A few weeks ago this columnist wrote about bands that turned their careers around by making oneoff
oddball records and getting much-needed critical acclaim. While that works for the truly gifted
artiste, if you're a pop diva you can't always pull this one off. If it works for an aforementioned diva ( Ray of Light ) it's rare and glorious, but if not ( Kylie's Impossible Princess ) it looks downright silly and overly ambitious.
The opposite route has been taken more often when a well loved chanteuse hits a rut and courts the
gay community for a sure fire boost to their chart success. It happened commonly in the '90s and '00s
with acts like Everything But The Girl, Deborah Cox and Mel C remixing their slower tracks for chart
success, but some ladies revamped their whole sound permanently for a lasting boost.
Cher's comeback of the '80s was at a standstill after just three strong rock albums on Geffen, largely influenced by Bon Jovi. With her move to Warner Bros in the '90s, she released the mish mosh R&B/ soul album It's a Man's World to little fanfare, but her remixes from that CD kept her afloat. So with her next LP, Believe, she tried going right for the gays. Back then, dance music was really only targeted in the US at the gay crowd, straight overseas. Those two factions propelled Believe to the top of the charts, giving her her biggest hit to date and a lasting sound that continues to this day.
As mentioned previously, Kylie tried to go artsy on Impossible Princess, taking her career to an all-time low, but with a new label and a new outlook, she triumphantly gave us the perfect Light Years, followed by the just as flawless Fever, building her an all new fan base well into the third stage of her career. Lately her sound has gotten a bit stale, and is leaning on R&B with Pharrell and Jay Z, but we know she'll come back to where her bread is buttered soon.
And then there's Madge, who like Britney, Beyoncé, and Rihanna, has always kept one foot on the dance floor ( with a brief stop in Buenos Aires ), but until Confessions On A Dancefloor, had not set out to make a true dance album of original material. Confessions turned out to be a savior after the uneven Music and American Life releases, giving her new relevance and even more cred in our community. However, with the exception of her legion of super fans, she squandered that good will with Hard Candy and MDNA, both commercial and critical disappointments.
Still that girl can put out a mediocre album, sell poorly and STILL sell out arenas in seconds. So who's to question her methods? I guess keep on dancing, Ms. Ciccone.
Don't miss the debut of Windy City Gay Idol with Moose on the judges' panel, April 9 at The Sofo Tap.