vocal

Instrumental and vocal profiles are sharp, clean and comfortably balanced; Lennon’s backing group, Elephant’s Memory, sounds solid and powerful, and the shows are couched in a vibrant ambience.

Yet “True Colors” became a hit anyway, topping the Hot 100 for two weeks thanks in large part to Lauper’s deeply unguarded vocal performance.

The record features a carefully curated list of guest artists, providing backing vocals, or cameos, and this is when you remember that this is a concept piece.

Kearns, who has been a vocal critic of China, said she was concerned the government was "putting our national security second" because it wanted to reset relations with Beijing.

With a sprawling live band and big moments of unvarnished vocal candor, this was pop at its highest caliber, but with an eye toward long-term durability and integrity.