51 and Holding

By Roger Moore
March 31, 2000

Working Class Dog. Springfield is getting the job done on the club circuit.

Want to feel old?

Rick Springfield turns 51 in August. And that's not in dog years. Thankfully, the once and future "Working Class Dog" isn't hanging out in has-been hell, grousing about the days when his records topped the charts and he was all over TV, on General Hospital and several other series. He's still acting. And he's still playing music. Since 1998, he has been a fixture on the clubs-and-casinos circuit, bringing fresh life to "Jessie's Girl," "I've Done Everything for You," "Human Touch," "Love Somebody" and other tunes that made him a fixture on early '80s radio.

In the last year, the Australia native has gone from VH-1's Where Are They Now to VH-1's Behind the Music, talking about the depression, the near-deadly motorcycle crash that sidelined him and the family that has given his life new direction. We caught up with him at home in Los Angeles.

Q: OK, I missed this story back in the '70s and early '80s: Where did the dog image on so many of your albums -- including Karma, released last year -- come from?
A: Ronnie, my pit bull terrier, was so cute that I decided people had seen enough of me on the covers of my records. I knew pictures of me weren't moving albums. And I'd walk Ronnie down the street and people would freak out. So I put him on the cover. It tied in with the whole "working class dog" line from "Love Is Alright Tonight." But I had to fight the record company tooth and nail over that. I took a Polaroid of the dog and showed 'em, and they said, "Yeah. He is cute."

Q: What's different about performing these days?
A: We go out for three or four days and then come home. It's not like back in the '80s where you'd be out for 60 shows in a row. This keeps the sets fresh. It's much more real when you have this close connection with the audience. Touring used to be like being on a fashion runway -- you'd be up there and the fans would be way off. You'd just strike poses and do your songs. Now, playing to people who grew up with me . . . I get to meet them, hear their stories.

Q: And they're not trying to tear your clothes off.
A: Hah! Not any more.

Q: So that's who you're reaching now?
A: Yeah. People bringing their kids, a few kids on their own and a few older folks who remember me from General Hospital, sitting there with their fingers in their ears.

Q: What do you consider yourself: a singer who acts? An actor who sings?
A: Definitely a singer who acts. I'm not a singer at all. I'm a writer. That's why I got into it when I was 13 years old. I was looking to write a great song. The fact that I had to sing them was incidental. I think the songs became hits because of the writing, not because of my voice. I'm a writer, a musician, a singer and then an actor.

Q: Where did the acting fit in?
A: I was broke, between record deals back in '75. I was being sued for $250,000 [for contract troubles] at a time I wasn't able to pay $250 a month in rent. I was going into my piggy bank, eating a lot of Swanson's Hungry Man dinners. . . . And this woman I knew said, "Come to acting class." I was lonely, and I really fell into this community of actors and made friends that I still have. I kept at it to try and make money until I could get a record deal. I got signed as a contract player at Universal and made the first regular money I'd ever made in my life.

Q: Has that been a hard question for you to ask yourself over the years?
A: There's always been room for both. I fell in love with acting and have found new things to thrill me in the roles I get to play. I have more life experience now. I wouldn't want to give up either. Whatever is getting the attention at the time is what I throw myself into.

Q: How are casting people treating you these days?
A: They've seen enough of me to know I'm still alive, that I'm not 25 any more. I get called in a lot by people who grew up with my music. And you can always tell the fans when you walk into the meeting.

Q: How can you tell they're fans?
A: They twitch.

Q: How has the voice changed?
A: I've gotten more confident in it. I used to dread singing. Now I feel that I've developed whatever it is that's my own style. It is what it is.

Q: And the chops? You were Australia's best-known guitarist in the 1970s.
A: Yeah, I was the most popular guitarist, not the best. . . . I've been a pretty good rhythm guitarist, and I picked up things like the dobro, just to try them. I've never thought of myself as a lead guitarist with these great burning solos.

Q: How do you find ways to perform the anthems of your youth in middle age-- in other words, what does "Jessie's Girl" mean to you when you sing it on stage now?
A: These songs take on their own life. It's not just a song about a guy wanting another guy's girlfriend. It's a part of my life. The same with the others. I've never gotten sick of them. It's like showing off your kids. You never get tired of them.

Q: Bob Dylan's son is a pop star. Randy Bachman's kid had a hit last year. Are your kids playing anything?
A: I'm not being a stage dad, but I did insist that they play an instrument because it's great for the brain, you know? Liam is playing guitar in a band. They rehearse in the house. He's good. I think you'll be hearing from him. Josh just got an electric drum kit.

Q: Is Liam banning you from rehearsals?
A: No, I'm still a little cool in his eyes. That's amazing, considering he's 14 and into Korn.

Q: What's it going to take to bring back that '70s Rick Springfield shag haircut? A lot of us had it back then and thought that was the last time hair looked good.
A: Man, I guess I'm going to have to come up with another hit. That'll bring it back, don't you think?