True Colors (Cyndi Lauper album)

True Colors is the second studio album by American singer Cyndi Lauper, released on September 16, 1986, by Portrait Records.^[2] The album spawned several commercially successful singles as "True Colors", "Change of Heart", and "What's Going On" reached the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100, with the first two charting within the top five. The album was produced by Lauper herself together with Lennie Petze.

Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from music critics. The album earned Lauper several awards and accolades, including two nominations at the 29th Annual Grammy Awards. True Colors peaked at number four on the Billboard 200 chart. The album is Lauper's second best-selling release with around seven million copies worldwide.

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Background and production

By the end of 1985, Lauper was established as one of the best-selling artists in the world. Her first studio album was certified 4 times platinum by RIAA^[3] and received a diamond certification in Canada for sales in excess of 1 million copies, making her the first singer to achieve such a feat at that time.^[4] According to Billboard magazine the music industry was eyeing the singer's next steps anxious to know if she could maintain the success of her debut.^[5]

In her autobiography, the singer says that she initially planned that Rick Chertoff, who produced She's So Unusual, would produce what would become her second album, however, the experience with him was problematic and she changed her mind, likewise she refused to produce the album with Rob Hyman since he was affiliated with Chertoff.^[6] The album was then produced by her and Lennie Petze.^[6] Lauper said that the songs of the album are a way to say: "Have the courage of your convictions and love yourself a little", and "not to be so hard on yourself".^[7] In addition to composing most of the songs on the album, the singer also produced it.^[6]

The title song, written by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, has been covered by many other artists, and was used as the theme song for the 1988 Summer Olympics, the 2003 Rugby World Cup and for Kodak cameras and film.

In 2010, the song was also featured on the soundtrack of Sex and the City 2. True Colors was reissued in a Japanese exclusive limited edition box set 11-track digitally remastered CD album.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[8]
The Village Voice	B−^[9]

The album received favorable reviews from music critics. In a retrospective assessment, Eugene Chadbourne from AllMusic website gave the album three and a half stars out of five and wrote that while the album is "ambitious" and "some of the stretches really pay off" some of its aspects "date badly" like the "highly reverberated and artificial sounding drums and keyboards" which "were really popular at the time". He concluded that despite those problems "there really wasn't that much music recorded by this artist during her most popular period, so fans will no doubt want to own it all."^[8] Robert Christgau from The Village Voice gave the album a B MINUS and wrote that the first side of the LP consists of "cheap sentiment" and is "disheartening" and that "the second isn't much more than a relief". He finalized the review writing that "girls just want to have money--and no fun changes everything".^[9] Jimmy Guterman from Rolling Stone magazine gave the album a favorable review and wrote that Lauper's voice "sounds more comfortable at any given moment on True Colors than she did on all of She's So Unusual" and that the album "seems to indicate her extreme ease in her new surroundings" and that "she's found a new sense of peace — or at least she's heading in that direction" but he concludes that "her uneasiness gave her early work much of its spark; what places True Colors a notch below her debut is that Cyndi Lauper just isn't that unusual anymore."^[10]

Le Guide du CD/FNAC of France, gave the album between 4-5 Stars, "“The second album by the craziest redhead of American Pop, True Colors follows the huge hit album, She’s So Unusual. Inhabiting the youthful energy that characterizes her, Cyndi Lauper reuses the recipe for success of her first album, with a touch of maturity, makes this opus an accomplished album. Her cover of “What’s Going On,” by Marvin Gaye, and the hits “True Colors” and “Change Of Heart,” propels the album and confirms the influence of the artist.”

Commercial performance

In the United States, True Colors has been certified double platinum by the RIAA and peaked at number four on the Billboard 200. It topped the Australian chart for four weeks and, in Japan, outsold She's So Unusual, although that was not the case in most countries. The album produced the singles "True Colors" (No. 1 Billboard Hot 100), "Change of Heart" (No. 3), "What's Going On" (No. 12), and "Boy Blue" (No. 71). Each single had a music video although the video for "Boy Blue" was just a live performance from her Zenith concert in Paris. According to Lauper's official website, the album was certified 4× Platinum in Australia and Platinum in Italy.^[11] The album sold around 7 million copies worldwide.^[12]

Track listing

Side one
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Publisher	Length
1.	"Change of Heart"	Essra Mohawk Cyndi Lauper (additional lyrics)	Stone & Muffin Music Corp., Rella Music	4:22
2.	"Maybe He'll Know"	Lauper John Turi	Rella Music, Turi Music	4:25
3.	"Boy Blue"	Lauper Stephen Broughton Lunt Jeff Bova	Rella Music, Perfect Punch Music, Liquid Crystal Music	4:46
4.	"True Colors"	Tom Kelly Billy Steinberg	Denise Barry Music, Billy Steinberg Music	3:46
5.	"Calm Inside the Storm"	Lauper Rick Derringer	Scratch & Shift Music; Rella Music	3:54

