At Last (CD - 2003)

Personnel includes: Cyndi Lauper (vocals); Tony Bennett (vocals); Kat Dyson, Gray Sargent (guitar, background vocals); Allison Cornell (violin, viola); Elena Barere, Jonathan Dinklage, Narciso Figueroa, Joyce Hammann, Ann Leathers, Katherine Livolsi-Stern, Nancy McAlhaney, Jan Mullen, Paul Woodiel (violin); Carol Emanuel (harp); Mark Stewart (cello); Aaron Heick (flute); Ronnie Cuber (bass clarinet); Steve Gaboury (accordion, melodica, piano, Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards); Stevie Wonder (harmonica); Mitch Frohman (tenor & baritone saxophone); John Walsh (trumpet); Dan Reagan (trombone); Lee Musiker (piano); Rob Mathes (keyboards); Ben Street, Bill Wittman, Larry Glazner, Paul Langosch (bass); Sammy Merendino, Clayton Cameron, Steve Jordan (drums); Sheila E., Carlito Soto (percussion).

Recorded at Live Wire, Clinton Recording Studios and Avatar Studios, New York, New York; Bennett Studios, Englewood, New Jersey.

Personnel: Gray Sargent, Kathleen Dyson (guitar); Stacy Shames, Carol Emanuel (harp); Allison Cornell (violin, viola); Nancy McAlhany, Narcisco Figueroa, Elena Barere, Joyce Hammann, Paul Woodiel, Katherine LiVolsi Stern, Ann Leathers, Jan Mullen, Jonathan Dinklage (violin); Mark Stewart (cello); Aaron Heick (flute); Stevie Wonder (harmonica); Steve Gaboury (accordion, melodica, piano, keyboards); Ronnie Cuber (bass clarinet); Gerard Reuter (oboe); Mitch Frohman (tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone); John Walsh (trumpet); Dan Reagen (trombone); Lee Musiker (piano); Rob Mathes (keyboards); Steve Jordan , Clayton Cameron, Sammy Merendino (drums); Sheila E. (percussion).

Audio Mixers: Russ Titelman; William Wittman.

Recording information: Avatar Studios, New York, NY; Bennett Studios, Englewood, NJ; Clinton Recording Studios, New York, NY; Livewire Recording, New York, NY; Right Track Studios, New York, NY; Wonderland Studios, LA.

Arrangers: Steve Jordan ; Don Sebesky; Kathleen Dyson; Rob Hyman ; Steve Gaboury; William Wittman; Ben Street.

As the girl who just wants to have fun, Cyndi Lauper became an '80s music icon with her flamboyant style, powerful baby-doll voice, and quirky songs, but as time and tastes moved on, her playful persona wore thin and attempts at becoming a more serious artist failed to regain her dwindling audience. With At Last, Lauper steps even further away from that playful image to become the girl who just wants to sing as she tackles a set of pop standards that showcase her underrated voice. Although occasionally shrill and reckless, Lauper's forceful tones can be quite moving and awe-inspiring when corralled into the proper setting, as with her bluesy take on Etta James' "At Last." With its lazy tempo and minimal arrangement, Lauper is able to relax and convey the lyrics in one of her most mature and affecting performances. Even more low-key is the whisper quiet of "Walk on By," in which she turns Dionne Warwick's midtempo gem into a dark tale of mourning by sadly singing the lyrics over a crawling tempo. Getting a Tori Amos-style ballad treatment is the Animals' "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," which lets Lauper's rock roots rise to the surface with her edgy performance. While some of her song choices work, others fall flat, like "La Vie en Rose," in which her slightly ragged reading is too rough for the delicate song. Also misfiring is her corny duet with Tony Bennett, "Makin' Whoopee," where the voices of these two New Yorkers clash like stripes and plaids. Lauper also has a little too much fun with Maurice Williams & the Zodiacs' "Stay," as she reverts back to her boisterous voice of yesteryear and disrupts the mature tone of the disc. Although the results are mixed, At Last does focus on Cyndi Lauper's best asset -- her voice -- and may help to rejuvenate a career in which the personality unfortunately overshadowed the talent. ~ Aaron Latham

Beneath the kooky persona she has projected in the past, Cyndi Lauper is a nice New York City girl with quite a set of pipes. AT LAST finds her revisiting the music she heard growing up in Ozone Park section of Queens and paying tribute to these songs by way of unique arrangements. Going beyond the typical route of solely dipping into the great American standards songbook, Lauper casts her net far and wide, coming up with material associated with Dionne Warwick, the Animals, and Edith Piaf.

Among her more imaginative renditions are the ska-fueled run through "On the Sunny Side of the Street" and the Latin-flavored treatment of Maurice Williams' "Stay," featuring help from Sheila E. and a delightfully brassy horn section. Stevie Wonder also helps out, contributing harmonica to a jazzy "Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)," a song originally recorded by Aretha Franklin and Tony Bennett, the latter who duets with Lauper on a late-night lounge version of "Makin' Whoopee." Working with the kind of stripped-down arrangements sympathetic to her keen sense of range, AT LAST finds Cyndi Lauper finally coming home. minimize