Amy Grant has had a successful career since her beginnings as a Christian artist in the late 70s. As she inched towards using more commercial lyrics, she started to amass some big chart hits, beginning with the underrated "Find A Way," which deserved better than the #29 position it hit in 1985. Her first #1 came in the form of a duet with Chicago's Peter Cetera, "The Next Time I Fall." She failed to capitalize on that success with her 1988 effort, "Lead Me On," whose title track stalled at #96. But Grant came back in a big way with 1991's "Heart In Motion" record, the most successful of her career. This record is home to four top ten hits including the #1 smash "Baby Baby." Her follow-up record, "House Of Love," didn't come close to the success of the former, but her duet with Vince Gill (the title track, which went to #37) might have helped net Grant her second husband. The two got married six years later. Grant steered into true adult contemporary by 1997's "Behind The Eyes" LP. The album yielded her last charting hit, "Takes A Little Time," which went to #21. "Leave It All Behind" is another breezy, feel good tune from this fine album worth your time.
Chicago has become one of the most successful groups of all-time. Despite numerous line up changes that included the departure of the distinctive voice of Peter Cetera in 1985, the band has carried on, adapting its sound to fit the times. They had their first charting single with "Questions 67 And 68" in 1969, which first hit #71, then put them on the map at #24 when reissued in 1971. They sustained a strong top 10 presence through the 70s and 80s, hitting the #1 spot several times with "If You Leave Me Now" (1976), "Hard To Say I'm Sorry" (1982), and "Look Away" (1988). The latter came from the band's "19" album, their last to yield big hits. Despite a bevy of hits, "19" only went to #37. The album was mined for multiple singles - in addition to "Look Away", "I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love" went to #3, "You're Not Alone" went to #10, and "We Can Last Forever" went to #55. "What Kind Of Man Would I Be?", which went to #5 in 1989, was also on "19" but technically released from their hugely successful "Greatest Hits 1982-1989" compilation. "19" begins with another potential ready-friendly single, but "Heart In Pieces" was not released. To me, it helps build the case that "19" was one of the most perfect albums to capture the grandiose AOR 80s sound.
Cher has had a remarkable career, scoring top 10 hits across four decades from the 1960-1990s. Her first goes all the way back to 1966, when "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" hit #2. Her first chart-topper arrived in 1971 with "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves". She would top the charts twice more in the 70s with "Half-Breed" and "Dark Lady", and one more time in the 90s with the huge comeback hit "Believe". Cher was mostly on hiatus in the 80s, flexing her acting muscles in the movies. But she came back (Cher could be considered the comeback queen) in a big way in the late 80s. While she didn't top the chart in that decade, she racked up several more top 10 hits with "I Found Someone" and "After All" (a duet with former Chicago singer, Peter Cetera) in 1987 and 1989, respectively. Her newfound brand of melodic rock fit in well until grunge arrived. She produced a trio of albums of this variety, which all did very well. The final one, "Love Hurts", suggested the formula was wearing thin, however, only getting to #48 on the album chart and failing to generate a monster hit. The first single, "Love and Understanding", was tepid but managed to get to #17. The more upbeat and energetic song everyone was probably expecting to come first was released second. "Save Up All Your Tears" just barely cracked the top 40, settling at #37 in 1991. Written by Desmond Child and Diane Warren, this tune is a terrific slab of pop rock and deserved much better. Bonnie Tyler and Robin Beck also took a swing at this tune but did no better. The "Love Hurts" album contains other covers as well, including the title track and a most intriguing choice: "A World Without Heroes" by Kiss. Cher went on to duet with Beavis and Butt-head for a rendition of "I Got You Babe", after which she understandably went into hiding until 1998's "Believe" reminded the world who's boss.
