Russell Morris, who recorded “Jack Chrome and the Darkness Waltz” with Rick Springfield, has been posting clips from the new album on his Facebook page, which I just discovered this morning so I though I’d post them here. Not all the posts have the corresponding video with it, but the track listing is posted here.
“Heart of God (Corazon de Dios)” – The character of Jack Chrome is looking for God. (RS says it could be somewhat autobiographical as he is also searching.)
To paraphrase The Red Locusts, our life has been turned upside down and it looks like our world is askew. What else can we do but try to make sense of it?
Here we are about 18 months from when the world as we knew it changed and although COVID-19 is still very much affecting things, it is comforting to see some aspects of pre-COVID life returning – like concerts. I haven’t personally been to any yet but have enjoyed seeing pictures and watching videos of recent RS concerts in other cities.
In an attempt to keep people safe, many venues have new guidelines in place, such as requiring proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test. Some may also require masks (although that doesn’t seem to be the case in any concert footage I’ve seen). RS fans, who are prone to traveling long distances to see their favorite rocker in concert, have been turned away at the venue for not having the proper paperwork so consider this a public service announcement to check venue requirements before heading to a show.
With touring comes the occasional pre-show interview including this one in Florida Today: “Q&A with singer/songwriter Rick Springfield: ‘I love what I do.’ No “Was there really a’ Jessie’s Girl’?” in this article – thank goodness. Instead it covers the music business, songwriting technique and a look at what’s next.
I don’t think Buck Hill and its patrons were truly ready for the headliner of the night, Australian-born singer, songwriter, author, and actor Rick Springfield. Looking suave and dressed in all black he commanded the stage when the lights came on. Just one month younger than my own mother, at age 72, Rick Springfield is still rocking like he’s 22.
Cat Parker, All Music Magazine
The review also mentions members of the band, which is nice, as it’s also been great seeing them all back on stage as well. The writer also spoke to a few fans. Plus there are a lot of great concert pics!
Thanks to all the fans who have shared concert pics and videos on social media!
Can you believe it’s already almost October? It seems like we were just celebrating the arrival of 2021 and the end of 2020 (little did we know that 2021 wouldn’t look much different then its predecessor.) The arrival of October means that it’s almost the arrival of “Jack Chrome and the Darkness Waltz,” a collaboration between RS and Russell Morris, an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist. The new album is centered around “Day of the Dead” and is scheduled to be released on Oct. 15.
From jbhifi.com: “This is Russell Morris and Rick Springfield like you’ve never heard them before. They have come together to create Jack Chrome & The Darkness Waltz, an album that celebrates Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) with the narrator, Jack Chrome, leading the listener through a compelling song cycle about life and death.”
“After losing parents and grandparents, I’ve always loved the concept of day of the dead,” Russell explains. “It’s all about celebrating life and bringing those spirits back.”
“Russ is the happy one,” Rick smiles. “He brought a lot of the positive songs to the project, whereas mine get pretty dark.”
jbhifi.com
Also from the article: “Russell and Rick first recorded together 50 years ago, when Rick played on Russell’s debut album, Bloodstone. Rick later appeared on Van Diemen’s Land, but this is the first time the good friends have made an entire album together. Ultimately, this album is a celebration of life.”
Sounds intriguing, I look forward to hearing it! Here’s a little teaser:
The awesome RS fans at the Rick Springfield and Us fan-based website have posted lyrics for The Red Locusts album!
Since there were no lyrics on the CD inset or anywhere else online, they took it upon themselves to listen to the songs multiple times to try to get all the lyrics down and then shared them with everyone (with a note saying that “actual notes may vary from our interpretation” since the lyrics weren’t officially released anywhere so may not be 100% accurate.)
Maybe RS – ahem, Paul, Scotty, Skippy, Duncan or Beau, who make up The Red Locusts – now realize how important his lyrics are to fans and maybe the next CD will include lyrics…. Not that we mind replaying the same parts over and over again trying to figure them out, but still, it would be nice to know for sure.
So glad I’m not the only one who cares about this kind of stuff. Thank you to the Rick Springfield and Us team for taking the time to do this!
P.S. from later tonight: I just got a chance to watch some of the videos people shared on FB fan pages from tonight’s concert in Macon, GA. Two songs on the set list were “The Light of Love” and “Everybody’s Girl” from “Working Class Dog.” How cool is that?!
My Rick Springfield crush 