Half-Breed (song)

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"Half-Breed"
Single by Cher
from the album Half-Breed
B-side
ReleasedJuly 23, 1973
Recorded
MCA
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Snuff Garrett
Cher singles chronology
"Am I Blue?"
(1973) 		"Half-Breed"
(1973) 		"Carousel Man"
(1973)
Alternative covers
Spanish single
Spanish single
Alternative cover
Japanese single
Japanese single

"Half-Breed" is a popular song recorded by Cher in 1973.

Cher's version, recorded with instrumental backing by L.A. sessions musicians from the

double standards. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Cher's second solo number 1 hit in the US.[2] The single was certified Gold in the US in 1974 for the sales of over 1 million copies.[3]

Song information and story

The 1973 version was the first international release from Cher's album Half-Breed, recorded and intended for the American market. Written and performed by non-Natives, it is a classic "Tragic mulatto" narrative, from a non-Native perspective, of a young woman with a white father and an alleged Cherokee mother. The song offers a scenario in which the singer relates that oppressive whites call her "Indian squaw", and claims that Native Americans do not accept her as one of their own because, "The Indians said I was white by law."[4] The lyrics are in error, as the Cherokee (like most Indigenous peoples of the Eastern Woodlands) are a matrilineal culture, meaning that a child born to a Cherokee mother is accepted as Cherokee, no matter the nationality or ethnicity of the father, and thus the parental ethnicities would have to be reversed—a white mother and native father—for such a situation to arise.[5]

The song is written in the key of

common time. Cher's vocals span the notes of F3-A4.[6]

Reception

In 1973, "Half-Breed" topped the United States Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks, becoming Cher's second solo and third overall Number 1 hit, and second Gold certified solo single for the sales of over 1,000,000 copies. It was a Number 1 hit in Canada and New Zealand, and a Top 10 hit in Australia and Quebec, respectively.

Peter Fawthrop wrote that this song has a jingling rhythm and that it is one of the lighter-hearted songs on the album.[7] Rolling Stone recommended it and described Cher's vocals as frantic and the production as supremely commercial.[8]

Live performances

In 1999, after almost 25 years of not performing the song live, Cher performed the song in her

Do You Believe? Tour. In 2002, she performed the song 326 times in her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour. In 2018, she performed the song during her Here We Go Again Tour. She performed it in Oceania
but it was dropped after the first leg.

Cher performed the song on the following concert tours:

Music video

The video for "Half-Breed" is a recorded performance of the song on

Native American activists for the song and continuing to wear this type of costume in her live performances, or for having her dancers wear it, as recently as 2017.[4][9][10] In a 2017 twitter exchange, Cher said she would no longer perform the song or wear the costume.[9][11][12] However in 2018 she continued to perform the song at her shows in Vegas and then on part of her Here We Go Again Tour, as part of a medley with "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves" and "Dark Lady" with dancers wearing the costumes.[13]

Remix version

In 2002, a special remix medley was created by Dan-O-Rama for a video montage that was used in Cher's

Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves", "Half-Breed", and "Dark Lady".[citation needed
]

Personnel

According to the AFM contract sheet, excluding Cher’s vocals, the following musicians played on the track.[14]

  • W.T. Babb - contractor
  • Al Capps - session leader
  • Hal Blaine
  • Al Casey
  • Gene Cipriano
  • James Getzoff
  • Thomas R. Hensley
  • Donald Peake
  • Emil Richards
  • Samuel Boghossian
  • John Durrill
  • Jesse Ehrlich
  • Raymond Kelley
  • Lou Klass
  • Jacob Krachmalnick
  • William Kurasch
  • Carl LaMagna
  • Gayle Levant
  • Leonard Malarsky
  • Gordon Marron
  • Gareth Nuttycombe
  • Reinhold Prass Jr.
  • Nathan Ross

Charts and certifications

In popular culture

Covers

  • Swedish singers Björn Skifs & Blåblus (Blue Swede) made one of the first covers in 1973. It appeared on their album Pinewood Rally and a compilation entitled Björns Bästa (Bjorn's Best).
  • German singer Joy Fleming recorded a German-language version "Halbblut" as a single in 1973. It peaked in the West German charts at no. 38 in February 1974.
  • Orchestra leader Ray Conniff recorded it with his singers in November 1973. It remained unissued until 2009 when it appeared on Ray Conniff: The Singles Collection, Volume 3.
  • In 1990 it was covered by Shania Twain but it was not released until 2001 on her album The Complete Limelight Sessions.
  • It was covered by alternative rock band House of Large Sizes.
  • Electronica artist Peaches covered it for youth radio station Triple J's "Like a Version" segment.
  • RuPaul covered "Half-Breed" on The RuPaul Show.

References

  1. ISBN 978-1-250-03046-7
    .
  2. ^ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-01-06.
  3. ^ "Cash Box" (PDF). Cash Box Magazine. March 9, 1974. p. 24. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d Penny Cousineau-Levine (Spring 2017). "Cher's "Half-Breed" and the Hybrid Masquerades of Kent Monkman's Miss Chief Testickle". AMERICANA e-Journal of American Studies in Hungary. XIII (1). Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  5. ^ Perdue, Theda (1999). Cherokee women: gender and culture change, 1700–1835. University of Nebraska Press. pp. 44, 57–8.
  6. ^ "Half-Breed". Musicnotes. 18 August 2014.
  7. ^ Review by P. Fawthrop of Allmusic Retrieved 14 October 2013
  8. ^ Review by Paul Gambaccini of Rolling Stone Retrieved October 14, 2013
  9. ^ a b "Cher Refuses To Apologize For 'Half-Breed' After Twitter War Fuelled By Trump's Diversity Coalition Appointee". ETCanada.com. Entertainment Tonight Canada. December 31, 2017. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  10. ^ "Half Breed (Official Music Video)". CherTV.com. February 23, 2013. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  11. ^ Cher [@cher] (December 23, 2017). "Cher tweets about Half-Breed" (Tweet). Retrieved June 28, 2023 – via Twitter. I Did Song 50 yrs ago,& it wasn't meant 2🐝offensive. However,That's kinda Bull Shit excuse.Need to retire beautiful Costume,& stop singing it,it's WAY past time.
  12. ^ Cher [@cher] (December 30, 2017). "Cher tweets about Half-Breed some more" (Tweet). Retrieved June 28, 2023 – via Twitter. Already said I'd stop doing it.
  13. ^ Menconi, David (January 28, 2019). "Review: If you're Cher, normal rules of time and space do not apply. She's still fabulous". The News & Observer. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  14. ^ "Half-Breed AFM Contract" (PDF). The Wrecking Crew. American Federation of Musicians. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  15. ISBN 0-646-11917-6
    .
  16. ^ "Image : RPM Weekly". Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013.
  17. ^ "Palmarès de la chanson anglophone et allophone au Québec" (in French). BAnQ. Archived from the original on August 9, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
  18. ISBN 84-8048-639-2
    .
  19. ^ "Cash Box Top Singles - 1973".
  20. ^ Australian-charts.com
  21. ^ RPM chart archives at Collections Canada for the Cher single Half-Breed.
  22. ^ "Billboard Top 100 - 1973". Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  23. ^ "Billboard Year-End Charts 1973" (PDF).
  24. ^ "American single certifications – Cher – Half-Breed". Recording Industry Association of America.
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