Category: Concerts

Rick Springfield and Richard Marx

To the Review….

I wanted to yell to her, “Yes, he is going to play “Jessie’s Girl,” now will you please, you and your friend, shut up and enjoy the rest of the show, even if you don’t know the songs.”

I didn’t.

I also didn’t move my feet for about an hour and a half. They were firmly planted on the ground no matter how much said girl kept pushing her way into my space. My wife saw how she kept bumping into me and suggested I move closer to her (my wife), but I told her, “If I give this drunk girl any space, I’ll never get it back.”

Richard Marx in concert at RaviniaAnd so it was on a rocking, freezing night at Ravinia Festival near Chicago for the double bill of, as Richard Marx put it, “Two Dicks.” Yup, Richard Marx and Rick Springfield on a night when you would have thought it was the middle of October instead of mid-June.

None of that mattered, though, all that really mattered was the music, the hits, new stuff, and a great time through the mist and cold.

Richard Marx had the opening slot. Kind of a bummer for him with the weather because the pavilion was sparsely populated at this point. The weather wasn’t helping walk-up sales, and a lot of the crowd was there for the other Rick. That’s not to say the folks who were there didn’t have a great time with Dick #1, I mean, his initial call to the top of the charts was around the same high school years as that of Mr. Springfield.

Richard Marx in concert at Ravinia, Highland Park, ILThe interesting thing with Richard Marx, however, is that a lot of his more recent success has come in the shadows, as the songwriter and producer of tons of artists, many of whom you have heard of. Yup, remember “This I Promise You” from NSYNC? He was a part of that. Remember Luther Vandross’ “Dance With My Father?” A part of that, too. Keith Urban’s “Long Hot Summer?” Not just Keith, but Richard, too.

And the list goes on.

Richard Marx in concert - Ravinia in Highland Park, ILAnywho, Richard Marx’s set consisted of many of the hits you might remember from those 80’s, “Angelina” and “Hold On to the Nights” to name a couple. The crowd loved him, sang along as they should have, and appreciated his song “When You Loved Me” which he recorded with his sons as his “band” on video. He did a fantastic set, including stories of the songs he worked on with the other artists. His NSYNC story was pretty funny, and seeing a young Justin Timberlake in the picture he flashed was, well, actually just made me feel old.

Richard was fun. The crowd had fun. It’s Two Thumbs Up for Richard Marx. It is too bad he moved to the west coast, Chicago lost a favorite son, but with the weather we’ve been having, holy crap I understand the move!

Rick Springfield in concert, Ravinia, HIghland Park, ILA quick set change brought a video montage of Rick Springfield’s successes, but really, the crowd didn’t need a refresher, well, except maybe that intoxicated girl next to me. Out came Rick to the raucous “Light This Party Up,” and the crowd began to party.

Now, it’s been almost 20 years since I last song Rick Springfield in concert. Yes, I admit, it’s been way too long, especially for me who loves his music. Back then it was at a venue called “Joe’s Bar” in Chicago, on a cold, November night, and crap, it was nearly as cold this night in June.

Rick Springfield in concert at Ravinia, Highland Park, ILRick blew through a set consisting of the songs people wanted to hear and a few more recent ones the girl next to me didn’t want to hear. She was definitely in the minority.

You might remember the songs, like “I’ve Done Everything for You,” “Affair of the Heart,” and “Love is Alright Tonight.” He even did a great rendition of “World Start Turning,” explaining his ever-present demon of depression, but I’ll tell you what, if you miss rockin’ these days, and haven’t checked out Rick’s later offerings, may I suggest you give a listen to “The Snake King” from 2018. “Little Demon” kicked ass, and he even got crowd participation on a newer song, not the easiest of things to do, on “The Voodoo House,” a bluesy, rocker.

If you are Rick Springfield and have lots of hits people want to hear, what do you do so the concert isn’t a marathon? Why not a medley? So he did, with songs like “Bop ’Til You Drop,” the always fun to hear “Bruce,” “Don’t Walk Away,” “Rock of Life,” and “What Kind of Fool Am I?” in a mid-show medley.

