Pretty Little Head | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | October 31, 2006 | |||
Recorded | 2005 | |||
Genre | Pop, Rock | |||
Label | Hungry Mouse, SpinArt Records, Rykodisc Records (2006-2007) Sony Records (2008-) | |||
Producer | Robin Pappas/Nellie McKay | |||
Nellie McKay chronology | ||||
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Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 78/100 [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [2] |
Being There Magazine | [3] |
Pitchfork Media | 7.4/10 [4] |
Rolling Stone | [5] |
Spin | B+ [6] |
Pretty Little Head is the second album by singer Nellie McKay. It was released October 31, 2006, on Nellie's own Hungry Mouse label. It features duets with Cyndi Lauper ("Beecharmer") and k.d. lang ("We Had It Right"). Other songs include "Columbia Is Bleeding", "Cupcake" ("...about gay marriage..."), and "The Big One" ("...about a tenant's rights activist...").
Pretty Little Head was originally set to be released October 18, 2005. The release date was subsequently delayed until December 27, 2005 and finally January 3, 2006.
However, McKay announced on December 19, 2005, that she had left Columbia/Sony Records after a dispute over the length of the upcoming album. [7] Just over two weeks following this announcement, a New York Times article surfaced stating McKay said she had been dropped by Columbia Records. [8]
The album was being marketed and manufactured on the SpinArt Records label until the label's bankruptcy in 2007. Pretty Little Head is now being distributed by Sony in its original, 23-track 2-CD version, effectively bringing the album back to Columbia.
Disc One
Disc Two
Chart (2006) | Peak position |
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Billboard Heatseeker Albums | 10 |
Billboard Independent Albums | 24 |
Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album She's So Unusual (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achieve four top-five hits on the Billboard Hot 100—"Girls Just Want to Have Fun", "Time After Time", "She Bop", and "All Through the Night"—and earned Lauper the Best New Artist award at the 27th Annual Grammy Awards in 1985. Her success continued with the soundtrack for the motion picture The Goonies (1985) and her second record True Colors (1986). This album included the number-one single "True Colors" and "Change of Heart", which peaked at number three. In 1989, Lauper saw success with "I Drove All Night" and in 1993, had her first dance club hit with "That's What I Think".
"She Bop" is a song by American singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper, released as the third single from her debut studio album, She's So Unusual (1983). It reached number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in September 1984. Worldwide, the song is her third most commercially successful single after "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" and "Time After Time", and also reached number 46 on the UK Singles Chart and number six on the ARIA Singles Chart. "She Bop" was Lauper's third consecutive top 5 on the Hot 100. She recorded a quieter version of the song for her 2005 album The Body Acoustic.
She's So Unusual is the debut studio album by American singer and songwriter Cyndi Lauper, released on October 14, 1983, by Portrait Records. The album was re-released in 2014 to commemorate its 30th anniversary, and was called She's So Unusual: A 30th Anniversary Celebration. The re-release contains demos and remixes of previously released material, as well as new artwork.
True Colors is the second studio album by American singer Cyndi Lauper, released on September 15, 1986, by Portrait Records. 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.
"Hole in My Heart (All the Way to China)" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Cyndi Lauper for her 1988 film Vibes. It was written by Richard Orange, formerly of the band Zuider Zee. The track saw the light of day on an official CD, as of 2003, with the release of the 3-CD compilation, The Great Cyndi Lauper. It can be found on the following albums: Best Movie Album in the World...Ever! (3 CDs), True Colors: The Best of Cyndi Lauper (2 CDs), 36 All-time Favorites (3 CDs), Monster Hits 1988/Hits of 1988 and Cyndi Lauper Japanese Singles Collection Greatest Hits (audio track on CD and music video on DVD).
Kathryn Dawn Lang, known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical performances. Hits include the songs "Constant Craving" and "Miss Chatelaine".
Nell Marie McKay is an English–American singer and songwriter. She made her Broadway debut in The Threepenny Opera (2006).
Portrait Records was a sister label of Epic Records and later of Columbia Records. Notable artists Cyndi Lauper and Sade signed with Portrait, but their contracts were absorbed by Epic after that incarnation of the label was shuttered.
