jordin Sparks, Paul Rodgers, ...

had originally written for

Laura Branigan Laura Ann Branigan (July 3, 1952 – August 26, 2004) was an American singer. Her signature song, the platinum-certified 1982 single " Gloria", stayed on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for 36 weeks, then a record for a female artist, peaking a ...

, released on her 1985 album '' Hold Me''—several songs written by

, and two by

Diane Warren Diane Eve Warren (born September 7, 1956) is an American songwriter. She has won an Academy Honorary Award, Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards and three consecutive ''Billboard'' Music Awards for Songwriter of the Year from 19 ...

, who would go on to write many more songs for the singer. This was also her third album to be named ''Cher'' or ''Chér'', as ''

Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves" is a song recorded by American singer and actress Cher from her 1971 seventh studio album '' Chér'' (eventually reissued under the title ''Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves''). Kapp Records, a division of MCA Records, releas ...

'' was initially released under the name ''Chér'' before it was retitled following the success of the single of the same name, while a studio album in 1966 was also titled '' Chér''.

Reception

The album reached No. 26 in the UK and peaked at No. 32 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' albums chart. The first single released from the album and its only UK top 10 hit was " I Found Someone", which reached No. 5 in the UK and No. 10 in the US. The second single, "

We All Sleep Alone "We All Sleep Alone" is the second official single from American singer and actress Cher's self-titled eighteenth album, ''Cher (1987 album), Cher'' (1987), released on January 28, 1988 by Geffen Records. The song was written and produced by Desmo ...

", peaked at No. 14 on ''Billboard''s Hot 100 chart and just missed breaking the Adult Contemporary top 10 in the US, reaching No. 11. It was less successful in the UK, however, peaking at No. 47. The album's third single was " Skin Deep". The fourth and final single was " Main Man", released in the US and Australia in October 1988. " Bang Bang", was released as a promotional single in Europe.

Promotion

On November 13, 1987, Cher appeared on ''

Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...

'', where she performed "I Found Someone" and "

I Got You Babe "I Got You Babe" is a song performed by American pop and entertainment duo Sonny & Cher and written by Sonny Bono. It was the first single taken from their debut studio album, '' Look at Us'' (1965). In August 1965, the single spent three weeks ...

", the latter with ex-husband

Sonny Bono Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono ( ; February 16, 1935 – January 5, 1998) was an American singer, songwriter, actor, and politician. In partnership with his second wife, Cher, he formed the singing duo Sonny & Cher. A member of the Republican Pa ...

. Later released on

VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...

, the ''Late Night'' performance would be her last with Bono before his death. On November 21, Cher appeared as the musical guest on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'', performing "I Found Someone" and "We All Sleep Alone". The album was also promoted on UK television.

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. * Cher – vocals * Phillip Ashley – keyboards (1, 10) *

Jeff Bova Jeff Bova (born Jeffrey Bova in 1953) is an American musician. He has been active in the music industry since the mid-1970s, contributing to recordings by significant mainstream artists like Celine Dion, Michael Jackson, Blondie, Eric Clapton, ...

– keyboards (1, 10) *

Doug Katsaros Doug Katsaros is an American keyboardist, arranger, composer, and conductor. Biography In 1978 he played on Paul Stanley's debut album, followed by working on albums by Richie Havens, Michael Bolton, Arc Angel, Bon Jovi and his band Balance ...

– keyboards (1) *

David Bryan David Bryan Rashbaum (born February 7, 1962) is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the keyboard player for the rock band Bon Jovi, in which he also co-wrote songs and performed backing vocals. In 2018, he was inducted into the ...

– keyboards (2, 3), synthesizers (2) * Chuck Kentis – additional keyboards (2, 3), keyboards (4–6, 9), synthesizers (4–6, 9) * Bette Sussman – acoustic piano (4) * Gregg Mangiafico – keyboards (5, 6, 9), synthesizers (5, 6, 9) *

Bill Payne William H. Payne (born March 12, 1949, in Waco, Texas) is an American pianist who, with Lowell George, co-founded the American rock band Little Feat. He is considered by many other rock pianists, including Elton John, to be one of the finest A ...

– keyboards (7) *

John Van Tongeren John Warrington Van Tongeren is an American keyboardist and composer for films and television. Biography Van Tongeren's career in the entertainment business began as a keyboardist, with one of his earliest projects being the band Q, featuring ...

– synthesizers (8), synth bass (8) * Mark Morgan – synth organ (8) *

Steve Lukather Steven Lee "Luke" Lukather (born October 21, 1957) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer, best known as the sole continuous founding member of the rock band Toto. His reputation as a skilled guitarist led to ...

– guitars (1) *

John McCurry John McCurry (born June 24, 1957) is an American musician, songwriter and composer based in New York City. He has worked with many well-known musical artists, including Chicago, Cyndi Lauper, Billy Joel, David Bowie, Alice Cooper, John Waite, B ...

