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 Cher |
 Cher |
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Story and photos by Andy Argyrakis She's an all around icon of the recording studio, stage and screen who at 68-years-old with over 100 million solo and 40 million duo albums sold puts Cher in a class all her own. Few if any stars of today will be able to amass even a fraction of her longevity, which has stretched from the Sonny & Cher days of the early 1960s through present day where she's just dropped her 25th studio album "Closer To The Truth."Besides demonstrating rich and radiant vocal form, the collection miraculously maintains her relevance, thanks in part to collaborations with Pink, Scissor Sisters singer Jake Shears and DJ extraordinaire Paul Oakenfold (amongst others). As a result, her stop at Milwaukee's A-list arena the BMO Harris Bradley Center was filled with faces spanning several generations, all of whom seemed to turn a blind eye to the fact that Cher supposedly said "farewell" to touring a decade ago for an extensive Las Vegas residency. From the opening notes of the new dance floor filler "Woman's World" and the equally empowering newer confection "Strong Enough," it was indeed incredible to have the diva back to doing what she does best. In addition to bringing those boisterous pipes and a finely maintained fitness level to the festivities, she clearly let the influence of Sin City manifest itself throughout the "Dressed To Kill" tour, which boasted production marvels like Cirque du Soleil-styled aerialists, a giant Trojan horse, and a flight above the audience, plus more than a dozen costume changes that flashed class, kitsch and glitz at every feathered turn. As over the top as it all sounds, Cher never lost sight of the music amidst the extravagance, serving up some poignancy throughout the virtual duet "I Got You Babe" with her late ex-hubby Sonny on the big screen, while also camping up her psychedelic era with a super fun (and sexy) medley of "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves," "Dark Lady" and "Half-Breed." But to her credit, this was no means a nostalgic show, during which she didn't just bravely preview four of her exceptionally worthwhile new tunes, but also a pair from her most recent movie "Burlesque" (including an unwaveringly accurate take on the daunting ballad "You Haven't Seen The Last Of Me"). She may have skipped out on monster hits like "The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss)," "After All" and "We All Sleep Alone" in the process, but remained committed to her most essential touchstones, nailing the country-tinted "Just Like Jesse James," the hard rockin' "I Found Someone" and the Y2K club comeback "Believe" with equal bravado. Nonetheless, it was the eternal "If I Could Turn Back Time" that truly stole the show, not only as a stirring musical presentation, but also because it found Cher dawning a similar backless bathing suit from the 1989 music video as a testament to her flawless figure. There's a famous quote attributed to the superstar that says "after a nuclear holocaust, all that will be left are cockroaches and Cher," a fact that was only reinforced throughout these 90 indestructible minutes of sheer fabulousness. Longtime touring partner Cyndi Lauper definitely got the party started as she entered from the back of the venue to the alt-pop beats of "She Bop" surrounded by security guards waving glow sticks. And as she hit the main stage with her bright red hair glistening in the glow of an overhead disco ball, the quirky singer/songwriter shined through several more memories from her 22 million selling breakthrough project "She's So Unusual" (which is currently celebrating its 30th anniversary). However, the momentum was derailed for a lengthy conversation and impromptu a cappela segment from her six time Tony Award winning Broadway musical "Kinky Boots," an excellent show in its own right, but a decision that cut into her already limited timeframe and forced an unforgivable sacrifice of her signature ballad/usual finale "True Colors." With the earlier mastery of "Time After Time" and "Girls Just Want To Have Fun," chances are more casual concertgoers were appeased, but even semi-dedicated Lauper fans would've been better served seeing a solo headlining show. |
 Cher |
 Cyndi Lauper |
 Cyndi Lauper |
 Cher |
 Cher |
 Cher |
 Cher |
 Cher |
 Cher |
 Cyndi Lauper |
 Cher |