Rick Springfield in concert at Ravinia, Highland Park, IL“Don’t Talk to Strangers” brought true crowd participation as Rick tossed a microphone into the audience for people to sing into, and “Human Touch” got Rick into the crowd, coming down the aisle, across the seats, and back up to the stage. Funny, or maybe sad, how the song, with lyrics like “Everybody’s talking to computers” and “I’m so scared and isolated in the modern world,” actually has more meaning, some 36 years after it was originally released.

With the evening wrapping up, and the girl next to me still blabbering for “Jessie’s Girl,” she would have to wait a few more songs as Dick #2 brought Dick #1 back to the stage for some duetting to each other’s tunes, with Richard Marx handling “Don’t Mean Nothin’” and Rick leading “Love Somebody.”

Yes, finally drunk girl got her wish. Yup, it was “Jessie’s Girl” time, as if Mr. Springfield wasn’t going to play it?

Sure, the weather completely sucked, but Richard and Rick brought a good time to everyone who braved the elements. There was reminiscing about the old songs, enjoying the new songs and Rick even had a sing-along of “Happy Birthday” for himself as his 70th birthday is approaching. Quick side note, as Rick was “questioning” the crowd how old they thought he was, the drunk girl next to me pegged him at late 50’s. When I told her he was 69 she seemed shocked, but then said something similar to “I’d still sleep with him.”

I do have to say that following the concert I felt a little down about myself. I mean, there he is, approaching 70 year’s old, coming off the flu, and bouncing around the stage with the energy that I, well, I don’t think I had that energy when I was in my 20’s. I have got to give the guy credit for continuing to put on a fantastic show and not just resting on his old hits but also making some great, new music.

It’s Two, Giant Thumbs Up for Rick Springfield. Go ahead, see him to relive the 80’s but enjoy the new stuff, too! All I know is one of these times I have to get real photo clearance for his show so I can get better pictures of the man. I just probably shouldn’t wait another 20 years to see him.

That’s it for this one! L8R!!

Rick Springfield

To the Review….

It was supposed to just be a Rick Springfield evening. I would go to his concert on Friday night, write the review, maybe listen to “Karma” (his latest CD) again, and be done with it. But the whole weekend I couldn’t get away from him. Saturday comes, I’m at Bed, Bath & Beyond, (hey, no jokes, I needed some supplies for the dude-pad) when over the speakers I hear “Prayer,” one of the songs from “Karma,” as part of the piped-in music. “Hmm, that’s a little coincidental, don’t you think?” I thought to myself. But I let it go. Then, that evening, I’m channel surfing and stumble across “Martial Law.” That’s not special, but I rarely channel surf to the local stations on a Saturday night because there’s usually nothing I like on. Then I notice something and mumble to myself “That’s Rick Springfield. He’s getting hand-cuffed to a tree!” I was beginning to have Rick Springfield overload. He was everywhere. Thank goodness Saturday was over. No more Rick Springfield! But then Sunday came. I’m watching VH-1, it’s “The List,” they’re listing best bands of the 70’s, and there he was, again, Rick Springfield. I was beginning to go out of my mind and figured I had better write this review soon because if I didn’t I might have pages and pages of Rick Springfield experiences instead of just a concert review. So let’s get to it before somehow Rick Springfield ends up on “King of the Hill.”

When I told Stu I was going to see Rick Springfield he asked where Rick was playing. I told him “Some bar called ‘Joe’s,” to which Stu replied “Oh, how the mighty have fallen.” I told him that Rick sold out three shows and little did I know about Joe’s. After getting there I realized Rick hadn’t fallen at all.

Driving to Joe’s I recalled seeing Meat Loaf in a bar. It was small, cramped, I think Meat sweat on me, and as cool as it was to see him so up close and personal it was a little sad that he was stuck playing such a small place. I was getting close to Joe’s and those same feelings came back – it would be cool to see Rick Springfield in a bar, but he should really be playing larger venues. I walked into Joe’s, it seemed kinda small, more a restaurant than a bar, but no stage. Then I noticed people walking to another room. I followed. So much for a small bar as the place opened up into a large room with people already packed around a real stage. There was no photo pit, I was stuck on a stairway near the back, and my dreams of Rick sweating on me all but disappeared. Alright, the place is no United Center, but a bouncer-dude told me they sold around 1200 tickets per night, bodies, mostly of the dudette persuasion, were packed from front to back, and Rick put on an hour and a half show that had the dudettes screaming while their boyfriend dudes tried to be too cool for Rick Springfield even though I could see them singing along.

