Then: In the early 1970s, Lauper performed as a vocalist with various cover bands. One, called Doc West, covered disco songs as well as Janis Joplin. A later band, Flyer, was active in the New York metropolitan area, singing hits by bands including Bad Company, Jefferson Airplane and Led Zeppelin. Although Lauper was performing on stage, she was not happy singing covers. In 1978, Lauper met saxophone player John Turi through her manager Ted Rosenblatt. Turi and Lauper formed a band named Blue Angel and recorded a demo tape of original music. Steve Massarsky, manager of The Allman Brothers Band, heard the tape and liked Lauper’s voice.
Now: Lauper has not released a new album since 2016, but she still regularly performs, most often at charity events and activist rallies. In November 2020, Lauper dueted with former top ten “American Idol” finalist Casey Abrams on a cover version of the song ‘Eve of Destruction’. In November 2021 Lauper featured as guest vocalist on the track ‘Blame it on Christmas’ by Shea Diamond. An official video was released the following month. Lauper will be performing at the 2022 MusiCares Person of the Year Tribute Show honoring Joni Mitchell on April 1st.
