June 22, 2008
True Colors sparkles with Lauper, Jett, the B-52s

Cyndi Lauper kick-started the True Colors Tour last year as a way of showcasing human diversity and as a call for equality. This year's edition continued to celebrate the GLBT community (and its straight friends) Saturday at the Woodlands Pavilion -- and added a bit of pointed politicizing into the mix.

"If you can vote for the American Idol, you can vote for the president," Lauper told a healthy Saturday crowd at the Woodlands Pavilion.

She stopped short of endorsing any particular candidate -- though B-52's vocalist Fred Schneider urged fans to not "vote insane." (Figure out the rhyme yourself.)

But the multi-act show -- which also featured Lily Haydn and ab-tastic rock goddess Joan Jett -- was really about the music. It offered an often-thrilling mix of flashy retro fare, searing guitar work, pulsing club grooves and truly transcendent moments.

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy fashionista Carson Kressley emceed the festivities with a bit of cheeky humor and a flurry of flashy wardrobe changes. (Did you expect anything less?) He sipped on drinks from front-row fans and worked in several local references -- the Galleria, the Montrose area, popular watering hole the Mining Company and even seedy leather bar the Ripcord.

But it was Wanda Sykes, co-star of the uproarious sitcom The New Adventures Old Christine, who truly brought the funny. This was her first True Colors Tour stop, and Sykes filled her brief set with musings on Houston heat ("It is Africa hot. I saw the devil at the baggage claim."), airline restrictions ("I'm ashy. I need more than an ounce of lotion.") and political desperation ("I think if Monica Lewinsky was a super delegate, Hilary would have taken her to lunch.")

Sykes also mused on the controversy of equating the gay struggle with the hard-won rights of black people.

"Don't worry," she quipped. "No one's trying to cut in front of us in the oppression line."

It could have made for an uncomfortable moment. But Sykes' way with a line made the bit ring with comedic accuracy.

Erasure frontman Andy Bell also hopped onboard in Houston, the first of seven cities he'll hit on the tour. His full band was a highlight of last year's incarnation.

A sunburnt Bell seemed nervous and moved awkwardly during his first few songs, likely because he was onstage solo and singing to prerecorded tracks. But he eventually loosened up, thanks to a warm reception from the crowd.

Soon enough, he was prancing and strutting across the stage like a quirky ballerina. He still has that dramatic pop swoop in his voice, and it gave tunes Chains of Love, A Little Respect and Oh L'Amour a lovely lift.

Lauper joined Bell onstage for a soulful Early Bird (taken from Erasure's 2007 Storm Chaser EP). The a cappella intro was meant to give way to tracked music, but the sound crew fumbled. No matter. Bell and Lauper tore through the tune on the strength of their powerful voices, and it created real electricity.

"How dare ya!" Lauper snapped when the instrumental track finally started. Don't mess with this diva's flow.

Jett and her Blackhearts proved to be the biggest revelation: a sexy, smart, snarly blast of old-school rock. The band's early evening set was tight and unified.

The veteran rocker tore through anthems Bad Reputation, Cherry Bomb, Light of Day and Do You Wanna Touch Me with astonishing ferocity. Those tunes are more than two decades old, but they were still urgent, effective testaments to her musicianship.

Jett turns 50 later this year, but she's sexier than pop tarts half her age. She sported skintight leather pants, a barely-there bikini top and outrageously toned, washboard abs.

She also showcased several songs from erotically charged 2006 disc Sinner, including A.C.D.C. and Fetish, an explicit ode to bondage and submission.

Signature hit I Love Rock 'N Roll, of course, earned Jett the biggest response. She led the crowd through the familiar lyrics before ending with her searing cover of Crimson and Clover and a knockout take on '80s rocker I Hate Myself for Loving You.

After Jett's terrifically revved-up set, the B-52s' shot of retro-silliness seemed a bit lightweight. But much of the enthusiastic crowd clearly has a soft spot for the "world's greatest party band." Air guitars and awkward dance moves rippled through the venue.

Members Fred Schneider, Kate Pierson (the redhead), Cindy Wilson (the blonde) and Keith Strickland looked like some sort of New Wave window display -- all bold colors and exaggerated moves. The go-go enthusiasm never let up. It was also exhausting to watch after just a few tunes.

The band is promoting Funplex, its first new disc in 16 years, but that's not what fans wanted to hear. They sang along -- loudly -- to old favorites Mesopotamia, Private Idaho and Rock Lobster.

Schneider announces more than he actually sings, which leaves the bulk of the real vocals to Pierson and Wilson. They took command during Roam and new song Juliet of the Spirits. Love Shack, the group's biggest hit, came complete with cowbell. And Wilson's signature line -- "Tin roof -- rusted!" -- elicited roars of approval.

By the time Lauper (re)appeared for her closing set, the sun had long set, and the Houston humidity had completely infiltrated the crowd. But she rightfully earned the evening's biggest response.

More than any other act on the bill, Lauper's live show crackled with vitality and pulsed with the immediacy of an artist that still has something to say. She filled her time with recognizable hits, but it would be incorrect, and unfair, to simply label her a nostalgia act.

Lauper kicked off with the pounding pleas of Change of Heart, which she started atop a mock-up of the Statue of Liberty's torch (a nod to the tour's logo). She quickly descended and raced into the crowd before kicking into the electro-flamenco groove of new tune Rocking Chair.

The stage backdrop featured a series of buzzwords -- Jewish, Asian, lesbian, Muslim, Hispanic, Democrat, questioning, transgender, Christian, atheist -- all running together. They were eventually overlaid with a single unifier: "equality."

Lauper strapped on a guitar for When You Were Mine and She Bop, showcased soaring power during I Drove All Night and danced through the crowd (again) to the disco-house strains of Into the Nightlife, a standout from new disc Bring Ya to the Brink.

The singer turned 55 Sunday, and the crowd surprised her with a Happy Birthday serenade. Clearly touched, Lauper took a moment to reflect on Texas. She remembered looking out her tourbus window at rows of wildflowers and thinking of Lady Bird Johnson.

"It reminds me there's a place for all of us, even the wildflowers," she said gently, her Betty Boop speaking voice a sharp contrast to her full-throttle singing.

"Texas always reminds me."

The party kicked back into gear with Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, still a sing-along shot of pure, unpretentious pop joy. And Money Changes Everything was an exhaustive display of emotion.

Lauper's onstage passion is unparalleled. It's amazing she doesn't need two weeks off after every show. She's also a perfectionist, restarting current single Same Old Story after the band kicked her off in the wrong key. And she was visibly annoyed when sound problems marred her concentration during a seemingly lovely Time After Time.

But it was all good again for the Everyday People encore, which featured Lauper, Kressley, Haydn and the B-52s. They closed, as is now customary, with titular hit True Colors, which was accompanied by huge balloons that bounced up, down and through the aisles.

"It was my song," Lauper told the crowd. "Now it's your song."