It’s 11:30 PM, an hour and a half later than the concert was listed, Rick came out, screams reminiscent of a Backstreet Boys concert filled the air, and suddenly I’m remembering things that I figured were long forgotten, things like the words to “I’ve Done Everything for You,” like the words to “Human Touch,” like the words to “Kristina,” and, well, you get the idea. And you know what, Rick rocked. Yea, that’s right, I said “Rick rocked.” I never knew.

Opening with “His Last Words” and “It’salwayssomething” from “Karma (with one of my new favoritist lyric lines in “Down one, home run, your dog steals the ball”), Rick, dressed in leather pants that looked like they were painted on, led the crowd through sing-a-longs, destroyed dozens of roses as he used them as guitar picks, hiked a guitar to a member of his crew, used cameras as guitar slides, and played lots of songs most people knew and a few songs from his new CD that some people knew. It was all good.

Highlights, there were many, and none of them for me revolved around “Jessie’s Girl.” Even though I like the song, it’s not my favorite (“Inside Sylvia” actually tops that list), but Rick showed that he can play with the best of them doing a great surf riff into, happily for me, “Inside Sylvia,” could turn forgetting lyrics into crowd pleasing, worked a stage like a master, and even tried to fill audience requests. He did it all and looked like he was having so much fun. That’s what it’s all about.

What else can I say about Rick Springfield except that the man puts on one hell of a show. The old songs sounded as fresh as when they were new, and the new songs show that Rick still has it, although you can tell he has grown a little in their messages. He led the crowd through “Free,” his latest single (which sounds to me like it belongs in a movie, in the scene where the dude and dudette realize they love each other and wind up in bed – it’s way romantic), had dudettes screaming at him like they were teenagers and he was 25, and showed that you don’t have to get any slower with age.

Some people seemed a little grumpy that Rick started late, and I was a little grumpy too, but that grumpiness went away once he hit the stage. He impressed me with his guitar work, had dudettes screaming at him, made me remember songs I had long forgotten, and showed to me that he is still mighty, has not fallen, and just plain knows how to rock. It’s TWO “STILL MIGHTY AND NOT FALLEN” THUMBS UP for Rick Springfield.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!



Have You Watched a Concert on TV?

Have You Watched a Concert on TV?

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I was going to wonder about primary elections, but while I’m sitting here on the couch typing things, I have the replay of Pitbull from the South by Southwest conference, or I guess, to be hip, I should just go with SXSW, playing on my Apple TV. As much as it occurs to me that I haven’t been to a concert in a while, do miss them, and maybe should investigate getting back in the swing of them, what occurs to me more is how much fun Pitbull is having. Maybe weird for me, a dude closing in a 50, but I do know most of the songs he’s singing, and watching his concert is kind of weird because things have come a long way in the concert world. No longer is anyone “ashamed” or tentative about using “virtual” duets during their concerts, in fact, Pitbull might just be the poster child, as it also occurred to me that just about every one of his songs is some kind of duet with another pop star, from Christina Aguilera to Kesha (notice I dropped the $, as she wishes), from Shakira to Ne-Yo. During the show he had the “Pitbull Dancers,” and a super-solid backing band, but also during the show, on the giant screen behind him, were the “video” portions of the duets he sings, with the other singers there in spirit, while Pitbull would sing along with them.

It was a great show, makes me really want to go see Pitbull live, even if half of the people who sing with him won’t be with him, at least physically, because, well, if half of the fun Pitbull seems to be having wears off on me, that concert would just be a happy-fest, but as I sit here watching my TV, and Pitbull, I wonder: Have you watched a concert on TV?

That’s it for this one! I’m Andy!! L8R!!!

A Corn Dog Quest, Good Beer, Free Food, Bad Rubbish, and GWAR is Coming

By: The Dude on the Right

Download and ListenDownload the Podcast!

