Hat Full of Stars deviated from Lauper's pop-rock sound of previous projects and delved heavily into alternative music. It also furthered her growing penchant for writing topical songs about social issues. The album was recorded at the Hit Factory, Sigma Sound, Messina Sound, Right Track, The Enchanted Cottage, The Ranch, and World Famous Orbit Sound. It was co-produced by dance-music artist Junior Vasquez and is highly typical of his work of the time; as such, many of the songs are held together by synthetic loops and percussion. Lyrics address issues like abortion, racism, spousal abuse and incest. The track "Product of Misery" was inspired by a teacher of Lauper's, Bob Barrell, who described the masses of struggling people as a 'product of misery' and that misery begets misery unless the chain is broken. The song "A Part Hate" was conceived as an anti-apartheid song and was originally written for Lauper's second albumTrue Colors but was not included because her label felt it would make the album too political; it already had a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and the title track included. The album cover was inspired by a photograph of the actress Mary Pickford, taken by photographer Nelson Evans. Lauper has commented that she wishes that her vocals on the project had been sharper. She worked with a vocal coach to sharpen her vocals for her next studio album Sisters of Avalon, and mentions this in the liner notes.
Commercial performance
The album had limited success due to lack of promotion on the part of Cyndi's label. It was considered a commercial disappointment in the United States and despite some positive critical reviews it stalled at No. 112 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. As of 2003, the album has sold 119,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The album fared better overseas, becoming most successful in Japan and France, achieving a Gold certification in both countries. In Japan, the album spent a total of 7 weeks on the albums chart, peaking at 15. In France the album debuted at 10 before reaching its peak of 9 the following week. This was both her highest debut and peak for a studio album in France and it stayed in the Top 40 for 7 weeks. The album achieved lower chart positions in the rest of Europe. In Germany, Hat Full of Stars entered the chart at 84 and re-entered at its peak of 52 two weeks later, spending a total of 9 weeks in the Top 100. The album spent four weeks on the Swiss albums chart, entering at 34 and climbing two positions higher to its peak in its second week. The album was released in the UK in November, entering the albums chart at 56 before dropping off the following week. The tracks "That's What I Think", "Sally's Pigeons", "Hat Full of Stars" and "Who Let In the Rain" were released as singles; the latter of which was re-recorded in 2001 for her album Shine.
Track listing
"That's What I Think" – 4:39
"Product of Misery" – 4:11
"Who Let In the Rain" – 4:37
"Lies" – 3:40
"Broken Glass" – 5:34
"Sally's Pigeons" – 3:48
"Feels Like Christmas" – 4:35
"Dear John" – 3:40
"Like I Used To" – 4:28
"Someone Like Me" – 4:07
"A Part Hate" – 4:56
"Hat Full of Stars" – 4:28
Note
A track, "Cold", was recorded for the album but was omitted from the final track listing. It was released as the B-side to "Who Let In the Rain" and "Sally's Pigeons".
Personnel
Cyndi Lauper – lead vocals, background vocals, recorder, production
Junior Vasquez – production, background vocals
William Wittman – additional production, background vocals
