Cyndi Lauper Continues Her "Detour"

On The Road Again
Cyndi Lauper

Turn right at the fork in the road...

Grammy®, Emmy® and Tony®-winning singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper is continuing to take country music by storm with her Billboard Top Country Album DETOUR, which is still in the Top 40 and continues to spark sales at retailers nationwide like Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® and more! Lauper recently stopped by the TODAY show to chat with Kathy Lee and Hoda about DETOUR and her collaborations with country music greats, including Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, Jewel, Vince Gill and Emmylou Harris. Click HERE to watch the clip.

Known best for her legendary pop icon status, Lauper is reigning in a new legion of fans with her new country-tinged album DETOUR featuring a collection of country covers from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s (track listing below). DETOUR debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.

"These songs had a profound impact on me when I was a little girl listening to my Aunt Gracie's kitchen radio in Queens. I grew up listening and admiring Patsy Cline, Patsy Montana, Hank Williams - all the greats from the Golden Age of country. It was an honor to record those beautiful songs for DETOUR and I am so thankful for the fans and the country music community for welcoming me with open arms," Lauper said.

Lauper just returned from the European leg of her DETOUR tour and is currently in the midst of the second leg of her U.S. tour which takes her along the west coast before wrapping up October 8 at The Joint in Las Vegas. In addition, Lauper’s annual “Home for the Holidays” concert is scheduled for December 3 at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Additional details – including special guests performers - will be announced soon. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets before this highly anticipated tour sells out in your area!

Critics are raving about the pop star’s unique approach to country classics:

“The singer confidently twangs and yodels her way through covers of everyone from Patsy Montana to Patsy Cline.” Benjamin Lindsay, Vanity Fair

“Her new release, Detour, an album full of classic country song covers, is less an indicator of the veteran pop star’s desire to change genres than it is a sincere homage to a dozen tunes she grew up listening to on a transistor radio in her aunt’s kitchen and falling in love with.” – Chapman Baehler, Billboard Magazine

“Lauper and Norman native Vince Gill work together to cover ‘You’re the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly,’ … The song is a rollicking and infectious version of the 1978 country B-side recorded by Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty.” Ben Luschen, Oklahoma Gazette


DETOUR Tour:
Sept. 18 Paramount Theatre - Denver, Colo.
Sept. 20 The Depot - Salt Lake City, Utah
Sept. 21 Outlaw Field at the Idaho Botanical - Boise, Idaho
Sept. 23 Thunder Valley Casino Resort - Lincoln, Calif.
Sept. 24 Agua Caliente Casino - Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Sept. 27 Vina Robles Amphitheatre - Paso Robles, Calif.
Sept. 28 Arlington Theatre - Santa Barbara, Calif.
Sept. 30 The Mountain Winery - Saratoga, Calif.
Oct. 03 Humphrey's Concerts by the Bay - San Diego, Calif.
Oct. 05 Greek Theatre - Los Angeles, Calif.
Oct. 07 Talking Stick Resort Ballroom - Scottsdale, Ariz.
Oct. 08 The Joint - Las Vegas, Nev.
Dec. 03 Beacon Theatre, New York, N.Y.  

Get To Know Zachary Webber

Zachary Webber

Actor Zachary Webber is one cool dude. How do I know? I have co-starred with him on stage in a two person play. Since then Zach has kept very busy in his chosen career. Delving into everything from voice over to comedy and of course film. I knew when I met Zach he was going places. He has not proved me wrong. He recently had a role in Meg Ryan's directorial debut Ithaca which starred her and Tom Hanks. Zach is here to answer ten random things I have thrown at him. I can't wait to say "I knew him when!"

MS: Ithaca

ZW: I did a scene with Sam Shepard, and I personally made him break while improvising. It is and may always be the greatest moment in my career. I could have died on the spot. I doubt he remembers my name.

