Album Review
Forever Review by Sid Emerson
Let’s get one thing straight—if you’ve survived six decades in the music industry and you’re still turning heads, you deserve more than applause. You deserve your own personal Mount Rushmore. And if you’re Cher, Forever is basically that.
This album isn’t just another greatest hits collection; it’s Cher pulling out the receipts, showing us exactly why she’s still the moment, six decades deep. She’s curated 21 iconic tracks from her vast career, like “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves,” “If I Could Turn Back Time,” and of course, the life-altering, autotune-revolutionizing “Believe.” At this point, that song should be in a museum—it’s that iconic. If Cher’s career were a house, “Believe” is the solid gold front door.
But Cher doesn’t stop at the hits. Oh no. She dives deep with the Forever Fan edition, adding 19 extra tracks for the diehards. And let me tell you, there are some gems here that were long overdue for a digital dust-off. Tracks like “A Woman’s Story,” a 1974 single that most people have never heard of, or “I Paralyze,” finally seeing the light of day on streaming platforms. Cher didn’t have to include these, but she did—and for that, we should all be grateful.
Of course, some things didn’t make the cut. Most glaringly? “Half-Breed.” Cher’s 1973 chart-topper is missing in action, and yes, it’s a conscious decision. With changing attitudes and Cher’s own evolution, she’s clearly choosing to leave that one in the past. And honestly? Good on her. It’s a reminder that Cher has never been afraid to change with the times—or drag the times forward with her.
Now, let’s talk remastering. She didn’t just throw together old tracks and call it a day. No, she polished these up and even tossed in the full 6-minute version of “Take Me Home”—because why not? Cher’s been giving us everything for 60 years; what’s one more treat?
Forever is exactly what it says on the tin—a testament to a career that’s never going out of style. It’s not just an album; it’s Cher’s victory lap, and we’re lucky to be along for the ride.
Tracklist
Pick | # | Song | Writer(s) | Producer(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|
❤️ | 1 | “Believe” | Cher, Brian Higgins, Stuart McLennen, Paul Barry, Steven Torch, Matthew Gray, Timothy Powell | Mark Taylor, Brian Rawling |
❤️ | 2 | “If I Could Turn Back Time” | Diane Warren | Diane Warren, Guy Roche |
❤️ | 3 | “Walking in Memphis” | Marc Cohn | Christopher Neil |
❤️ | 4 | “Song for the Lonely” | Mark Taylor, Paul Barry, Steve Torch | Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 5 | “Strong Enough” | Mark Taylor, Paul Barry | Mark Taylor, Brian Rawling |
❤️ | 6 | “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s in His Kiss)” | Rudy Clark | -Peter Asher |
❤️ | 7 | “SOS” | Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, Stig Anderson | Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 8 | “I Found Someone” | Michael Bolton, Mark Mangold | Michael Bolton |
❤️ | 9 | “Save Up All Your Tears” | Diane Warren, Desmond Child | Bob Rock, Richie Zito |
❤️ | 10 | “One by One” | Cher, Anthony Griffiths | Stephen Lipson |
❤️ | 11 | “After All” (with Peter Cetera)* | Tom Snow, Dean Pitchford | Peter Asher |
❤️ | 12 | “Heart of Stone” | Andy Hill, Peter Sinfield | Peter Asher |
❤️ | 13 | “The Way of Love” | Al Stillman, Jacques Diéval | Snuff Garrett |
❤️ | 14 | “I Hope You Find It” | Steve Robson, Jeffrey Steele | Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 15 | “Take Me Home” | Michele Aller, Bob Esty | Bob Esty |
❤️ | 16 | “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)” (Extended Version) | Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus | Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 17 | “Woman’s World” | Matt Morris, Paul Oakenfold, Anthony "TC" Crawford, Joshua "J.D." Walker | Paul Oakenfold, Anthony "TC" Crawford, Joshua "J.D." Walker, Jeff Fenster |
❤️ | 18 | “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves” | Bob Stone | Snuff Garrett |
❤️ | 19 | “Dark Lady” | John Durrill | Snuff Garrett |
❤️ | 20 | “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” | Diane Warren | Matt Serletic |
❤️ | 21 | “DJ Play a Christmas Song” | Sarah Hudson, Jesse Saint John, Brett McLaughlin, James Abrahart, Mark Schick, Lionel Crasta | Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 22 | “A Woman’s Story”* | April Stevens, Nino Tempo, Phil Spector | Phil Spector |
❤️ | 23 | “Love and Understanding”* | Diane Warren | Diane Warren, Guy Roche |
❤️ | 24 | “All or Nothing”* | Mark Taylor, Paul Barry | Mark Taylor, Brian Rawling |
❤️ | 25 | “A Different Kind of Love Song”* | Johan Åberg, Michelle Lewis, Sigurd Rosnes | Johan Åberg, Anders Hansson |
❤️ | 26 | “Just Like Jesse James”* | Diane Warren, Desmond Child | Desmond Child |
❤️ | 27 | “We All Sleep Alone”* | Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Desmond Child | Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Desmond Child |
❤️ | 28 | “The Music’s No Good Without You”* | Cher, James Thomas, Mark Taylor, Paul Barry | Mark Taylor, James Thomas, Jeff Taylor |
❤️ | 29 | “Dov’è L’amore”* | Mark Taylor, Paul Barry | Mark Taylor, Brian Rawling |
❤️ | 30 | “Still”* | Cher | Cher, Bruce Roberts, Bob Thiele |
❤️ | 31 | “Welcome to Burlesque”* | Charlie Midnight, Matthew Gerrard, Steve Lindsey, John Patrick Shanley | Charlie Midnight, Matthew Gerrard, Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 32 | “One of Us”* | Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus | Mark Taylor |
❤️ | 33 | “I’d Rather Believe in You”* | Michael Omartian, Stormie Omartian | Steve Barri, Michael Omartian |
❤️ | 34 | “Move Me”* | Fred Beckmeier, Vella M. Cameron, Steve Beckmeier, Jimmie Cameron | Gregg Allman, Johnny Sandlin |
❤️ | 35 | “I Paralyze”* | John Farrar, Steve Kipner | John Farrar |
❤️ | 36 | “The Beat Goes On”* | Sonny Bono | Sonny Bono |
❤️ | 37 | “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)”* | Sonny Bono | Sonny Bono |
❤️ | 38 | “Baby Don’t Go””* | Sonny Bono | Sonny Bono |
❤️ | 39 | “I Got You Babe”* | Sonny Bono | Sonny Bono |
❤️ | 40 | “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For”* | Bono, U2 | Cher, Roger Davies, Lindsay Scott |
*’Forever Fan’ Digital Version Bonus Tracks