Cyndi Lauper is baring her soul in her new documentary, Let the Canary Sing , and in a clip shared exclusively with Billboard , the beloved icon opens up about the backstory behind a popular lyric in her 1983 classic, “Time After Time.” See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In the first pre-chorus, Lauper sings, “I fall behind/ The second hand unwinds,” which she recalls was sparked from overhearing a conversation with the song’s producer, Rick Chertoff. “I actually was listening to a conversation,” the star shared.
“Rick was just standing there and his watch — he kept looking at his watch going, ‘Hm, my watch is going backwards. I’m not kidding. Look at this.
The second hand’s unwinding. The second hand unwinds!’ And I’m thinking, ‘The second hand unwinds,’ what a great lyric.” “Time After Time” ultimately topped the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart for two weeks in 1984, marking her first leader on the tally.
The feature-length Let the Canary Sing film that debuted at last year’s Tribeca Festival in New York was directed by Emmy-winning documentarian Alison Ellwood ( Laurel Canyon ) and will debut on Paramount+ on Tuesday (June 4). “Over the years I’ve been asked to do a documentary about my life and work, but it never felt like the right time,” Lauper, 70, said in a statement about the film. “Until now.
When I first met Alison Ellwood, I knew right away I could trust her to tell my story honestly,.
