Sonny & Cher were an American husband-and-wife pop duo, consisting of Salvatore Philip "Sonny" Bono (February 16, 1935 – January 5, 1998) and Cher (born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946).
Sonny started in the music industry working with Phil Spector, writing and co-writing songs including "You Do to Me" (made famous by Sam Cooke) and "Needles and Pins" (made famous by The Searchers) prior to his marriage to Cher 1964. From there, Sonny wrote "I Got You Babe" and "The Beat Goes On", which became major early hits that led to a momentous career from the mid-'60s. The fame also led to the creation of The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour (1971–74), as well as a further two albums before the duo divorced in 1975. Leaving the bitterness of said divorce behind, they starred in The Sonny & Cher Show (1976–77) and had two brief reunion performances, last performing "I Got You Babe" on Late Night with David Letterman in 1987.
Cher also has a solo career with its own page. Meanwhile Sonny would go into politics: after being stymied by red tape in his attempts to open a restaurant in his adopted hometown of Palm Springs, California, he ran for mayor of the town as a Republican in 1987 and won—much to his own surprise. He served as mayor from 1988 to 1992, when he resigned to seek election to the U.S. Senate; he lost, but ran for House of Representatives in 1994, a rare Republican moderate to benefit from the "Republican Revolution". He served in the House from 1995 to his death in 1998 from a skiing accident. As a politician, Bono acquired infamy among copyright critics for his involvement with the Copyright Term Extension Act while in office, and not entirely fairly; while he had sponsored an earlier version of the bill, the version that ultimately became law was only introduced after his death, and was actually called the "Sonny Bono Act" By its other sponsors in his memory. (And let's be fair, if anyone has a personal, understandable reason to want to extend copyright, it’s the guy who wrote/recorded a bunch of hit songs and wants to make sure that guarantees a secure and comfortable life for his children and grandchildren.) But because the act gave an additional 20 years to all copyrights and was heavily supported by the Walt Disney Company, it became known (derisively) as the "Mickey Mouse Protection Act".
Discography
- Look at Us (1965)
- The Wondrous World of Sonny & Cher (1967)
- In Case You're in Love (1967)
- All I Ever Need Is You (1972)
- Mama Was a Rock and Roll Singer, Papa Used to Write All Her Songs (1974)
Sonny & Cher provide examples of:
- Everything Sounds Sexier in French: The duo demonstrated this on their variety show by having Cher sing "Hit the Road, Jack" in French. It came out sounding like a romantic serenade.
- Name and Name: Given their nature as a husband-and-wife duo, they used their first names.
- One-Book Author: While Cher sustained a solid solo career even when they were still together, Sonny released just one solo album, 1967's Inner Views.note The album saw Bono try his hand at Psychedelic Rock, with several long songs, include the 12-minute opening track "I Just Sit There". A huge flop, the album has amassed a
So Bad, It's Good reputation over the ensuing decades. - Silly Love Songs: "I Got You Babe", where even where the subjects of the song were young and poor, they still got each other.
- Working with the Ex: While still divorced, the two maintained a friendship to the end of Sonny's days. They had the Sonny & Cher Show in 1976–77 and had two brief later reunions.
- Wrap-Up Song: At the end of every episode of The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour, they sang "I Got You Babe".