MS: Texas

ZW: It's my home, and it's where my heart is, or at least pieces of it. There's nothing particular about Texas if you grew up there and weren't meant to stay. The cows and the food and the bigotry are the main components, and if you ascribe to them all, you stay. I had to go to the big cities. I had to challenge everything I knew, and I still am today.

Rhinestone Cowboy?!

MS: Sasquatch Comedy
ZW: My best friends. Sasquatch has become my rock. I don't know where I'd be today without them.

MS: Barbie Dream House

ZW: My sister had one. Even I, an 8 year old boy, was sort of mesmerized by the thing. I had my own version at the time, a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Sewer Lair. But the Dream House was so big. The allure of having a house with a beautiful woman must have started there.

MS: Meg Ryan

ZW: I was enamored with Meg my whole life. When Harry Met Sally is still my favorite movie. She's as kind and gorgeous as you'd expect. One of the nicest people I will ever meet.

MS: Romance Novels

ZW: I never knew they would be the launch pad for my career. Somehow it has become my day job to read these books. If you'd told me when I was 16 that having a sex voice would earn me money I would have scoffed, and my voice would have broke in the process.
MS: Singing

ZW: Always a passion, never a practice.

MS: Puppy Love
ZW: 😎 I have a hard time imagining this one right now. I've known love, but it's always indelibly tied to heartbreak. I'm waiting for puppy love that stays young, as love should. I've always been with people who were dead wrong for me, who I loved deeply. My recent breakup is a testament to that, at an insane level. I had feelings I never knew I could feel. It was such immense passion, but only that. I think of leaves falling and her face, and I just cry. But we were wrong for each other. It's a sad truth everyone must face at some point. Maybe not everyone. But I'm not the type to hide from love. I dive in, at times to my detriment.
MS: Burning Man

ZW: It didn't change my life, it served my life in the moment I needed it most. I needed to be away from the world and see what genuine goodness could be. That can't be taken away. Coming back to earth has been very hard though.
MS: Favorite Drink

ZW: Whatever you got.
Find out more about Zach at:
https://www.instagram.com/zacharypwebber/
https://twitter.com/zacharywebber
www.imdb.com/name/nm3910248/

Leaping Lizards! Britney Spears

Look At Me, I've Still Got It!
Britney Spears

Hump Day is upon us and as you can see by this image of one Ms. Britney Spears she's so excited and she just can't hide it!

Apparently Brit, Brit had some down time and decided to express herself and ended up impressing herself and quite frankly me as well in the process. 

Look at her leap through the air with the greatest of ease in this photo she posted on her Instagram with the caption "Kinda bored today and wanted to see if I could still do a leap...It's not perfect but not too shabby either."

Honestly I think she is selling herself short. I would give her leap a ten, it looks perfect to me and seriously Brit, not many people could even come close to doing one that is this "not too shabby."

I wonder if she can leap tall buildings in a single bound too?

Happy Hump Day!

Britney on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/britneyspears/?hl=en  

Media Blitz - Dolly Parton

From L-R: Shane Carter, President, Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Inc., Dolly Parton, Danny Nozell, President / CEO, CTK Management, Simon Rayner, Director, Marketing, Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Inc., Kirt Webster, President, Webster Public Relations

If It's Pure & Simple, It's Dolly!

There’s no mistaking the fact that Dolly Parton continues to reign as one of America’s favorite entertainers of all time – and the summer of 2016 has only added to that reputation with one of the most successful tours in the music business – and her first chart-topping solo album in a quarter-century.

Her Pure & Simple tour – her first extensive concerted touring effort in the United States since 1992, has sold out arena and arena, garnering her rave reviews from the critics for her pared-down approach at telling her musical story. She has just brought the tour north of the border to Canada, as well.

At the same time, the Country Music Hall of Fame member is by no means resting on her laurels. Her newest album, also titled Pure & Simple, has proven that the public’s love affair with Dolly Parton the musician and songwriter remains as strong as ever. The disc, released on August 19, debuted atop the Billboard Country Albums chart – marking her first-ever debut in the Soundscan era. Overall,Pure and Simple has become her seventh album to top the charts – and first since Eagle When She Flies in 1991. The album also reached a similar status in Canada, as well, hitting the top of the charts.

