'Cher News' Presents Your All-Time Favorite Cher Albums 5-1

After four articles covering 20 of Cher's finest albums, we've arrived at the top 5 of your all-time favorite albums!

'Cher News' asked all you lovers of Cher's music to put forward your 5 all-time favorite Cher albums, in order, to form this list! Hopefully, you'll have already seen numbers 25-6 - if not, here's a chance to:

25-21        20-16        15-11        10-6
We  have five albums left in the countdown - the most important five albums. And we begin with the only studio album that has Cher sporting blonde hair on the cover...

5. Living proof
Released in 2001
Tracklist: The Music's No Good Without You; Alive Again; Song For The Lonely; A Different Kind Of Love Song; Rain, Rain; Love So High; Body To Body, Heart To Heart; Love Is A Lonely Place Without You; Real Love; Love On Another; You Take It All (Original version only); When The Money's Gone; The Look (Japan release only); When You Walk Away (US release only)

This 2001 mostly-dance-pop album - which followed the same formula as 1998's chart-topping album 'Believe' - is at this point still Cher's latest studio album to be released. The album was a modest success; it reached number 9 in the US but failed to crack the top ten elsewhere - it put an end to her run of top 10 albums in the UK by reaching a massively disappointing number 46. First single 'The Music's No Good Without You' was however a sizable hit in the UK (#8) and much of Europe, where it had no problem reaching the top 40. The US was given a different debut single from the album, 'Song For The Lonely', which became her 51st overall hit on the US Hot 100. The US double-sided singles 'A Different Kind of Love Song' / 'The Music's No Good Without You' and 'When The Money's Gone' / 'Love On Another' found some success Stateside, topping the Billboard Dance/Club Play charts, whilst 'Love One Another' gained a Grammy Award nomination. Another song, 'Alive Again', found a place on the top 40 in Germany.

4. Stars
Released in 1975
Tracklist: Love Enough; Bell Bottom Blues; These Days; Mr. Soul; Just This One Time; Geronimo's Cadillac; The Bigger They Come, The Harder They Fall; Love Hurts; Rock and Roll Doctor; Stars

You just know that many die-hard Cher fans have put their votes into this list when albums like this make it in so high - because most casual fans will not be aware of this hidden gem. This album - with its striking cover - was released at a time when the media was having a field day with Cher's personal life - she had split with Sonny, began a relationship with David Geffen, then split with him, and began a new one with Gregg Allman. Meanwhile, Sonny & Cher's variety show 'The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour' had ended and Cher was starring in her own self-titled variety series. So, not much public attention was being given to her new record when released in April 1975 - hence its number 153 peak position on the US charts and the non-charting performances of singles 'These Days' and 'Geronimo's Cadillac'. The album has never been issued on CD and its believed to be Cher's decision not to.

Receiving a bronze medal...

3. Heart of Stone
Released in 1989
Tracklist: If I Could Turn Back Time; Just Like Jesse James; You Wouldn't Know Love; Heart of Stone; Still In Love With You; Love On A Rooftop; Emotional Fire; All Because of You; Does Anybody Really Fall In Love Anymore; Starting Over; Kiss To Kiss; After All

Here's one that many casual fans will know. A few of the singles from this pop-rock album are some of the most-recognizable of Cher's lengthy back-catalogue: there's the US and Canada top 10 Gold-certified Peter Cetera-duet 'After All'; the US and Canada top 10 'Just Like Jesse James'; the US top 20 'Heart of Stone; and one of Cher's signature songs - the US#3 Gold-certified 'If I Could Turn Back Time'. It wasn't just North America which saw these songs marching up the singles charts, especially the latter track which was a big-seller around the globe, selling two million worldwide. Fuelled by the success of its singles (oh, and 'You Wouldn't Know Love' was a minor hit in some of Europe'), the album itself was a tremendous hit, becoming Cher's biggest seller with over 4.5 million copies worldwide.

Getting silver...

2. Believe
Released in 1998
Tracklist: Believe; The Power; Runaway; All or Nothing; Strong Enough; Dove L'amore; Takin' Back My Heart; Love Is The Groove; Taxi Taxi; We All Sleep Alone

...Well, 'Heart of Stone' was her biggest-seller - until this one came along. What can be said about this one that we don't already know? It is easily Cher's biggest hit album with over 10 million copies sold! It contains Cher's biggest-selling hit - the album's record-smashing title track, which hit number one, or thereabouts, pretty much everywhere! And sold close to 8 million on the way! Also included is that song's follow-up, 'Strong Enough', which sold over 250,000 copies in each of the important European music markets of France, Germany and the UK. And of course, 'All Or Nothing' and 'Dove L'amore' were both sizable hits across Europe too. The success of the dance-pop album's has stamped such a mark on Cher's career that 2001's 'Living Proof' duplicated the same dance-pop genre as did her new album set for release in September!

And gold goes to...

1. It's A Man's World
Released in 1995
Walking In Memphis; Not Enough Love In The World; One By One; I Wouldn't Treat A Dog (The Way You Treated Me) (Original version only); Angels Running; Paradise Is Here; I'm Blowin' Away; Don't Come Around Tonite (Original version only); What About The Moonlight; The Same Mistake; The Gunman; The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore; Shape Of Things To come (Original version only); It's A Man's Man's Man's World

The album that was voted by you Cher fans as your all-time favorite Cher album is 1995's 'It's A Man's World'. When first released outside North America in late 1995, the album showcased 14 tracks with a pop/rock vibe. But by the time the album was released in North America the next June, the album had lost three tracks and had seen many of the remaining tracks remixed to more of an R&B sound. But it's the original version that really should be crowned here in first place as so many of you noted in your votes that it's that one you were voting for. First single 'Walking In Memphis' was a moderate hit for Cher, gaining top 20 positions in a handful of European charts. Follow-up 'One By One' reached number 7 in the UK and the remixed version hit number 52 in the US. 'Not Enough Love In the World' and 'The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore' were also top 40 hits in the UK. Overall, the album was an OK success, selling over 450,000 copies worldwide but this was a big drop from its multi-million-selling predecessor 'Love Hurts'.

Well there you go! Were there any surprises in the top 5? What did you think of the countdown? Is 'It's A Man's World' a deserving winner?