by Eric Andrews-Katz - SGN Contributing Writer

ZooTunes: Cyndi Lauper September 2 Woodland Park Zoo

There is no doubt that Cyndi Lauper is one of the most eclectic entertainers of our time. On Thursday, September 2, at the last of the ZooTunes concert series, Cyndi Lauper again showed that she is still a girl that can have fun with anything, including the blues. Booked later in the season, Ms. Lauper was scheduled into the series just in time to promote her latest CD release, Memphis Blues.

Exploring musical roots, Ms. Lauper covered a collection of songs written by some of the greatest blues artists of our time. Cyndi took to the stage in a black suit and flaming, fire-engine-red hair, beginning with 'Just You Fool,' with assistance from her opening act, blues artist Charles Musselwhite. Her voice is suited well for a genre that can be gritty and often hard to listen to, but after only a few bars she had the crowd in the palm of her bluesy hand. Immediately continuing with 'Shattered Dreams,' Ms. Lauper paused before following with the light-hearted 'Early in the Morning.'

"In a time of technology," she said to the audience member who was continuously filming her, "you should be present. I am with you here and now and you should be a part of that, not spending the time looking through a lens. The point of being here watching me live is to say, 'I was there,' instead of watching it on Youtube." Despite several general subtleties, the audience member in question failed to listen. After being continuously ignored, Ms. Lauper made her point by addressing the culprit directly. "Hey, numbnuts! You in the blue shirt, I'm talking to you. Be present in the here and now with us and with me! Not looking through a lens." The audience responded overwhelmingly with Ms. Lauper's admonishment.

After covering the majority of the new Memphis Blues album, Ms. Lauper thanked the crowd and proceeded to leave the stage. When the crowd demanded, she returned to perform a series of her classic songs as an encore, but with a bluesy twist. Each rendition of "Down the Line," "Change of Heart," and "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" - which allowed everyone to break the (semi) strict "no-standing" law of the concert - was done with a blues edge. Further encores were "Time After Time," "She Bop," and the evening's concert ended with the haunting AIDS memorial, "True Colors."

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