Cyndi Lauper at 57: A New CD and a Summer Tour
Although she didn't make it into the final five on Celebrity Apprentice, Cyndi Lauper has a big year ahead. Her new CD, Memphis Blues, will be released on June 22, which just happens to be her 57th birthday.
After that, Lauper will tour for most of the summer. Wasting no time after the album drops, Lauper plays Morristown, New Jersey on June 25 to get the tour going. The Northeast will see a lot of her for the month that follows.
For Bay Staters, Lauper has Boston, New Bedford, and Northampton, Mass. all on her radar.
The upper Midwest will have a few shots to join in on the fun, too. Lauper plays Chicago, Detroit, and Cleveland before hopping across the border and having a gay old time at Toronto Pride on July 3.
As for the Southeast, dates are a little spotty, so fans will have to pick and choose wisely. Lauper hits Atlanta and Myrtle Beach with three Florida plays in between. Then, it's a swing across the Gulf Coast and Texas, out to the Western states.
The penultimate performance finds Lauper in Los Angeles at the glorious Greek Theatre on August 27. She wraps it all up the following night in Reno.
The record is, as the title suggests, a blues-leaning collection that was recorded in Memphis. Joining Cyndi in the studio were singer/songwriter Ann Peebles; musician, composer and record producer Allen Toussaint; blues-harp player Charlie Musselwhite; legendary blues guitarist BB King; and young blues phenom Jonny Lang.
Having lost her voice for a few years, Cyndi finally got the chance to explore the sounds of Memphis and the genre she'd wanted to dive into for a long time. “I was hungry for real music,” she said at a recent listening party, “and it was an extraordinary moment for me as a singer. Blues is the basis of everything. They started it. It goes back to Ma Rainy…she didn’t create blues, but she created a whole new genre.”
The process and subsequent recording was as authentic as it could be, as they chose to leave the live takes intact, flubs and all. “I feel like I was born to sing this stuff,” she added. “This is what I wanted to do as a singer.”
Memphis Blues is her first outing with a new label, Downtown Records, which also houses artists like the Scissor Sisters, Amanda Blank, and Miike Snow. Cyndi says of her new musical home, “The people here reminded me of the old days… it wasn’t just business as usual.”
In addition, Lauper is going strong with her charitable projects, too. Her True Colors Fund and Give a Damn campaign both raise money and awareness for LGBT causes and groups around the country.
And, if you believe Ellen DeGeneres is something of a rainmaker, look for Lauper to collaborate with Lady Gaga at some point in the not-so-distant future. Ellen made the suggestion when Cyndi appeared on her show recently. The two previously appeared in a Mac Viva Glam lipstick ad and partner campaign to raise awareness about women and HIV.
When asked by CNN if Madonna might be pulled in as a third wheel, Lauper replied, "I don't know. Who knows? You always keep it open."
