Rick Springfield Interview

Rick Springfield tours with old and new

Published: June 27, 2008 10:05 am
Upcoming album is 'Venus in Overdrive'
By VANESSA McCRAYvmccray@record-eagle.com

INTERLOCHEN -- Rick Springfield is not just the guy who wanted "Jessie's Girl."

That ubiquitous hit snagged Springfield a 1981 Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, but there's more to the singer, songwriter and actor.

Springfield sold more than 19 million records, practically performed the soundtrack to the 1980s and wooed female fans with his portrayal of Dr. Noah Drake on the daytime soap "General Hospital." He'll bring his charisma and arsenal of 17 Top 40 hits to his concert Saturday at Interlochen Center for the Arts.

This summer, Springfield is touring around the country and filming episodes for "General Hospital." So, how has this Australian-born pop-rock star sustained a decades-long career?

"A lot of it is luck. A lot of it is persistence, and a lot of it is who you are, and how you were raised," said Springfield in a telephone interview.

In 1962, Springfield was given his first guitar for his 13th birthday. Before that, he made one out of cardboard.

"My mom finally said, 'You want a real one?' And I said, 'Yeah, yeah, yeah,'" Springfield recalled.

An early foray into writing was crafting "pretty horrendous poems" but then he started composing songs. His writing continued to evolve on the upcoming album "Venus in Overdrive," to be released on July 29. Springfield teamed with bass player Matt Bissonette to create the album. "Venus" takes the listener back to Springfield's "pop-rock roots," he said.
"I think it's the best record I've done in a while," he said.

"I am definitely writing from a different place, and 'Working Class Dog' is definitely all about the sex."

The triumph of "Jessie's Girl," a tune on the album "Working Class Dog," came after Springfield experienced success in Australia. Winning the Grammy "was still a shock," he said. He hoped to be "in the business for a long time," but knew there would be ups and downs.

"I certainly focused on, when I wrote, always writing the best I could write. I always had a vision," he said.

The Interlochen concert will feature "all the old hits" but also "some of the new stuff," Springfield said.

Ticket prices to the 8 p.m. show at Kresge Auditorium range from $24.50 to $39.50. For more information, contact the Interlochen box office at 276-7800 or visit the Web site www.tickets.interlochen.org.

http://www.record-eagle.com/features/local_story_179100527.html