♫Caesar and Cleo♫

There are music duos, actors, singers and entertainers some of whom form duets while others are made up of husband and wife teams. Some stay together through thick and thin, while others separate moving on to individual careers or dropping out of the music business altogether. For most duos, even in spite of separation, the names are tied together for eternity. Often, the names change as the music goes on beating to the rhythm of the changing times.

Today in Music History: August 26, 1965

Such is the case of the duo in today's spotlight, Caesar and Cleo, better known as...

Sonny & Cher Sonny Bono got a major break in 1957 when he was a delivery boy. He had just arrived at Specialty Records when owner Art Rupe fired Sam Cooke and his producer Bumps Blackwell. Bono was asked if he would like to produce records and the inexperienced Bono accepted the offer. At age 16, Cher dropped out of school, left her mother's house, and moved with a friend to Los Angeles, where she took acting classes and worked to support herself. 

Cher met performer Sonny Bono, 11 years her senior, in November 1962 when he was working for record producer Phil Spector.

1965 Sonny & Cher were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'I Got You Babe', the duo's only UK No.1. Sonny Bono was inspired to write the song to capitalize on the popularity of the term "babe," as heard in Bob Dylan's 'It Ain't Me Babe' "I Got You Babe" topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became, according to Allmusic's Bruce Eder, "one of the biggest-selling and most beloved pop/rock hits of the mid-'60s." As the song knocked The Beatles off the top of the British charts, English teenagers began to emulate Sonny and Cher's fashion style, such as bell-bottoms, striped pants, ruffled shirts, industrial zippers and fur vests.

In the decade they spent together, Sonny and Cher sold 40 million records worldwide. Performing under her first name, Cher went on to a highly successful career as a solo singer and actress, while Sonny Bono was eventually elected to Congress as a Republican U.S. Representative from California. The two performers were inducted to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1998, right after Sonny's death in a skiing accident. [Source: en.wikipedia.org]

A Bit of Music Trivia...

Ten Greatest Husband & Wife Teams In Popular Music History

Who do you think tops this list?

&

The Forty Biggest Duets of All Time

Is your favorite at the top of the list?

And the music goes on beating to the rhythm of the changing times...