RICK ROCKED RICKMAN

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I gotta say, I was pretty impressed with Rick Springfield and the show he put on at the Rickman Auditorium in Arnold on Saturday night!  I’ve played his music at many of the radio stations where I’ve worked since he started having his big hits in the early 80’s, and I like his music, but I wouldn’t call myself a follower to the extent that I’ve known his every move over the years, so his energy, passion and involvement with his audience blew me away.

For starters, he is one of those rare folks who really looks only half his age.  He turned 60 about a month ago, but still has the face, the body, the energy and the attitude of a 30 year old – good traits to have if you’re a rock star!  He’s only about a year younger than Steven Tyler, and there’s a guy that shows every mile of his life!

He played all of his big songs, and the band he’s got made them all sound just like the records you bought when they were new.  Surprises in his set included a cover of Paul McCartney & Wings’ “Jet”, “Crossroads” by Cream, “Wild Thing” by The Troggs, and a return to some Beatlemania with the band playing a portion of “She’s So Heavy” as he introduced them.

Coolest of all were his stage moves…lots of energy and crowd interaction.  During “Don’t Talk To Strangers”, he did a sing-a-long allowing audience members to sing the title line, several of whom he actually pulled onto the stage.  During “Human Touch”, he fearlessly ventured into the crowd, walking on the tops of the backs of the seats about halfway through the theatre getting touched by everyone along the way.  Very brave.

For me, the most amusing thing was his destruction of the dozens of flower bouquets his fans brought to the show.  Executing the standard rock & roll windmill move on his guitar combined with a dozen or so roses in his hand, he created these huge explosions of petals…a cool effect.

Learn more about Rick Springfield here, visit his well put together website here, and take a look at the details on his next “Rick & Friends” Caribbean Cruise in November!