What SunFest music star calls himself a Star Wars “toy geekâ€?
It would appear that Rick Springfield[1] is having a really good time.
The singer/songwriter/actor/admirer of a certain friend's girl is currently on his "Stripped-Down Tour," an intimate offering of songs and stories with himself and a guitar. He's celebrating the recent release of his latest album, "Rocket Science," and got great reviews for his role as a lovesick rocker in Jonathan Demme's "Ricki and The Flash."[2]
As Springfield, famous for "Jessie's Girl," "Love Somebody," "I've Done Everything For You" and more heads to West Palm Beach[3] for his Saturday show at SunFest[4], he took time out to answer some questions via email.
Question: I know that your current tour is a stripped-down affair with just you, guitars and stories. Has that deepened the connection between you and your already very, very loyal fans?
Answer: I don't really know the answer to that. They get to see a different side of me than the guy who shows up at the big band shows so I guess if they like who I am then it would deepen the connection. I hear from a lot of people who come with fans but aren't necessarily fans themselves that they really like the show and the humor and the fact that I actually can play the guitar.
Q: Speaking of fans, the time I previously interviewed you was right before a fan cruise you were taking, and I hear you are doing another fan getaway. Why do you enjoy that, and can you tell me about a fun or crazy thing that's happened on one of them?
A: We are going to the Bahamas in November and it will be held at the Atlantis[5] so its going to be the best one yet I think. I like the land events better. There's more contact and one-on-one time. It's basically a 5 day party where we all get to hang out. The coolest thing is there usually comes a point where I just sit down by the pool and play whatever songs people throw at me. They bring books full of lyrics because they know I never remember all the words to my songs. We do shows where we'll play a whole album and it's a very mixed bag of fun stuff.
Q: What I've heard of the new album is great, and it sounds like something I'd want to listen to on a long car trip. You've said that there were some country elements on it, and I know that you worked with Rascal Flatts a little on it. Is country an area you ever considered pursuing?
A: It was just an experiment with the country elements. I like the way country threads banjos and pedal steel around the guitars so I did that with my songs. It's not a country record but the elements are in there. It charted the highest so far of any album since 1985 and the reaction to the songs has been great.
Q: Is there anything that you didn't include in the memoir "Late Late At Night"[6] (which was excellent, BTW) that you didn't feel comfortable with sharing but now, in retrospect, would?
A: Ha no it's all in there. Well almost. I may have left out something but only because it's no longer in the memory banks.
Q: I read your great A.V. Club interview recently, in which you spoke of your "Star Wars" toy collection and how you're only really into the stuff from the '70s and '80s. But have fans given you stuff from the new movie anyway, just to be nice? And if so, what?
A: Yeah I get the new stuff from fans and it's cool. It's a lot of the new toys that I haven't seen. I am a toy geek 100 percent. One fan once gave me a $5,000 model of the Millennium Falcon about 5 feet across , with lights and amazing detail. It was amazing.
Q: I just saw "Ricki and the Flash" and thought you were, no lie, the best thing in it, because your character's motives were completely selfless. What drew you to that project?
A: Well, Meryl Streep and Jonathan Demme were what drew me to the movie but it was a good part and my wife liked Greg (my character) more than she likes me . He was a good guy for sure. Yes, I am looking now for more good roles.
Q: What's the older song that people most yell at you to play at shows that surprises you? And not for nothing, but if you hear someone at the SunFest show screaming "State of the Heart," it might be me.
A. At the fan events like the one in the Bahamas I get requests for songs from my first album "Beginnings" which I recorded in 1972.!! Yikes. And even further back from songs I wrote in the Aussie band Zoot I was in 1969. That's a looooooong time ago.
IF YOU GO
Rick Springfield
Sunfest, 3:30 p.m. Saturday
For more information, visit SunFest.com[7]
References
- ^ Rick Springfield (www.rickspringfield.com)
- ^ "Ricki and The Flash." (sites.sonypictures.com)
- ^ West Palm Beach (thepopfile.blog.palmbeachpost.com)
- ^ SunFest (www.sunfest.com)
- ^ Atlantis (www.atlantisbahamas.com)
- ^ "Late Late At Night" (www.latelateatnight.com)
- ^ SunFest.com (www.sunfest.com)