Side two
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Publisher	Length
6.	"What's Going On"	Renaldo Benson Alfred Cleveland Marvin Gaye	Jobete Music Corp., Stone Agate Music Division	4:39
7.	"Iko Iko"	Rosa Lee Hawkins Barbara Anne Hawkins Joan Marie Johnson Sharon Jones Marilyn Jones Boogaloo Joe Jones Jesse Thomas	Arc Music Corp., Melder Publishing Company, Trio Music Co., Warner-Tamerlane Publishing	2:08
8.	"The Faraway Nearby"	Lauper Tom Gray	Rella Music, Gray Matter Publishing	3:00
9.	"911"	Lauper Lunt	Rella Music, Perfect Punch Music	3:16
10.	"One Track Mind"	Lauper Jimmy Bralower Lennie Petze Bova	Rella Music, Fancy Footwork Music, Liquid Crystal Music, Red Sox Music	3:41
Total length:				37:57

Bonus track (2008 Japan reissue)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"True Colors" (Live at Summer Sonic, 2007)	Kelly Steinberg

35th Anniversary Edition bonus tracks (2021)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Heading for the Moon" (B-Side of "True Colors")	Lauper Arthur Stead Lunt	3:19
12.	"True Colors" (Junior Vasquez Pride Mix)	Kelly Steinberg	13:36
Total length:			54:52

Personnel

Cyndi Lauper – lead vocals, arrangements, backing vocals (4, 6, 7, 10), jam box (7), Emulator voice (10)
Jeff Bova – keyboards (1, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10), arrangements (1, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10)
Peter Wood – keyboards (2, 4, 5, 6), arrangements (2, 4, 6, 9), additional keyboards (3), synthesizer bass (7)
Jon Goldberger – sound effects (7)
Nile Rodgers – guitars (1)
John McCurry – guitars (2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10)
Rick Derringer – guitars (5, 8)
Adrian Belew – guitars (6), arrangements (6)
Robert Holmes – guitars (6)
Neil Jason – bass guitar (2, 4, 6, 9)
Jimmy Bralower – LinnDrum programming, arrangements (1, 2, 5, 7-10), percussion (4, 7), jam box (4, 10)
Anton Fig – drums (2, 6)
Stephen Broughton Lunt – arrangements (3)
Lennie Petze – arrangements (3, 5, 6, 7, 10), percussion (7), backing vocals ( 10)
The Bangles – backing vocals (1)
Billy Joel – backing vocals (2)
Angela Clemmons-Patrick – backing vocals (4, 5)
Ellie Greenwich – backing vocals (5)
Aimee Mann – backing vocals (8)
Pee Wee Herman – guest operator (9)

Production

Cyndi Lauper – producer, art direction
Lennie Petze – producer
David Wolff – executive producer
Brian McGee – engineer, mixing
Jon Goldberger – assistant engineer
Tim Kramer – assistant engineer
Dave O'Donnell – assistant engineer
Jason Corsaro – additional mixing
George Marino – mastering at Sterling Sound (New York, NY).
Jude Wilder – product manager
Holland Macdonald – art direction, design
Annie Leibovitz – cover photography
Bruce Ando – inner sleeve photography
Patrick Lucas – hair stylist, make-up
Ralph Scibelli – hair colorist
Laura Wills – stylist

Accolades


Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
1987	"True Colors"	Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance	Nominated
	"911"	Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance	Nominated
	"True Colors"	MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video	Nominated
	"What's Going On"	MTV Video Music Award for Best Cinematography	Nominated

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for *True Colors*
Chart (1986–1987)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)^[13]^[14]	1
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)^[15]	15
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)^[16]	8
Canadian Albums (The Record)^[17]	7
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)^[18]	36
European Albums (Music & Media)^[19]	16
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)^[20]	14
French Albums (IFOP)^[21]	13
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[22]	20
Icelandic Albums (Tónlist)^[23]	5
Italian Albums (Musica e dischi)^[24]	23
Japanese Albums (Music Labo)^[25]	2
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)^[26]	3
South African Albums (RISA)^[27]	2
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)^[28]	20
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[29]	8
UK Albums (OCC)^[30]	25
US Billboard 200^[31]	4

Year-end charts

1986 year-end chart performance for *True Colors*
Chart (1986)	Position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)^[32]	25
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)^[33]	44
Japanese Albums (Oricon)^[34]	23

1987 year-end chart performance for *True Colors*
Chart (1987)	Position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)^[35]	84
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)^[36]	92
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[37]	50
US Billboard 200^[38]	39

