Shocking Omissions: The Resilient Reinvention Of Cher's 'Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves'

This essay is one in a series celebrating deserving artists or albums not included on NPR Music's list of 150 Greatest Albums By Women.

There are figures in pop culture whose influence is so ubiquitous, they require almost no introduction. We refer to them with a familiarity reserved for our closest friends and colleagues: by their first names. And before — and after — the rise of stars like Madonna, Beyoncé and Adele, there's Cher.

Cher got her start singing backup on Phil Spector-produced songs like The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin'' "Be My Baby," but it was "I Got You Babe" — her hit with husband and musical partner Sonny Bono — that put Cher on the map in 1965. With her long, dark hair, trademark wit and androgynous vocals, Cher challenged notions of how a woman could look, act and sound, and helped redefine what it meant to be a woman in the spotlight. From donning that infamous black leotard in the video for "If I Could Turn Back Time" to introducing the world to AutoTune on the smash hit "Believe," Cher has presided as the mother of reinvention for more than 50 years.