Yes, so much more than ‘Jessie’s Girl’

There was a great article circulating online this week, which basically said what Rick Springfield fans have known for years, he’s really talented and there’s so much more to him than “Jessie’s Girl” and “General Hospital.” In fact, he’s been quite busy over the past 33 years. It could have used a better headline though, because “Beyond ‘Jessie’s Girl’: Why Rick Springfield was Better, and Way More Popular, Than You Think” kind of makes it sound like he died.

Fortunately he’s still alive (and kickin’) and I’m glad these accolades are being bestowed upon him now. Sadly, all too often artists are publicly appreciated after they are no longer alive.

There are three musicians in particular that I only became aware of right after they died.

1. Elvis Presley: I remember sitting on my parents’ bed when a report came on the television that Elvis Presley had died. My parents stopped what they were doing to watch the report and seemed shocked and I clearly remember asking, “Who is Elvis Presley?” (Don’t judge, I was young – I had just turned 8).

2. Stevie Ray Vaughn: I remember hearing one of his songs on the radio and thinking, “This is a great song,” and then the deejay came on reporting the guitarist’s death in a helicopter crash. I don’t recall hearing his songs before and all of a sudden they were frequently being played on the radio in his memory.

3. Amy Winehouse: I vaguely knew who she was but didn’t know much about her. After hearing about her death, I watched some of her videos and was amazed at her talent and wished I would have known about her earlier. I also read several articles about her that were written before she died – it was so sad that the press was so cruel to her when she was alive and expressed appreciation for her work only after it was too late for her to be comforted by it.

It’s unfortunate that too often we don’t express appreciation for people – celebrities or people in our own life – until it’s too late to let them know.

Hmmm.. I didn’t intend for this post to end on such a low note, sorry! If only they’d thought of a better headline. But since it’s a nice article about RS, I’ll publish this post anyway.