MANSFIELD – Singer, songwriter, and heartthrob Rick Springfield will take center stage at the Renaissance Theatre this month.
On Sept. 15, Springfield will be performing his “Stripped Down” solo show at the Renaissance, a mix of his greatest hits and storytelling followed by a Q&A with the audience.
Richland Source caught up with the 80’s pop star via email for a few questions prior to his arrival in Mansfield:
Q: When did you start doing the “Stripped Down” tours, and what made you decide to transition into a more intimate setting?
A: When I wrote my autobiography (Late Late at Night) I realized I had a lot of stories to tell and many of them ended up as songs, so I thought about including all of that in a solo show. I’ve been doing it for a few years and it keeps evolving so I am happy with the direction. The intimate setting makes for a lot of ad-libbing and humor and is a great, relaxed change from the frenetic band shows.
Springfield’s three-decade career has gifted him with a powerful connection to his legions of devoted fans, who pack his annual fan getaway events as well as the nearly 100 shows a year he performs both with his band and solo.
Q: Which do you like better, playing by yourself or with a full band? And why?
A: I love both. They are a great counterpoint to each other. I miss the camaraderie of the band but I like the freedom of the solo shows.
That Springfield has not only enjoyed longevity, but remained vibrant and relevant at a time when many veteran artists would be resting on past laurels led Rolling Stone to dub this stage of his career “The Rickonaissance.” He takes a certain pride that he’s not a total nostalgia act.
Q: What’s the strangest place you’ve ever performed?
A: Vietnam War zone in 1969. Definitely not for the faint of heart.
Springfield’s latest musical effort is “Rocket Science,” his 18th studio album, which he will release in February through Frontiers Music. Written largely with his longtime collaborator and former bass player Matt Bissonette, the album delivers the expertly crafted wide-ranging pop-rock songs Springfield is known for. The lyrics largely address matters of the heart with the irreverence, wit, and dark humor that has always permeated his work.
Q: So you’re playing on a theatre stage for this show – have you ever been on stage during your acting career, or just movies/TV? Have you ever thought about doing theatre?
A: I did Broadway for 3 months and enjoyed it. I would do it again if the right show came along.
Springfield is an accomplished actor who most recently starred opposite Meryl Streep in the feature film “Ricki and the Flash” and gave a chameleonic performance as the creepy Dr. Pitlor in HBO’s prestige drama “True Detective.” He’s also a talented author — both his candid 2010 memoir “Late, Late at Night” and his 2014 comedic novel “Magnificent Vibration” earned rave reviews and spots on the New York Times Best Sellers’ list.
In 2014, Springfield was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located around the corner from the first apartment he lived in when he first arrived in the U.S. from Australia in 1971.
Q: You like to tell stories between songs in this tour – what’s one story you always like to tell?
A: You’d have to come to the show to hear that 🙂
While on a rare vacation in Tahiti, Springfield wrote the rollicking first single featured on his new album, “Light This Party Up,” which he describes as “a song about redemption and how life sometimes feels like one long fall from grace.” He wrote “Down,” a song about disillusionment and commitment, with Rascal Flatts’ Jay DeMarcus while traveling on DeMarcus’ tour bus to Atlanta, where the two were filming an episode of “Drop Dead Diva.”
Q: When you look back over your career, what’s one thing you hope to be remembered for?
A: That I was a cheesy one-dimensional soap opera character.
Springfield is too self-deprecating to discuss his immense appeal, despite the fact he is a Grammy Award-winner who has sold 25 million albums and scored 17 U.S. Top 40 hits, including “Jessie’s Girl,” “Don’t Talk to Strangers,” “An Affair of the Heart,” “I’ve Done Everything for You,” “Love Somebody,” and “Human Touch.” However, he will acknowledge that the fans connect with him through the music.
“I guess they think I’m honest,” he said. “They must like my approach, what I write about. I think they like that I have a sense of humor in it at times. Because the ‘cute’ thing isn’t going to last forever.”
Rick Springfield will perform his “Stripped Down” solo show on Sept. 15 at 8 p.m. at the Renaissance Theatre. Tickets start at $15 and are on sale at the Renaissance Box Office, via phone at 419-522-2726 and online at MansfieldTickets.com.
