Cyndi Style

By Jon Fassnacht

Girls just wanna have funk. And blues. And dulcimers.

At least that’s what Cyndi Lauper really wants.

The former pop princess showed she’s much deeper than her hits during a well-attended show Saturday night in the Sovereign Performing Arts Center.

The 58-year-old New Yorker was joined by New Orleans legend Dr. John for nearly three hours of what was billed as “From Memphis to Mardi Gras.”

Lauper’s backing quintet had quite the pedigree: The rhythm section featured alumni from Stax and Hi Records.

Four of the 14 songs performed were culled from last year’s “Memphis Blues,” an album of blues covers. Surprisingly, the songs didn’t sound out of place rubbing shoulders with the likes of “The Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough.”

That had much to do with the re-imagined arrangements.

Hits “All Through The Night,” “Time After Time” and “True Colors” were led by Lauper on a dulcimer, while “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” included an extended gospel intro.

Lauper was a magnetic presence, rolling around the stage during “She Bop,” sultrily slinking through the opening of Bobby “Blue” Bland’s “Lead Me On,” unleashing a tribal dance during a drum break and leading the crowd on a call-and-response during “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” while standing on one of the seats.

Unfortunately, in a case of bitter irony, a scuffle broke out in the crowd during her cover of “What’s Going On,” Marvin Gaye’s ode to peace.

Dr. John – or, according to Lauper, “Dr. Jah-won” – couldn’t have gotten the evening off to a better start. There may have been a doctor in the house, but the music was sick, so swampy you could almost feel the humidity.

Wearing a red pinstripe suit and sunglasses, the gravelly voiced 70-year-old looked like Hank Williams Jr.’s cooler brother.

He switched back and forth from a piano and a Hammond organ, and even showed off some guitar skills.

The tight quintet tore through 75 minutes of funk, blues and rock, closing with two duets with Lauper: the standard “Makin’ Whoopie” and the spiritual “Glory, Glory Hallelujah.”

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Those who might have sat out gay icon Cyndi Lauper’s latest tour thinking either they’re just not that into the blues (her latest album is devoted exclusively to the genre) or they could just catch it on DVD (a live double-disc set drops next week) made a huge mistake — her fiery 90-minute set Tuesday night at the 9:30 Club was full of surprises, from the number of hits she included to the vastly different set list the show had compared to her 2010 stop at the same venue.

Lauper, of course, is always full of surprises. She always varied her show from night to night so you never quite know what you’re going to get. Tuesday’s concert found the 58-year-old legend, who was just here two weeks ago to play a mini set at the Human Rights Campaign dinner, she-bopping around the stage with both physical and vocal abandon. This is clearly not a woman who plays it safe. Obviously singing live, she belted out several money notes that proved her legendary pipes — infinitely heartier and more robust than Madonna’s or Cher’s — are wonderfully intact with her full range entirely at her disposal.

It’s always a little tricky programming a concept album into a set but Lauper’s tight band, which included blues legend Charlie Musselwhite on harmonica, furnished an uncannily apt musical continuity throughout the evening so smoldering cuts like “Just Your Fool” and “Shattered Dreams” flowed nicely into Lauper staples like “Change of Heart” and, of course, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Lauper’s other great triumph is how inventively she and her musical cohorts alter her arrangements from tour to tour. This can be a tricky thing that occasionally has stymied the singer — her “At Last”-era arrangement of “She Bop” sounded like something a violinist would play at your table at a ’50s-era Italian restaurant. Interesting enough, but hardly grooving. Thankfully it was back in an uptempo arrangement Tuesday. The evening’s biggest surprises were smoldering renditions of catalog staples like  ”Gonnies R Good Enough,” Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” (which just missed the U.S. Top Ten when Lauper released it as a 1987 single) and a radically reworked “Lyfe” from her underrated 2008 album “Bring Ya to the Brink.” The only so-so song was a meandering “Down So Low” (from the new album) that didn’t catch fire.

The ballads — “All Through the Night,” “Time After Time” and encore “True Colors” — were less altered but all sung with conviction and bravado. “Colors” especially resonated with Musselwhite providing surprisingly effective harmonica for its familiar opening strains. When introducing the song, Lauper — sporting a Raggedy Ann-red wig clipped up in a quasi mohawk style — reiterated her gay support and talked about her New York center for homeless LGBT youth. Fans willing to donate $200 to her True Colors Foundation got to meet Lauper backstage for a quick meet and greet. Photos and autographs were allowed but it was a cattle call with her handlers moving people through in rapid succession just before she went on. I didn’t go but could see the proceedings in the 9:30 Club’s stage left balcony area.

