Yahoo Stripped Down-live show

Tonight Rick Springfield’s Stripped Down concert at House of Blues in Boston was live streamed on Yahoo Live! – What a great show!

Even though he was battling a cold, you couldn’t even tell, he looked and sounded great and put on a wonderful show. Although I’ve heard some of the stories he told before, there was plenty of new stuff and knowing it was live added a whole different dimension. And to see how he handled it when a fan approached the stage and started talking to him as he was about to sing a song was very impressive, too. What a classy guy with a great sense of humor.

The photos on the screen were wonderful, too – it was so fun to see childhood and family pics and the “Ordinary Girl” segment with photos of his wife was so sweet.

My husband had a class tonight so I let the kids watch TV while I watched the concert (Did I actually say, “OK, you can watch 20 more minutes but only because there’s a live Rick Springfield concert on right now”? Yes. To which my 8-year-old replied, “Thank you, Rick Springfield, for your concert.”)

As for the Q&A session… What part of the “don’t ask for a hug or a photo or an autograph” wasn’t clear? But RS was very gracious. I thought the question about what his sons think about his music was a good one and we got one hint about one of the songs on the upcoming CD – yahoo!

P.S. to RS: Thanks for the heads-up about the virtual guitar app – that’s so cool and now it’s on my phone to try it out. And we will have better weather here in Phoenix for your show next week! Hope you feel better soon!

A thoughtless whisper: A commentary on social media madness

Last week I read a recent article in the New York Times about how people’s lives can be destroyed by social media. It was a fascinating – and horrifying – article about how one woman’s tweet and one man’s whisper to a colleague at a conference ruined their lives. In junior high or high school – I don’t remember which but it was a long time ago – I read “Nineteen Eighty-Four” by George Orwell and got really freaked out by the idea that our world would become like that. But never could I have imagined how it would actually turn out – that “Big Brother” wouldn’t be the only one watching.

A Thoughtless Whisper

A thoughtless whisper
Becomes a worldwide trend
We’ve gone too far
We can’t go back again

Everyone’s a witness
With a camera in hand
Gathering evidence
Against their fellow man

Nineteen eighty-four
Has nothing on the 21st century
Contemporary war
With verbal, viral enemies

What was once a passing thought
Now lives on and travels far
Once it escapes into cyberspace
Hatred attacks and leaves its scar

What was once a private life
Can unravel with a few words
Global venom quickly spreads
Poisoning the universe

Nineteen eighty-four
Has nothing on the 21st century
Contemporary war
With verbal, viral enemies

Little brother’s always watching
Like paparazzi for the masses
Lying broken on the sidewalk
Is a pair of rose-colored glasses.

Update: I finally recorded this song (Oct. 4, 2015):

One-way street

One of my favorite songs off of “Songs for the End of the World” is “One Way Street.”

I think one of the reasons is the opening lines:

“From a window, I’m looking down at a one-way street, All the cars, they’re all pushing in one direction, And the faceless people moving ahead in that same direction.”

It reminds me of one particular scene that has occurred a few times in my life: looking out the window from a high floor in a New York high-rise building and being mesmerized by the traffic below. Seeing all the cars and trying to fathom the idea that there were so many people in one place at the same time; it was hypnotizing to watch. It’s an image I’ve carried in my head for years as a way to put things into perspective so when I heard the song, it reminded me of that.

And then the next few lines:

“Every one of those people searching your eyes for a real connection, Yeah, I’m just like you, looking for meaning to feel complete, Hope and praying its true that love is never a one-way street.”

This made me think about how many people RS must come in contact with in a year – even at one show on any given night. So many people who know so much about him and feel a deep connection with him. And yet he can’t possibly reciprocate in the same way. Although perhaps his touring schedule reflects his willingness to try. I’m not aware of any other performer who does so many meet-and-greets, book signings, concerts (including intimate Stripped Down shows), fan cruises and getaways, etc. (Not that I’m an expert on this sort of thing, but I’m just basing it on the number of photos I see of him posing with fans.)

So, RS if you are actually reading this blog, can you give a little sign that you saw it? It doesn’t need to be much. Just a little indication. A casual obscure reference in one of your many interviews, a hint in a photograph or, if you are so inspired, a song about it on your next album. (OK, that might be pushing it). I would be ever so grateful. I will be looking for a sign.

(Hopefully this post doesn’t sound too stalker-ish or creepy. It’s just that I know that at next month’s show – in a little over two weeks! – it’s unlikely that I’ll actually come into contact with him but I just want him to know what an inspiration he has been. And even if I do have a chance to meet him, I will likely be unable to find the right words to say. I am guessing that RS is probably a bit too busy to have time to stumble upon sites like this but one can dream, right?)

Update from Dec. 26, 2015: I just found this image online when I was searching for something else. I’d never seen it before (easy to do, there are thousands of RS pics online) but it made me think of this song so I thought I’d add it here).

VIDEO: My Rick Springfield Crush Revival

A few months ago, I wrote a song to summarize “My Rick Springfield Crush Revival” and this past weekend, I decided to try to make a video out of it. So I recorded it (on a tape recorder at home) and experimented with the Movie Maker program that came with my computer.

Disclaimer: I have no illusions about being a great singer or guitarist but I did have fun making it! The video – and this blog – is dedicated to my teenage self who would have enjoyed doing these types of things if the technology had existed at the time.

I hope you enjoy it!

The lyrics are here.

Meeting Rick Springfield

One month from today I’ll be at a Rick Springfield concert!

Although I’m in no position to pay for a meet and greet, I thought I’d reminisce about the one time I did meet him. I recently found my journal from that year – 1999 – so I now have a better idea of what happened. (Before that, it was all a blur, although I remember he looked very cute and was very nice).

RS was signing copies of his Karma CD at The Wherehouse at The Beverly Center in Los Angeles. Here’s what I wrote:

“When it was my turn, I told him how it was great to meet him, I’ve been a fan for a long time. He said he could tell (I brought ‘Success Hasn’t Spoiled Me Yet’ to sign). I said I’ve been a fan for 25 years. Then I said, ‘I mean 18’ and he said ‘It’ll be 25 before you know it.”

Then the person I was with asked him where Scooby was. I told Rick that the radio station promoted that he would be there. He said, ‘Really?’ And he said he would have brought him but he was going somewhere afterward.

And that was that. I had hoped that I’d also find a photo of me posed with him but this was long before selfies and there were just several shots of him and then one of me afterward with the signed CD and album. And then also in the photo envelope (long before digital cameras), were three photos of a white cat sleeping on top of a black car. Really? I couldn’t think of a better way to use up my film while in the same room with RS?

Photos taken while I was waiting in line to meet RS.

 

Autographed Karma CD and “Success Hasn’t Spoiled Me Yet” album, April 1999