What Are the 5 Biggest U.S. Hits by Cher?

Count us among the Cher backers who believe that her recent induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was long overdue. Even elite artists tend to have a relatively short time in the spotlight when it comes to their hitmaking days. Not this lady, who threatened the top of the charts in four different decades.

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Her discography is fascinating and varied. And, to give you an idea of her impressive track record, four of the five songs on this list went to No. 1 on the U.S. pop charts. Here are Cher’s five biggest smashes.

5. “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” (No. 2 in 1965)

For the purpose of this list, we only included songs where Cher was listed as the sole recording artist, which eliminated the string of hits she had as part of Sonny & Cher. But Sonny Bono remained very involved in her solo career in the early days, to the point where he wrote and produced “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down),” her biggest ’60s solo song. It takes a special kind of performer to be able to pull off a song with such over-the-top tendencies. She had the knack then, and she had it when she returned to record the song again in the ’80s with help from Jon Bon Jovi.

4. “Dark Lady” (No. 1 in 1974)

The next three songs on this list all come from what you might call Cher’s story-song era. Her acting ability comes into play in each case, as she’s able to slip inside the characters, all of whom find themselves in outsized situations. “Dark Lady” ends in a double murder, the kind of outcome that wasn’t all that unusual in the early part of the ’70s when such songs were all the rage. It was written by a fellow named Johnny Durrill, who played in The Ventures. Double-crossing fortune tellers were put on notice with this track that Cher is onto your shady dealings.

3. “Half-Breed” (No. 1 in 1973)

It’s at this point we should mention the next two songs on this list are going to be problematic for folks wary of cultural appropriation. Cher did not share the heritage of this character or the one in the following song. In today’s climate, she probably wouldn’t release a song like “Half-Breed.” In her defense, however, she was playing a character, one that many pop songs wouldn’t even have bothered to address. Do the lyrics oversimplify the racial themes? Probably. But Cher imbues the vocals with hints of hurt and pride, managing to transcend any of the song’s underlying issues in the process.

2. “Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves” (No. 1 in 1971)

Again, Cher was not a member of the Romani people, so there’s that. But let’s leave that for a moment and consider how she takes charge of this song. First, it’s not an easy one to tackle, considering it’s wordy and the melody unwinds in unexpected directions. With the best of The Wrecking Crew session players at her disposal, she doesn’t have to worry about the instrumental backing letting her down. She navigates every plot twist of the verses, before returning to the refrains with fury. Sure, it’s a bit of a novelty song, but Cher makes it more riveting than it has any right to be.

1. “Believe” (No. 1 in 1998)

A phenomenon of a song, “Believe” gave Cher the opportunity to demonstrate that pop brilliance knows no age boundaries. None of the whippersnappers could have delivered this song with quite the same lived-in wisdom and warmth. It’s kind of a miracle that the song was salavageable, as seven different writers were credited with its creation. That doesn’t count Cher herself, as she delivered some key lyrical lines but decided not to push for credit. Probably not a wise decision, considering the success of the song. The Auto-Tune wouldn’t have worked quite so well if it didn’t have Cher’s ebullient vocal foundation to start.

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