Cyndi Lauper Brings the Blues to Denver

Cyndi Lauper Brings the Blues to Denver

by Toby Click

Cyndi Lauper came to Denver to do a show at the Ogden Theatre on November 1. I enjoyed seeing her on the True Colors Tour in 2008, but I was way up in the nosebleeds for that show, so I was looking forward to the intimacy of the Ogden.

Her opening act was the Bo-Keys, from Memphis, Tennessee. Seven musicians took the stage, and began playing the blues.

OK, you're probably thinking: "Why would a blues band open for Cyndi Lauper? And why is this being written about in a gay blog? Gay men don't have the blues! Let alone wild women!" But remember, Cyndi is a big friend of ours. And to understand the direction her music has taken lately, you've got to understand the blues.

Now I've spent a fair amount of time in Memphis myself, so I can dig it. I've danced on Beale Street, waded in the scale model of the Mississippi River at Mud Island. In fact, Memphis is where I was living when Cyndi herself first became a superstar. I remember hearing "Time After Time" while dozing in the backseat on a trip across Tennessee.

Where was I? Ah, yes, the Bo-Keys. They started off with a few instrumentals from their most recent album, GOT TO GET BACK. Then they were joined by accomplished bluesman Charlie Musselwhite, who lent his harmonica to a few numbers. Guest vocalist Percy Wiggins came onstage for the last several songs. Each of the players brought their own impressive pedigrees, and even if you don't know their names, you know the names of the people they've worked with: Al Green, Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, and many, many more.

For Cyndi's part of the show, a few Bo-Keys members came back to play in her band. After making her entrance, she sang a couple of songs from her latest album, MEMPHIS BLUES. Then, continuing in the blues style, she played "She Bop". Know what? It kinda worked!

So what about this blues thing, anyway? Is this like that time when Pat Boone did an album of heavy metal songs, or Dolly Parton dabbled in techno? Between songs, she addressed this. "People ask, 'Why the blues, Cyn?' Because I'm from Queens and Brooklyn!"

At one point, an electric dulcimer was brought out, and she played "All Through the Night". A heavy drum solo led into "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" (one we really didn't expect to hear!). And after "Change of Heart", she and the band took a little break.

In the encore, a very gospelly organ intro switched into a more lighthearted performance of her signature song, "Girls Just Want to Have Fun". Then, she got serious for a moment to talk about homophobia and bullying, and called attention to GLBT activist Judy Shepard, who was in the audience. The dulcimer returned to the stage for her last two songs, "Time After Time" and "True Colors".

So where does Cyndi go from here? In exploring the blues, she takes herself in a bold, venturesome direction. But at the heart of it all, she's a girl who still wants to have fun. And she continues to deliver that to her fans.