Cher performing with David Bowie, in his US television debut,[74] on the variety show Cher, 1975. Cher and Sonny had had marital problems since late 1972, but appearances were maintained until 1974. "The public still thinks we are married," Sonny wrote in his diary at the time, "[and] that's the way it has to be."[75] In February 1974, Sonny filed for a separation, citing "irreconcilable differences".[76] A week later, Cher countered with a divorce suit and charged Sonny with "involuntary servitude", claiming that he withheld money from her and deprived her of her rightful share of their earnings.[76] The couple battled in court over finances and the custody of Chaz, which was eventually granted to Cher.[76] Their divorce was finalized on June 26, 1975.[77]
In 1974, Cher won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy for The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour.[78] The same year, Sonny premiered a solo show on ABC, The Sonny Comedy Revue, which carried the creative team behind the Sonny and Cher show. It was canceled after 13 weeks.[79]
During the divorce proceedings, Cher had a two-year romantic relationship with record executive David Geffen, who freed her from her business arrangement with Sonny, under which she was required to work exclusively for Cher Enterprises, the company he ran.[80] Geffen secured a $2.5 million deal for Cher with Warner Bros. Records,[81] and she began work on her first album under that label in 1975. According to Bego, "it was their intention that [this album] was going to make millions of fans around the world take her seriously as a rock star, and not just a pop singer."[82]
Despite Cher's efforts to develop her musical range by listening to artists such as Stevie Wonder, Elton John, James Taylor, Carly Simon, Joni Mitchell, and Bob Dylan, the resulting album Stars was commercially and critically unsuccessful.[82] Janet Maslin of The Village Voice wrote, "Cher is just no rock and roller ... Image, not music, is Cher Bono's main ingredient for both records and TV."[83] The album has since become a cult classic and is generally considered among her best work.[73]
On February 16, 1975, Cher returned to television with a solo show on CBS. Called Cher, it began as a highly rated special with guests Flip Wilson, Elton John, and Bette Midler.[84] The show was produced by Geffen and centered on Cher's songs, monologues, comedy performance, and her variation of clothing,[85] which was the largest for a weekly TV show.[86] Early critical reception was favorable; the Los Angeles Times exclaimed that "Sonny without Cher was a disaster. Cher without Sonny, on the other hand, could be the best thing that's happened to weekly television this season."[86] Cher lasted for less than a year, replaced by a new show in which she professionally reunited with ex-husband Sonny;[87] she said, "doing a show alone was more than I could handle."[88]
On June 30, 1975, four days after finalizing her divorce from Sonny, Cher married rock musician Gregg Allman, co-founder of The Allman Brothers Band.[89] She filed for divorce nine days later because of his heroin and liquor problems, but they reconciled within a month.[90] They had one son, Elijah Blue, on July 10, 1976.[91] Sonny and Cher's TV reunion, The Sonny and Cher Show, debuted on CBS in February 1976—the first show ever to star a divorced couple. Although the show was a ratings success on its premiere,[92] Cher and Sonny's insulting onscreen banter about their divorce,[87] her reportedly extravagant lifestyle, and her troubled relationship with Allman caused a public backlash[93] that eventually contributed to the show's cancellation in August 1977.[92]
In 1976, Mego Toys released a line of toys and dolls in the likeness of Sonny and Cher, which coincided with the popularity of The Sonny and Cher Show. The miniature version of Cher ended up being the highest selling doll of 1976, surpassing Barbie.[94]
Cher's next albums, I'd Rather Believe in You (1976) and Cherished (1977), the latter a return to her pop style at Warner's producers' insistence, were commercially unsuccessful;[95] Orange Coast magazine's Keith Tuber commented, "A weekly television series ... can spell disaster for a recording artist ... Regular exposure on TV allowed people to see and hear these performers without having to buy their records ... That's what happened to Cher[.]"[96] In 1977, under the rubric "Allman and Woman", she recorded alongside Allman the duet album Two the Hard Way. Their relationship ended following the release of the album,[90] and their divorce was finalized in 1979.[97] Beginning in 1978,[98] she had a two-year[99] live-in relationship with Kiss member Gene Simmons.[100] That year, she legally changed her name from Cherilyn Sarkisian La Piere Bono Allman to Cher, to eliminate the use of four surnames.[101] She returned to prime time television with the ABC specials Cher... Special (1978)—featuring a 15-minute segment in which she performs all of the roles in her version of West Side Story—[102] and Cher... And Other Fantasies (1979).[103]