– guitars (1, 4–6, 10) *

– guitars (2, 3), backing vocals (2) * John Putnam – guitars (4, 9) *

Michael Landau Michael Christopher Landau (born June 1, 1958) is an American musician, audio engineer, and record-producer. He is a session musician and guitarist who has played on many albums since the early 1980s with Boz Scaggs, Minoru Niihara, Joni Mitchel ...

– guitars (7) *

Waddy Wachtel Robert "Waddy" Wachtel (born May 24, 1947) is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work. Wachtel has worked as session musician for other artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Beth Hart, Stevie Nicks, Miranda ...

– guitars (7) * Bob Mann – guitar solo (7) * Michael Thompson – guitars (8) * Ira Siegel – guitars (10) *

Will Lee William Lee (born William Lubovsky; August 6, 1908 – December 7, 1982) was an American actor who appeared in numerous television and film roles, but was best known for playing Mr. Hooper, the original store proprietor of the eponymous Hoope ...

– bass (1, 10) *

Alec John Such Alexander John Such (November 14, 1951 – June 5, 2022) was an American musician, best known as the bassist of the rock band Bon Jovi. He played in the band from 1983 to 1994, appearing on their first five studio albums. Biography Such was ...

– bass (2, 3) * Seth Glassman – bass (4) * John Siegler – bass (5) *

Larry Klein Larry Klein is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is based in Los Angeles. He began his career as a bassist, playing with jazz artists Willie Bobo, Freddie Hubbard, Carmen McRae, Joe Henderson, Bobby Hutcherson, Way ...

– bass (7) *

Jimmy Haslip James Robert Haslip (born December 31, 1951) is an American bass guitarist who was a founding member of the jazz fusion group the Yellowjackets, which he left in 2012. He was also an early user of the five-string electric bass. Early life and ...

– bass (8) *

Tony Levin Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer specializing in electric bass guitars, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (19 ...

– bass (9) * Chris Parker – drums (1) *

Tico Torres Hector Samuel Juan "Tico" Torres (born October 7, 1953) is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Bon Jovi. In 2018, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Bon Jovi. Childhood Hector J ...

– drums (2, 3) *

Jerry Marotta Jerome David Marotta (born February 6, 1956) is an American drummer who resides in Woodstock, New York. He is the younger brother of Rick Marotta; Rick is also a drummer and composer. Career Marotta was a member of the bands Arthur, Hurley & ...

– drums (4–6, 9) * Jimmy Bralower – drums (6, 9) *

Carlos Vega Carlos Vega (December 7, 1956 – April 7, 1998) was a Cuban-born Los Angeles-based session drummer best known for his performances with James Taylor. As a part of the L.A. studio scene from the late 1970s through the 1990s, Vega contributed to ...

– drums (7) *

Craig Krampf Craig Krampf (born October 22, 1954) is an American drummer, percussionist, arranger, record producer and songwriter. The majority of his notable credits are as a studio drummer. Since the 1970s, he has played on albums by other artists ranging f ...

– drums (8), drum programming (8) *

Albhy Galuten Albhy Galuten (born Alan Bruce Galuten; December 27, 1947) is an American technology executive and futurist, Grammy Award-winning record producer, composer, musician, orchestrator and conductor. Career Musical career Galuten attended Berkle ...

– drums (10) *

Peter Asher Peter Asher (born 22 June 1944) is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the pop music vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a manager and re ...

– percussion (7) * Michael Fisher – percussion (7) * Pattie Darcy – backing vocals (1, 10) *

– backing vocals (2–4, 9) *

– backing vocals (2, 3) *

Holly Knight Holly Knight (born 1956) is an American songwriter, musician, and singer. She was a member of the 1980s pop rock groups Spider and Device, and wrote or co-wrote several hit singles for other artists, such as " Rag Doll", " Obsession", " Love Is ...

– backing vocals (2), additional keyboards (3) * Louis Merlino – backing vocals (2, 4–6, 9) *

Nancy Nash Nancy Nash is a Canadian blues and pop singer, who has recorded and performed both under her birth name and as Sazacha Red Sky. Under the latter name, she garnered a Juno Award nomination for Best Music of Aboriginal Canada Recording at the Jun ...

– backing vocals (2) * Bernie Shanahan – backing vocals (2, 3, 9) *

Joe Lynn Turner Joe Lynn Turner (born Joseph Arthur Mark Linquito, August 2, 1951) is an American singer best known for his work with Rainbow (rock band), Rainbow, Deep Purple, and Yngwie Malmsteen. Turner joined Rainbow (rock band), Rainbow in the early 1980 ...

