Wallowing in Cyn...

Yesterday, after my daily visit to HMV in the hopes that they'll finally have the February issue of In Style available, I came across a copy of "Twelve Deadly Cyns... and then some..." This was Cyndi's greatest hits album that came out sometime in the late 90s or early 2000s. My copy of this CD was lost due to the numerous office moves I had those years (from Makati to Vito Cruz to Ortigas to Makati), so I took this as a sign to buy this copy again.



During her heyday, Cyndi was my favorite female singer. She was pitted against Madonna (just like Duran Duran was pitted against Spandau Ballet) and I knew that Madge's star would outshine Cyndi's. After all, she wasn't as sultry, seductive and sexy as Madonna was during her prime. Cyndi was more quirky, more fun, she couldn't pronounce her Rs right, and she was SO rive gauche. With her technicolored hair, one side shaved for "Time after Time" and her affinity with Capt. Lou Albano, she lived up to the title of her first album "She's So Unusual."

Her songs and lyrics were somewhere between playful to somewhat risque. It was an anthem of liberation for many, as it touched on sensitive issues in a way that'll make your head bob up and down and your feet tap. "She Bop" was supposedly about mastrurbation, and "True Colors" was about closet homosexuality. Some people thought that all these undertones were her way to enter Madonna's niche, because that time, she was singing "Like a Virgin" and "Over and Over."

I shuddered when she tried to do a "Madonna" on her 2nd album. Her MTVs for "True Colors" and "I drove all night" featured Cyndi in her naked glory, which to many was a bit off-character. This didn't work for her as well as we hoped it would. It might actually have worked against her because the sight of her unclothed body snatched the attention off her beautiful voice.



When she had her concert here in Manila, I lined up to watch it even if I had to watch it alone. (None of my siblings were Cyndi fans, and all my high school friends who were couldn't be reached.) That time, her star was has faded away, but that didn't deter me from seeing the love of my high school life up close. (Yes, I had a number of Cyndi Lauper shirts from Top 40 Apparel.) That time, she already had 3 albums out, though only 2 really did well on the charts and in the stores.

While her biggest hit still is "Girls just want to have fun" which spawned the reggae-ish remake "Hey now, Girls just want to have fun," my favorite Cyndi Lauper song still has to be "Change of Heart" from her 2nd album "True Colors." After buying the CD yesterday, i've been listening to this song over and over and over and over again. I exaggerate not when I saw i've listened to it more than 60 times already today. In fact, the lyrics are now etched in my mind, leading me to memorize the song and sing it unconsciously. This song has such a catchy beat to it, and showcases her vocal range, from low to shrilly high. And like many of my favorites ditties, this is also a break up song:

CHANGE OF HEART
Cyndi Lauper
True Colors

Here I am
Just like I said I would be
I'm your friend
Just like you think it should be
Did you think I would stand here andlie
As our moment was passing us by
Oh I am here

Waiting for your change of heart
It just takes a beat
To turn it around
Yes I'm waiting for you change of heart
At the edge of my seat
Please turn it around

Days go by
Leaving me with a hunger
I could fly
Back to when we were younger
When adventures like cars we would ride
And the years lied ahead still untried
While I stand here

Waiting for your change of heart...

Blind leading blind
Never hear the laughter
Search through time
Nothing reveals the answer
If it's truth that you're looking to find
It is nowhere outside of your mind
I bide my time

Waiting for you change of heart...