#176
October 14, 1983
Cyndi Lauper
She’s So Unusual
4.25 out of 5
Highlights:
Money Changes Everything
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
Time After Time
She Bop
All Through the Night
He’s So Unusual
Money Changes Everything
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
Time After Time
She Bop
All Through the Night
He’s So Unusual
You might hate her voice or her persona but you can’t deny that this album explodes in a girl-group meets New Wave rave up that harkens the deep stadium sound that Tony Visconti would perfect on Adam Ants’ Vive Le Rock. And let’s face it: Robert Hazard distilled the 80s into one singularly recognizable, hook laden New Wave piece of confection perfection. And then to follow that up with a cover of Prince’s “When You Were Mine” a song that is an 80s teen flick soundtrack cut in search of it’s movie is genius. Only elevated by her own song, “Time After Time”, which, I dunno, gets me every time. It’s lovely.
Then…side two. I always believed that a local band, specializing in originals needed one or two covers so people unfamiliar with their music had SOMETHING to sing along to. Always on the lookout was I. (X’s Poor Girl” was a contender but who knows that song? And I did get to cover “I’ve Done Everything for You” with another band) We did a blistering version of “Hellraiser” by Sweet and included it on our album, but people kept coming to me and asking me what album that Motley Crue song was from. Then, one day, Iden, the lead guitarist, came in with the suggestion that we cover “She Bop” and he played the riff and I was sold instantly. I think it’s fucking fantastic and I will include it in the comments.
And while “All Through the Night” sounds like it could be a track on Yaz’s Upstairs at Eric’s, that’s a compliment. It’s a perfect little ditty by Jules Shear made better by Chertoff and Lauper.
This is an era defining work. All day-glo, angles and pop ’n’ fresh exuberance.
Then…side two. I always believed that a local band, specializing in originals needed one or two covers so people unfamiliar with their music had SOMETHING to sing along to. Always on the lookout was I. (X’s Poor Girl” was a contender but who knows that song? And I did get to cover “I’ve Done Everything for You” with another band) We did a blistering version of “Hellraiser” by Sweet and included it on our album, but people kept coming to me and asking me what album that Motley Crue song was from. Then, one day, Iden, the lead guitarist, came in with the suggestion that we cover “She Bop” and he played the riff and I was sold instantly. I think it’s fucking fantastic and I will include it in the comments.
And while “All Through the Night” sounds like it could be a track on Yaz’s Upstairs at Eric’s, that’s a compliment. It’s a perfect little ditty by Jules Shear made better by Chertoff and Lauper.
This is an era defining work. All day-glo, angles and pop ’n’ fresh exuberance.
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