– backing vocals (2–4, 6, 9) *

– backing vocals (3) * Diana Grasselli – backing vocals (3, 6) *

Dave Meniketti David Alan Meniketti (born December 12, 1953) is an American musician, best known as singer, songwriter, and lead guitarist for hard rock/ heavy metal band Y&T. He has also released three solo efforts (including "Live in Japan"), one of which is ...

– backing vocals (3) * Myriam Valle – backing vocals (3–6, 9) * Elaine Caswell – backing vocals (4–6, 9) *

– backing vocals (6) *

– featured vocals (6) *

Rosemary Butler Rosemary Butler may refer to: * Rosemary Butler (politician) Dame Rosemary Janet Mair Butler (''née'' McGrath; born 21 January 1943) is a British politician who served as Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales (now Llywydd of ...

– backing vocals (7) * Arnold McCuller – backing vocals (7) *

Debra Dobkin Debra Dobkin is an American vocalist, percussionist, music producer, and painter. Biography Early history She was selected at age 6 for children's scholarship classes by the Art Institute of Chicago, and later attended the Sam Fox School of D ...

– backing vocals (8) * Julia Waters – backing vocals (8) * Maxine Waters – backing vocals (8) *

Maurice White Maurice White (December 19, 1941 – February 4, 2016) was an American musician, best known as the founder, leader, main songwriter and chief producer of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, also serving as the band's co-lead singer with Philip Bailey. ...

– vamp vocals (8) *

Vicki Sue Robinson Vicki Sue Robinson (May 31, 1954 – April 27, 2000) was an American singer closely associated with the disco era of late 1970s pop music; she is most famous for her 1976 hit, " Turn the Beat Around". Early life Born in Harlem, New York, to Afr ...

– backing vocals (1, 10)

Production

* Jolie Jones Levine – assistant producer (8) * Albhy Galuten – additional production (10) * Deborah Paull – album coordination * Melanie F. Williams – album coordination * Gabrielle Raumberger – art direction, design, hand tinting *

Matthew Rolston Matthew Russell Rolston is an American artist, photographer, director and creative director, known for his lighting techniques and detailed approach to art direction and design. Rolston has been identified throughout his career with the revival an ...

– photography *

Bob Mackie Robert Gordon Mackie (born March 24, 1940) is an American fashion designer and costumier, best known for his dressing of numerous entertainment personalities for television, movies, concerts, and live stage shows. He was the costume designer f ...

– wardrobe * Michael Schmidt – wardrobe Technical *

Greg Fulginiti Gregory Fulginiti (born 1951) is an American recording and mastering engineer. He was nominated for the TEC Awards by '' Mix'' magazine six times, in 1985 and 1987–1991. Career Fulginiti grew up in Wildwood, New Jersey, and graduated from Wi ...

– mastering at

Artisan Sound Recorders Artisan Sound Recorders was one of Southern California's premier disk mastering facilities. It was founded by Robert M. MacLeod Jr. in the 1960s, and acquired by Kent Duncan in 1979 when MacLeod retired. In the early 1990s, it was sold to Jon Lo ...

(Hollywood, California) * Michael Christopher – recording (1, 10) * David Thoener – mixing (1, 4–6, 8–10) * Sir Arthur Payson – recording (2–6, 9) *

Bob Rock Robert Jens Rock (born April 19, 1954) is a Canadian record producer, recording engineer and musician. In 1976, Rock joined Little Mountain Sound Studios, starting out as a recording engineer and sound mixer. During his time there, he coll ...

– mixing (2, 3) * Frank Wolf – recording (7), mixing (7) * Daren Klein – recording (8) * Csaba Petocz – recording (8) * Rob Jacobs – additional engineer (2, 3) *

Shelly Yakus Sheldon Gershon "Shelly" Yakus (born November 1945) is an American music engineer and mixer. Formerly chief engineer and vice president of A&M Records, he was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999. Yakus is referenced ...

– additional engineer (3) * Gene Parciasepe – additional engineer (6, 9) * Mark Partis – additional engineer (10) * Thom Cadley – assistant engineer * George Cowan – assistant engineer * Bridget Daly – assistant engineer * Jim Dineen – assistant engineer * Chris Floberg – assistant engineer * Jay Healy – assistant engineer * Chris Isca – assistant engineer * Chris Laidlaw – assistant engineer * Matthew LaMonica – assistant engineer * Ken Lomas – assistant engineer * Frank Pekoc – assistant engineer * Sharon Rice – assistant engineer * Brian Scheuble – assistant engineer * Gary Solomon – assistant engineer * Ken Steiger – assistant engineer * Ted Trewhella – assistant engineer * Jim Vanzino – assistant engineer * Bob Vogt – assistant engineer * Gary Wright – assistant engineer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1987 albums Cher albums Albums produced by Desmond Child Albums produced by Peter Asher Albums produced by Richie Sambora Geffen Records albums Albums recorded at Electric Lady Studios