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for *True Colors*
Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)^[39]	Gold	35,000^{^}
Brazil	—	300,000^[40]
Canada (Music Canada)^[41]	2× Platinum	200,000^{^}
France (SNEP)^[42]	Gold	100,000^*
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)^[43]	Gold	10,000^*
Japan	—	404,000^[44]
New Zealand (RMNZ)^[45]	Platinum	15,000^{^}
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)^[46]	Gold	25,000^{^}
United Kingdom (BPI)^[47]	Silver	60,000^{^}
United States (RIAA)^[48]	2× Platinum	2,000,000^{^}
Summaries
Worldwide	—	7,000,000^[12]
^* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ "RIAA".
^ "Cyndi Lauper – True Colours". CyndiLauper.com. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
^ Grein, Paul (20 April 1985). "First quarter totals: lots of platinum". Billboard. Lynne Segall. pp. 76–. ISSN 0006-2510.
^ LaPoint, Kirk (20 September 1985). "CRIA certifications decline". Billboard. Lynne Segall. pp. 66–. ISSN 0006-2510.
^ Dupler, Steven (4 October 1986). "...While Cyndi remains cool to reprise preasssure". Billboard. Lynne Segall. pp. 22–. ISSN 0006-2510.
^ ^a ^b ^c Lauper, Cyndi (28 February 2017). Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir. Simon and Schuster. pp. 165–. ISBN 978-1-4391-4789-4.
^ Pareles, Jon (September 14, 1986). "The return of Cyndi Lauper". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 1, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
^ ^a ^b Chadbourne, Eugene. "Cyndi Lauper: True Colors > Review" at AllMusic. Retrieved 31 December 2012.
^ ^a ^b Christgau, Robert (October 28, 1986). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
^ Guterman, Jimmy (September 25, 1986). "True Colors Album Review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 19, 2012. Retrieved December 25, 2016.
^ "Cyndi Lauper - True Colors". Archived from the original on November 23, 2003. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Cyndi Lauper's 'True Colors' Turns 35". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on October 15, 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
^ "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 40. October 4, 1986. p. 76. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09 – via World Radio History.
^ Kent 1993, p. 173.
^ "Austriancharts.at – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0745". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
^ "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 43. October 25, 1986. p. 65. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09 – via World Radio History.
^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "European Hot 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 3, no. 45. November 15, 1986. p. 35. OCLC 29800226. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09 – via World Radio History.
^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
^ "Le Détail des Albums de chaque Artiste". InfoDisc (in French). Retrieved February 7, 2022. Select "Cyndi LAUPER" from the drop-down menu and click "OK".
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "Ísland (LP-plötur)". DV (in Icelandic). October 17, 1986. p. 43. ISSN 1021-8254 – via Timarit.is.
^ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved July 26, 2022. Select "Album" in the "Tipo" field, type "True colors" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
^ "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 39. September 27, 1986. p. 70. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09 – via World Radio History.
^ "Charts.nz – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "Divas of South Africa & America – Albums". South African Divas. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019 – via GeoCities.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ "Swedishcharts.com – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "Swisscharts.com – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "Cyndi Lauper Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ Kent 1993, p. 438.
^ "Top 100 Albums of '86". RPM. Vol. 45, no. 14. December 27, 1986. p. 9. ISSN 0033-7064 – via Library and Archives Canada.
^ "1986年アルバム年間TOP100" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on June 4, 2008. Retrieved May 10, 2016 – via GeoCities.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ Kent 1993, p. 439
^ "Top 100 Albums of '87". RPM. Vol. 47, no. 12. December 26, 1987. p. 9. ISSN 0033-7064 – via Library and Archives Canada.
^ "Top Selling Albums of 1987". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1987". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
^ "Lauper" (PDF). Cash Box. December 6, 1986. p. 13. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09 – via World Radio History.
^ "Change of heart: Novo sucesso para Cyndi Lauper". Luta Democrática (in Portuguese). February 18, 1987. Retrieved April 3, 2020. After the super sales of 2 million copies of her new album - True Colors - in the American market (in Brazil it is already reaching 300,000 sold) (...)
^ "Canadian album certifications – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors". Music Canada. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
^ "French album certifications – Lauper C. – True Colors" (in French). InfoDisc. Select LAUPER C. and click OK.
^ "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1988". IFPI Hong Kong. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
^ シンディ・ローパー (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on August 14, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
^ "New Zealand album certifications – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
^ "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History Archive. 26 December 1987. p. 46. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
^ "British album certifications – Cyndi Lauper – True Colours". British Phonographic Industry. November 7, 1986. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
^ "American album certifications – Cyndi Lauper – True Colors". Recording Industry Association of America. November 14, 1994. Retrieved February 28, 2012.

Bibliography

Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

v t e Cyndi Lauper
Discography Songs Awards and nominations
Studio albums	She's So Unusual True Colors A Night to Remember Hat Full of Stars Sisters of Avalon Merry Christmas ... Have a Nice Life Shine At Last The Body Acoustic Bring Ya to the Brink Memphis Blues Detour
Compilations	The Best Remixes Twelve Deadly Cyns...and Then Some Wanna Have Fun The Essential Cyndi Lauper The Great Cyndi Lauper Hey Now! (Remixes & Rarities) True Colors: The Best of Cyndi Lauper
Tours	Fun Tour True Colors Memphis Blues Tour She's So Unusual: 30th Anniversary Tour Detour Tour
Related articles	To Memphis, with Love Blue Angel Kinky Boots (Cast album)
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This page was last edited on 31 March 2024, at 20:53

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