Turn It Up!: Cyndi Lauper - True Colors (Live 2004)

There's so many things I want to say about this song, and this performance/tour in particular, and it's all filling my head at once so it may come out all wrong, but this may have been the single most amazing and moving tour of any artist that I've ever been to (and you can be assured that I've been to a hell of a lot of concerts in my time). For me it's right up there with seeing Bette Midler in concert (which still holds it's place at number 1 in my books).

The "At Last" Tour was probably the first time that I stopped seeing Cyndi as just a fun, quirky pop act with a loud voice, and really began to see her as a fully formed artist and musical entity. Yes, it had it's usual upbeat flavor where she sang loud and free and knocked us all over with the power of her voice and danced her way into the audience, but there were also quieter moments that really shone brightly and revealed the tender and fragile side of her voice which almost had me in tears on more than one occasion.

I saw this tour when it came to Massey Hall in Toronto. I was 22 and really just becoming comfortable with my sexuality (I had only started coming out to my friends and family 2 years before that) and when she sang this version of True Colors and stopped with her fist held high in the air after belting "Don't be Afraid", something just clicked in me and tears filled my eyes and I felt like I would be okay. It sounds strange and cliche but I swear to God it's true, I felt like part of my mind or my shame was turned off in that instant and everyone in that theatre was on the same page.

So, needless to say, to have a DVD reminder of that moment in my life is indeed a beautiful thing. I still get chills and a little choked up when that moment arrives. So I want to say a great big Thank You to Cyndi Lauper for helping me reach that realisation that who I am is not shameful, because I can live and love beautifully regardless of what people think or how I was raised to think.

If I can relay that message onto others that may be dealing with personal struggles, or coming out, or have come out and feel that the gay community is quite generalising and has no space for you, or whatever it may be, that there is a place on the board for a rare jig-saw puzzle piece like you, then I think I've done a good job with this silly little blog.

Be Well (and listen to some Cyndi Lauper)!!!!