If the set list — just 14 songs — looked a little meager on paper, keep in mind Lauper was co-headlining with zydeco legend Dr. John (he wasn’t merely the opening act) and Lauper is clearly of the Stevie Nicks school of set list construction — do fewer songs but give your tight band time to jam a little. It’s the opposite of a Diana Ross or Loretta Lynn (who just played the 9:30 Club Saturday) show where they plow through material like a grocery store check-out clerk.

The big shock of the evening was Lauper duetting with Dr. John during his set on “All Night Long.” It’s highly unusual for a headliner to do such a thing but it made for a great bonus to the evening, especially for the gays in the house, many of whom were merely waiting for Lauper’s set despite Dr. John’s obvious talent.

Cyndi’s set was:
(“All Night Long” pre-set number with Dr. John)
1. Just Your Fool
2.  Shattered Dreams
3. She Bop
* band intros
4. Crossroads
5. All Through the Night
6. Down So Low
7. Don’t Cry No More
8. Goonies R Good Enough
9. Change of Heart
10. What’s Going On
11. Lyfe
12. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
13. Time After Time
14. True Colors (encore)

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WHAT: The tour is called “From Memphis to Mardi Gras” and, OK, it’s easy to spot the New Orleans connection: Dr. John is a Big Easy icon, with a formidable reputation for intricate piano-pounding that has only been enhanced by the recent spotlight of the HBO series ”Treme.” What might be more surprising is singer Cyndi Lauper’s latest incarnation as a Memphis-style blues belter. But believe it: The “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” star is on the road with a blues band, performing songs off her Grammy-nominated 2010 album, “Memphis Blues.” Hey, whatever the girl wants to sing, we’re willing to listen.

WHEN: 8 tonight

WHERE: House of Blues, Downtown Disney, Lake Buena Vista

COST: $39.50 advance, $43 day of show

CALL: 407-934-2583

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A very tamely dressed Sarah Jessica Parker was the surprise guest at the Human Rights Campaign’s 15th annual national dinner Saturday night. The last celeb to walk the white carpet at the Convention Center, she was escorted by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his longtime girlfriend Diana Taylor.

Overheard from the crowd when Parker came out: “Sarah! We love you,” “Sarah, thank you for being here” and “She’s here to atone for her last three movies.”

Parker, in a black dress and silver heels, was rather press shy, unlike Cyndi Lauper who pranced down the carpet before her. To cries of “work it girl!” Lauper posed and showed off her retro stocking-clad legs. When POLITICO asked the songstress if she planned to vote for Obama in 2012, she gave a sly smile and said, “Have you seen the other guys running?”

The president was not yet in the building during white carpet time, but he arrived shortly after to give the dinner’s keynote address. Of Obama’s commitment to LGBT causes, Lauper told POLITICO, “Give him a minute. He walked into a big fat mess, a real mess. He’s trying.” And talking pop culture, the ’80s crooner said she has her fingers crossed for both Carson Kressley and Chaz Bono on “Dancing with the Stars.”

British singer Mika also walked the carpet and talked to POLITICO about the president’s support of the LGBT community. He said, “I think he could do more. I think everyone feels that he could do more. But I hope and pray that he will be in office for another four years.” Mika won outfit points for his multicolor Christian Louboutin high-tops with gold spikes on the toe.

Actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who just rubbed elbows with Obama on the West Coast, also posed for the flashbulbs and told POLITICO that the best part of meeting the president was “just meeting the president!” “He was very sweet, very complimentary of ‘Modern Family,’” said the actor.

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Cyndi Lauper performed the National Anthem at the US Open prior to the start of the women’s semi-finals match between Serena Williams and Caroline Wozniacki on September 10th, 2011. Watch her performance below.

Photos: Getty

By Jeff Mays

HARLEM — Pop star Cyndi Lauper shed tears all throughout the ceremony dedicating True Colors Residences, New York state’s first permanent supportive housing facility for LGBT youth in Harlem Friday.

And then she stood up and channelled all that emotion into powerful a capella version of the 1986 hit song the $11 million facility is named after.

“I believe a strong society is an inclusive society. If we want to win big then we’d better include everybody because we need everybody,” said Lauper, a co-founder of the facility and outspoken gay rights activist.

Sitting in the audience at Colonel Charles Young Triangle, Priscilla Rumnit, 21 and Angela Louis, 23, two of the building’s first occupants, said they had goosebumps during the rendition because they couldn’t believe they finally had a place to call home.

Louis, who is transgender, says she was kicked out of her home at 16. She has bounced from shelter to shelter and never had a place of her own until now. Rumnit, 21, has been moving around since her mom died when she was 14.

“It’s hard out here. It’s so hard,” said Rumnit. “Now we have someplace to go that’s ours.”

“These are not tears of sadness,” added Louis.

The six-story energy efficient building is located on West 154th Street between Frederick Douglass Boulevard and Macombs Place. Residents of the 30 studio units must be between the ages of 18 and 24 when they enter.

