ALONG COMES MARY

Growing up, I wanted to be Cher. Seriously. At around 5 years old, I discovered the coming of age film, Mermaids, where she played the eccentric Mom to a young Winona Ryder. For whatever reason, I LOVED this movie. I think I began watching it after my Mom rented it, & because most of it was ok for a kid to see (I can recall a few scenes I wasn’t allowed to watch), she let me. Then, more VHS followed! There was Cher: Live at The Mirage, Cher: Fitness, Moonstruck, recording her lest-we-forget hair infomercials & countless cassette tapes that I am sure tired my parents out everywhere we drove.

For whatever reason, little Mary idolized Cher! 😉

I always wanted to see her, & ideally, meet her (I wrote so many fan letters to various odd ball places hoping she would get them, hehe), but I was often told, when I am at last a “big girl”, I could see her in concert…and, guess what, my friends? Mary is well in her 20s & at last, saw her childhood idol at The Honda Center in Anaheim last week, with a bonus round of Cyndi Lauper opening!

Needless to say, I was pretty over the top excited to go to this concert. I love dressing up for shows & went all out for this evening; I found a rainbow leopard print dress for only $7 at a thrift store, then accessorized with a big side pony tail, bangles & loads of pink blush…how do I look?!

I went with my awesome, always ready to have a good time, blogger partners in crime, Melissa & Ann. We found our seats just as Cyndi was finishing up her opening number, She Bop. Cyndi is the ultimate force to be reckoned with. I have seen nearly countless concerts for over 12 years, but man, the VOCAL range on Lauper is something you have to experience to believe. She can belt, wail, go up, down & still ‘squeak’ that infamous way she got famous for on Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. She’s such a friendly, chatty performer; telling us sweet stories of her Mom before launching into my favorite from her, All Through the Night:

The crowd, of course, went wild at classics including Time After Time & True Colors; which she gave a heartfelt introduction to & reminded us of one of her favorite quotes, from Tiny Tim, “Bless us. Everyone.”

After intermission, when I snapped this pic to show the world how proud we are of our nosebleed seats! 😉 Out came The Belle of the Ball….just a little gal not afraid to say more than once she’s 68….the one & only, CHER!

The opening was fantastic; a roaring build up featuring a screen highlighting her entire career, with the crowd getting more anxious, & more loud. She opened with the rousing Its A Woman’s World & from there, we hardly saw the same costume twice! She, like Cyndi, told us some hilarious stories, like her love for Dr. Pepper, & how they should give more to a 68-year-old legend than a measly 6 pack.

As someone with such a massive, great catalog of songs, Cher managed to give us a mix of everything that we all know & love; from a Sonny & Cher section with The Beat Goes On, All I Ever Need is You & of course, I Got You Babe, to her early solo days with hits Half Breed & Dark Lady, to the royal 80s like an intro of Bang Bang into I Found Someone, she knows how to do it all. Complete with aerialists, top-notch dancing & kick ass back up singers, her tours are choreographed so expertly well that you do not even notice when the Dark Lady herself slips away for an outfit change.

It was amazing to me, that after all these years, I STILL knew her songs, word for word. Just Like Jesse James, Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves & If I Could Turn Back Time.

Cher is the ultimate performer, I cannot recommend seeing her “before she dies” (her words, not mine!) enough. She even winked when she said this is indeed her farewell tour, so I bet you she will back again soon. This fall, she will hit the road with Pat Benetar, whom I have also seen & is fabulous. Find out more on her web-site here & Check out Cyndi Lauper here! xo

(*Disclosure: I am in no way affiliated with Cher, Cyndi Lauper or The D2K Tour. I went, on my own, & had a BLAST!)