Hello Dolly!
Dolly & Katie Couric

The disc has impressed many of the industry’s toughest critics, with USA Today’s Bob Doerschuck saying “After half a century’s worth of performance, Dolly Parton’s voice still bubbles like a freshly popped bottle of champagne,” while ABC News’ Allan Raible extorts that Pure & Simple “is just another reminder of her durability as an artist. Like Willie Nelson and Loretta Lynn, she is one of the few remaining from country’s old-guard and yet it is still amazing to think that her first albums were released fifty years ago.”

The worldwide entertainment icon has once again partnered up with Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores for a contest that will give fans a chance to win a “Dolly Parton VIP Concert Experience,” which includes airfare, hotel accommodations, 2 VIP concert tickets, a photo with Dolly, and other items. For more details, go to dolly.crackerbarrel.com.

The restaurant chain is also offering an exclusive edition of Pure & Simple that contains two bonus cuts. The association with Cracker Barrel also includes the new online “Front Porch Series,” which features Parton talking musical shop with newcomers Cam and RaeLynn. Fans can watch the clips at youtube.com/user/CrackerBarrelOCS

In addition to these performances and reviews, Dolly has also been making the media rounds with such media luminaries as Larry King (goo.gl/vEbpBd), Katie Couric (yahoo.com/katiecouric), and CNBC’s “On The Money” (cnbc.com/2016/09/05/dolly-parton-is-back-on-the-charts-and-she-means-business.html).
 

Get Pure & Simple here:
iTunes: smarturl.it/dollypartonps
Apple Music: smarturl.it/applemusicdolly
Amazon Music: smarturl.it/amzmusicdolly
Google Play: marturl.it/gpdolly
Spotify: smarturl.it/spotifydolly
Amazon Physical: smarturl.it/amazondolly 

Michael's Monday Musings

Don't Bother Me, I'm Basking
Michael Shinafelt

Today, rather than devote space to one thing I decided to give it up to many things. My impressions of this past week. Are you ready? Fasten your seat belts, because it's going to come hard and fast!

Congratulations to RuPaul on winning his first Emmy as reality TV show host. Much deserved, he is so good at what he does.

People who whistle in public places need to be silenced. It's really annoying.

My condolences to the Arquette family. I have encountered Alexis over the years he was a sweet soul. I am sorry for your loss.

I am loving the Real House Wives of New York reunion shows. Especially Bethenny Frankel for bringing bitchy back! So glad Jules Wainstein is not returning, I couldn't believe how much vagina she brought to the table.

Living in Southern California is the best! The weather of late has been so amazing.

Pretty Little Liars summer finale has only been little over a week ago and damn I miss that show already. Hurry up April 2017!

American Horror Story Season 6 premieres this Wednesday. That will fill the "Liars" void.

Nothing is better than a great spin class, luckily I have found two instructors at Gold's Gym Hollywood that fit the bill. Cheers Michelle and Jessica you are the best!

People yelling "Beat It Creep" at me when I am walking down the street wearing the T-Shirt Traci Lords gave me from her clothing line with the saying on it is always good fun.

I'm ready for the election to be over, seriously it feels like it's been going as long as I've been alive!

Follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/MShinafelt

Sunday Schwing! Jamie "Naked Attraction"

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Versailles Jerk?

Look, We're Jerking!
Ben Hanisch & Amy Schumer

"Vacation, All I ever wanted, Vacation, Had to get away" - The Go Go's

Recently whilst on vacation Amy Schumer and her boyfriend Ben Hanisch decided to clown around and took this photo which ended up on her Instagram with the caption "Jerks at Versailles"

Oh Amy I thought you were way more clever than this. Why not the caption Versailles Jerk? This way you could have pretended you made up a new dance craze or something.

Ponder that! 

It's Saturday don't forget to jerk!

Amy on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/amyschumer/?hl=en