Again the pair began to make plans for their upcoming parenthood. They were preparing for a weekend gig in Minneapolis, when Cher suddenly complained about stomach pains. As in her previous pregnancy, she suffered a miscarriage. With Cher in the hospital, Sonny attempted to back out of the Minneapolis engagement, but was informed that either he perform alone or be sued by the concert promoter. Backed into a corner, Sonny obligingly flew to Minneapolis with his friend and road manager Denis Pregnolato, and for the first time performed as Sonny without Cher.
In September of 1967, Cher’s version of the Joe Tex song “Hey Joe” stalled at Number 94 on the Billboard charts. In October, Sonny & Cher’s greatest-hits album, The Best of Sonny & Cher , was released the same month that they made a guest appearance on the hit television series The Man from U.N.C.L.E ., which starred Robert Vaughan and David McCallum. Fortunately, The Best of Sonny & Cher was something of a hit for the duo, making it to Number 26 on the American album chart in Billboard magazine.
The single-disk The Best of Sonny & Cher album featured a montage of photos of the duo on the cover, with a colorful baroque pattern of designs framing them. The album featured a dozen of the duo’s biggest hits, teaming Top 10 hit “I Got You Babe,” “Laugh at Me,” “Little Man,” and “The Beat Goes On” with their recent singles like “It’s the Little Things” and “Living for You.” Conspicuously missing from the set was their other Top 10 hit, “Baby Don’t Go,” which had been on Reprise Records.
To promote their greatest-hits album, Sonny & Cher flew to New York City in November. Their stay in town encompassed Thanksgiving day. When Ahmet Ertegun, the president of Atlantic/ATCO Records, asked the pair what their plans were for the holiday, Sonny told him that they just planned to have a quiet dinner in their hotel room. Ahmet wouldn’t hear of such a thing, so he insisted that they join him in his East Side brownstone, where he would be serving dinner for several of his elite friends. According to Sonny, when they arrived there, they were instantly aware that they were out of their league. The dinner guests also included Andy Warhol, actress Viva, filmmaker Joel Schumacher, and Vogue magazine’s flamboyant editor Diana Vreeland. Drinks, cocaine, marijuana, and all sorts of intoxicants were consumed by the guests—except for Sonny and Cher. “Cher and I sat in the corner of a sofa like two aliens,” Sonny recalled. “It was eerie, watching everybody get loaded and loony” (35).
After salads and appetizers were served, the turkey was finally brought out. After everyone commented on the fabulous turkey, one young woman stood up as though she was going to say something, and instead projectile-vomited all over the turkey. Sonny and Cher excused themselves and left the brownstone. As they had originally planned, they returned to their hotel and ordered room service.
Cher’s next solo single, “You Better Sit Down Kids,” became a huge Top 10 hit for her, peaking at Number 9 in America in December of 1967. Another dramatic ballad about the breakup of a relationship, “You Better Sit Down Kids” is sung by a father leaving his children in a marital split. It didn’t matter that Cher was a young girl singing this song; she turned it into a soap-opera storytelling, at which she vocally excelled.
In December, Sonny & Cher released their last hit as recording artists for ATCO: “Good Combination.” Although “The Beat Goes On” had been a huge hit for them in February, in the United States and the United Kingdom, their five subsequent singles had all bombed. Not one of them cracked the Top 40 on either side of the Atlantic. “Good Combination” peaked at Number 56 in the United States alone. Their presence on the British charts was even more disappointing.
In retrospect, none of the five subsequent songs Sonny & Cher released in 1967
In September of 1967, Cher’s version of the Joe Tex song “Hey Joe” stalled at Number 94 on the Billboard charts. In October, Sonny & Cher’s greatest-hits album, The Best of Sonny & Cher , was released the same month that they made a guest appearance on the hit television series The Man from U.N.C.L.E ., which starred Robert Vaughan and David McCallum. Fortunately, The Best of Sonny & Cher was something of a hit for the duo, making it to Number 26 on the American album chart in Billboard magazine.
The single-disk The Best of Sonny & Cher album featured a montage of photos of the duo on the cover, with a colorful baroque pattern of designs framing them. The album featured a dozen of the duo’s biggest hits, teaming Top 10 hit “I Got You Babe,” “Laugh at Me,” “Little Man,” and “The Beat Goes On” with their recent singles like “It’s the Little Things” and “Living for You.” Conspicuously missing from the set was their other Top 10 hit, “Baby Don’t Go,” which had been on Reprise Records.
To promote their greatest-hits album, Sonny & Cher flew to New York City in November. Their stay in town encompassed Thanksgiving day. When Ahmet Ertegun, the president of Atlantic/ATCO Records, asked the pair what their plans were for the holiday, Sonny told him that they just planned to have a quiet dinner in their hotel room. Ahmet wouldn’t hear of such a thing, so he insisted that they join him in his East Side brownstone, where he would be serving dinner for several of his elite friends. According to Sonny, when they arrived there, they were instantly aware that they were out of their league. The dinner guests also included Andy Warhol, actress Viva, filmmaker Joel Schumacher, and Vogue magazine’s flamboyant editor Diana Vreeland. Drinks, cocaine, marijuana, and all sorts of intoxicants were consumed by the guests—except for Sonny and Cher. “Cher and I sat in the corner of a sofa like two aliens,” Sonny recalled. “It was eerie, watching everybody get loaded and loony” (35).
After salads and appetizers were served, the turkey was finally brought out. After everyone commented on the fabulous turkey, one young woman stood up as though she was going to say something, and instead projectile-vomited all over the turkey. Sonny and Cher excused themselves and left the brownstone. As they had originally planned, they returned to their hotel and ordered room service.
Cher’s next solo single, “You Better Sit Down Kids,” became a huge Top 10 hit for her, peaking at Number 9 in America in December of 1967. Another dramatic ballad about the breakup of a relationship, “You Better Sit Down Kids” is sung by a father leaving his children in a marital split. It didn’t matter that Cher was a young girl singing this song; she turned it into a soap-opera storytelling, at which she vocally excelled.
In December, Sonny & Cher released their last hit as recording artists for ATCO: “Good Combination.” Although “The Beat Goes On” had been a huge hit for them in February, in the United States and the United Kingdom, their five subsequent singles had all bombed. Not one of them cracked the Top 40 on either side of the Atlantic. “Good Combination” peaked at Number 56 in the United States alone. Their presence on the British charts was even more disappointing.
In retrospect, none of the five subsequent songs Sonny & Cher released in 1967
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