Hat Full of Stars is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper, released in 1993. The album was released 4 years after the singer's third studio album, A Night to Remember, which received unfavorable reviews and had low sales compared to the singer's previous releases. Hat Full of Stars received favorable reviews but was poorly received by the public, receiving gold certifications in Japan and France only.
Sisters of Avalon is the fifth studio album by American singer Cyndi Lauper. It was released in Japan on October 15, 1996, and worldwide on April 1, 1997, by Sony Music Entertainment. Thematically the album expounded on the issue of complacency and ignorance in popular culture and the discrimination of minorities, gays, and women. Songs like "Love to Hate" and "You Don't Know" address the entertainment industry and media and their corruption. "Ballad of Cleo and Joe" is a song about the double life of a cross dresser. "Say a Prayer" is about the AIDS epidemic.
"Time After Time" is a 1983 song by American singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper, co-written with Rob Hyman, who also provided backing vocals. It was the second single released from her debut studio album, She's So Unusual (1983). The track was produced by Rick Chertoff and released as a single in March 1984. The song became Lauper's first number 1 hit in the U.S. The song was written in the album's final stages, after "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", "She Bop" and "All Through the Night" had been written or recorded. The writing began with the title, which Lauper had seen in TV Guide magazine, referring to the science fiction film Time After Time (1979).
"I'm Gonna Be Strong" is a song written by the songwriting duo Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. It was first recorded by Frankie Laine in 1963 and released as a single on Columbia Records. However, the song did not become a major hit until 1964, when Gene Pitney released his version as a single. It was also a single released by the 1980 band Blue Angel, with lead vocals provided by future star Cyndi Lauper. This release was prior to Lauper's solo career; however, Lauper re-recorded the track and released it as a single in 1994. The song was also featured on 1982's Quiet Lies album by Grammy winner Juice Newton. Though Newton never released the song as a single, her remake was later added as a bonus track to her first Greatest Hits collection.
The Body Acoustic is the ninth studio album released by American singer Cyndi Lauper in 2005. It consists of ten previously released songs which have been re-recorded and re-arranged acoustically, as well as two new songs. The album title is a play on Walt Whitman's poem I Sing the Body Electric, with the word body in this case referring to Lauper's body of work as a recording artist. The album features a number of guest artists, including Adam Lazzara, Shaggy, Sarah McLachlan, Jeff Beck, Vivian Green, Ani DiFranco, and Puffy AmiYumi.
Being Out Rocks is a compilation album released October 11, 2002 by the Human Rights Campaign, in collaboration with Centaur Entertainment. Its release coincided with National Coming Out Day; "Being Out Rocks" was also that year's theme.
"True Colors" is a song written by American songwriters Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. It was both the title track and the first single released from American singer Cyndi Lauper's second studio album of the same name (1986). Released in mid-1986, the song would become a hit for Lauper, spending two weeks at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming her second and last single to occupy the top of the chart. It received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
The Essential Cyndi Lauper is a compilation by American pop singer Cyndi Lauper. It was released as part of Sony BMG's The Essential series in 2003. The album has sold 15,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Bring Ya to the Brink is American singer Cyndi Lauper's tenth studio album, released on May 14, 2008 in Japan, and 13 days later worldwide. The album is a collection of dance-oriented songs and features collaborations with Basement Jaxx, Richard Morel, Max Martin and Kleerup, among others. Regarded as one of the singer's best works at the time it was released, the Songwriters Hall of Fame has regarded the album track "High and Mighty" as one of Lauper's key songs. The album received a nomination for Best Dance/Electronica Album at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards. The song "Set Your Heart" was released as a promotional single in Japan in early 2008, while "Same Ol' Story" was the first official single released on May 6, 2008. "Into the Nightlife" was released as the second single.
k.d. lang is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Her discography comprises 12 studio albums, one soundtrack, one live album, four compilation albums and 41 singles.
Cupcake is a small, single-serving cake, usually frosted.
Kenneth S. Greenberg is an American guitarist, songwriter, producer, and session musician. He is known for bringing a rock-and-roll sensibility to Nashville recording sessions.