Cyndi Lauper Is Still Having Fun

Cyndi Lauper was a distinct slice of the 1980s pop culture: rainbow-assorted hair, funky clothes, and a girls-just-want-to-have-fun attitude to match.

And like '80s icons Prince and Madonna, Ms. Lauper has graduated to the '90s pop scene. Her new album, "Sisters of Avalon," debuts April 1 in the US. The songs reflect a variety of styles: electro-reggae, hip-hop waltz, and jazz. And they were recorded in not-so-usual locales such as a 100-year-old mansion in upstate New York or outdoors in the Tennessee woods.

Since debut hits like "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" and "Time After Time," Lauper has recorded four other albums and starred in the 1988 movie "Vibes." She even won an Emmy for a guest appearance in the NBC sitcom "Mad About You." And in 1991, Lauper married actor David Thornton.

Lauper, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native started her musical career playing the guitar and singing folk songs, and eventually became a vocalist for cover bands in the mid-1970s rendering the likes of Janis Joplin and Led Zeppelin. She recorded her first album with her band, Blue Angels, in 1980.

She finally made it big after signing with a subsidiary label of Epic Records in 1983, producing her first solo album, "She's So Unusual," which has sold more than 9 million copies worldwide. She took a Grammy for best new artist in 1984 and has also been lauded by MTV, Rolling Stone magazine, and the American Music Awards.