#sonny bono
Sonny & Cher at the 45th Annual Academy Awards (1973).
Mike Myers and Beyonce in Goldmember (2003).
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EARLY WORKS FOR ME
(First Steps, Starting Points, and Juvenilia)
Bonnie Jo Mason - “Ringo, I Love You”
You probably don’t recognize the name “Bonnie Jo Mason.” And that’s because it’s a fake name, chosen because Phil Spector didn’t think that “Cherilyn La Piere” was American enough.
Later, the singer chose to go by a different nom de guerre.
Cher.
You probably recognize that one.
But before she was the only artist in history to top the Billboard singles chart in six consecutive decades, she a teenager working odd jobs and scrounging for a career. Through her future husband and collaborator Sonny Bono, she wound up in the studio with legendary producer / legendary psychopath Phil Spector.1 The first song she ever recorded is the Spector-penned track above: a fan girl torch song for Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.
The track itself is a sloppy little ‘60s garage rock number, the sort of song that would wind up on a bargain bin singles compilation if it weren’t for Cher’s subsequent career. It’s a novelty song through and through, aiming for an of-the-moment spike rather than any sort of enduring impact. That’s not to say that it’s an unpleasant listen: it’s just the definition of inessential.
But the fascinating silver lining of the track, comes down to the possible reason that it never wound up being a hit. Cher and others have speculated that because of her low voice, disc jockeys mistook her for a man, thus making the song a homosexual ode to Ringo, which isn’t the sort of thing that got radio play then (or, let’s be honest, now).
So, although this song seems like a odd place to begin Cher’s recording career, it also makes a little bit of sense. The woman was born to be a queer icon, and that was clear right from the start.
- TWG
1. She actually sang back up on The Ronnettes’ “Be My Baby” and The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling.”