They will have access to a computer room, laundry, outdoor space, recreational room and also receive voluntary support services to learn life skills as well as to get help with job training and educational services. The building is part of the Section 8 program which means residents will pay 30 percent of their income in rent.

“Please know you are safe. We welcome you to your new home and we stand behind you on your journey,” said Colleen Jackson, executive director of West End Intergenerational Residence, which will manage the facility.

Jackson said the idea for the facility came about from a conversation she had with Lauper and Lisa Barbaris of So What Management in 2007. The group wondered what else they could do to help LGBT youth.

“We don’t need another shelter. What we need is permanent supportive housing for this population,” Jackson recalled saying.

There are an estimated 3,800 homeless youth, according to a  July 2007 study by the Empire State Coalition of Youth and Family Services. A June 2010 report by the city’s Commission for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Runaway and Homeless Youth found between 15 and 40 percent of that group identify as LGBT.

“This is fabulous. It is much needed and long overdue in our community for the LGBT community,” said Central Harlem Councilwoman Inez Dickens as she toured one of the units.

The journey to Friday’s ribbon cutting was not an easy one. While they were trying to secure financing for the project, the housing market and banking industry was near collapse.

The Manhattan Borough President’s office was able to assign $500,000 of public money to help with construction financing. The Department of Housing Preservation and Development provided $3.78 million in construction and permanent loans through the federal HOME program.

“Getting the most simple thing done was extremely difficult. Getting something like True Colors was….stepping outside of their comfort zone,” said William Traylor, president of Richman Housing Resources.

Eventually, Citi Community Capital was able to provide $6 million in construction financing, said its director, Bill Yates.

“On a credit call I’ve never used the term LGBT. I’ve never said Cyndi Lauper,” said Yates.

Louis showed of her studio with pride. She was particularly happy about the long hallway and the closet space. There’s even has a closet in the bathroom and the stove runs on gas. Louis refuses to smoke in her room.

Both Louis and Rumnit, who work as home health aides, said they plan on going back to school to further their educations now that they have stable, permanent housing.

“There’s not a lot of people that have a loud voice about LGBT issues,” said Louis. “There are no words. [Lauper] did something so good. She doesn’t understand.”

According to Lauper, that’s not exactly true. The plan now is to build more True Color facilities, she said.

“We need more place like this,” said Lauper. “By the time they are ready to move on in the world they will be rockin’.”

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By Andrea Swalec

MANHATTAN — The city’s homeless LGBT youth will have a new place to sleep beginning in September.

The state’s first permanent supportive housing facility for LGBT youth will open in Harlem on Sept. 1, the residence’s executive director said.

True Colors Residence was co-founded by singer and longtime gay-rights activist Cyndi Lauper, who sang the affirming 1986 hit song for which the new building is named.

“These young people often face discrimination and at times physical assault in some of the very places they have to [go to] for help,” Lauper wrote in a letter posted on the residence’s website. “This is shocking and inexcusable!”

True Colors, on West 154th Street near Frederick Douglass Boulevard, will house 30 homeless LGBT youths ages 18 to 24 in studio apartments.

The six-story building has a computer room, resource library and communal indoor and outdoor space, and will offer support and job-training services, executive director Colleen Jackson said.

“We want to provide a very safe and supportive environment for young LGBT adults who have had a real rough time,” Jackson said. “We want to make sure they know they are cared for, supported and have a roof over their heads.”

Residents are signing year-long Section 8 leases now and will pay rent according to their incomes, Jackson said.

Many of the residents who will live at True Colors have bounced between LGBT youth service organizations in the city for years, Jackson said.

While several city nonprofits provide outreach services and offer drop-in centers for LGBT youth, only a handful of groups offer emergency or transitional housing. True Colors offers youth long-term homes.

“Nobody gets kicked out when they turn 25,” Jackson noted. “We believe that people will determine their own readiness to leave and go into other housing.”

A July 2007 study by the Empire State Coalition of Youth and Family Services found that New York had an estimated 3,800 homeless youth.

Between 15 and 40 percent of homeless youth identify as LGBT, according to a June 2010 report by the city’s Commission for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Runaway and Homeless Youth.

The $11 million residence was financed by the Corporation for Supportive Housing, the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s Supportive Housing Loan program, and many other sources.

True Colors will have an annual operating budget of about $700,000, Jackson added.

She said that Greenwich Village, an LGBT refuge for decades, has grown less hospitable to needy youth.

“My sense is that the Village has changed quite a bit,” Jackson explained. “While it’s still obviously very gay-friendly, the socioeconomic status of the people who live there has changed and has made the area not want to deal with young homeless people.”

But even with the addition of the residence uptown, Jackson said LGBT youth need more temporary housing, permanent housing and political support.

“There are not enough services for this population,” she said. “And there are way too many people who are underserved.”

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