GWAR in concert.There is nothing like a corn dog from a carnival, festival, or a fair, and as a photo of Michele Bachmann eating a corn dog over the weekend seems to be stealing any corn dog talk I may have, during this episode of our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast, I tell Stu about my and The BFF’s quest for a good corn dog, as well as some funnel cake, and fresh-squeezed lemonade. Stu’s weekend, although sans corn dog, was filled with corn difficulties, but with beer goodness, though not necessarily in that order. He relates to me the good times of hanging out with The Mystery Dude and also finding a new, nearly-favorite beer called Dark Horse, where, thanks to Mama Gotz going to some jewelry party, or some crap like that, he got to hang out at Tribes Ale House, partaking knowing he wouldn’t be driving home.

Stu finds out that kids eat for free sometimes at IKEA, I’m not excited about the Chicago Bears yet, Stu saw “The A-Team” movie on TV, most people, in reference to Carlos Zambrano of the Chicago Cubs, are saying “Goodbye to bad rubbish!”, I debate busting out of concert review retirement to see GWAR, and both Stu and I lament the end of the summer movie season.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this podcast! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Osama is Dead, A Priest is Suspended, Fast Five is Great, and the Cleveland Indians don’t Suck. Here Comes the Apocalypse!

By: The Dude on the Right

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I wonder what Stu Gotz thinks about Osama Bin Laden being dead, but just as, if not more important during this Weekend Wrap-Up! podcast, I question Stu on a topic he will know nothing about, namely how in the hell the Cleveland Indians have the best record in baseball right now. Stu’s weekend was a little tame, mostly just hanging with the kids and watching “Jackass 3,” while I was all over the place. The world’s greatest nephew took me to see Coheed and Cambria in concert at the House of Blues in Chicago, and I liked it even though I didn’t know any songs, and we also had a chance to catch the greatest movie ever, in the likes of “Fast Five,” the fifthwel in the series bringing The Rock into “The Fast and The Furious” franchise. But what would a short tourist trip for the W.G.N. be without being a little bit of a tourist, so myself, The BFF, and the W.G.N. played tourist on Sunday hitting “The Ledge” at The Sears, I mean Willis Tower, checking out The Bean at Millenium Park, and taking in the “Hand Painted Posters from Ghana” exhibit at the Chicago Cultural Center.

And, oh yea, in case you are wondering, Hope Dworaczyk was fired on “Celebrity Apprentice,” and Osama Bin Laden is still dead.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this podcast! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

What’s New? A Concert Review of “Scorpions.”

The
Dude on the Right got to see a lot of spiders at Charter One Pavilion in
Chicago, but they weren’t nearly as exciting as the band that the Scorpions was for this concert review.
Sure, the Scorpions’ dudes, some of whom have been around for over forty years,
and had their first concert in Chicago 29 years ago, might be a little older,
and some people might question the legitimacy of their new CD, but for The Dude,
who has never seen them before, he just felt that they rock.  If you want
to see a band that rocks, and remember the song “Rock You Like a Hurricane,” you
will probably like seeing the Scorpions, well, rock.

 

What’s New? A Concert Review of The Swell Season.

It took The Dude on the Right about a week to get his concert review of “The Swell Season,” you know the duo from the movie “Once,” those duo being Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, posted, and as much as he would like to blame computer issues, he probably just needs to get back into the swing of things about writing concert reviews. He loved the movie “Once,” and even though, at times, Glen didn’t actually relate a story in a way anyone could understand, The Dude, well, he loved the concert.

What’s New? A Podcast of: A “The Swell Season” Preview, Meeting Family, The Bachelorette, and Missing “Nessun Dorma” on “America’s Got Talent.”

The Dude on the Right could really use a nap before this podcast about, mainly, going to see “The Swell Season,” especially since getting back home was past his normal bedtime, but that’s not important because this podcast isn’t a full review of the show, just a quick blip at his still liking the folks from the movie “Once.” The Dude also talks about some BFF family stuff, he’s still watching “The Bachelorette,” and is bummed he missed the premier of “America’s Got Talent” where some dude did a great version of “Nessun Dorma” from Puccini’s Turandot, complete with Jerry Springer interrupting it, because, well, it’s on TV.

What’s New? A Podcast of: RIP Jeff Healey, GWS Eddie Van Halen, Oops Jimmy Buffett, and Oprah.

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this weekend wrap-up podcast, and as it turns out, the podcast isn’t about his weekend at all. Nope, this podcast is about music and Oprah.
On the music side The Dude comments about the passing of Jeff Healey, a fantastic guitarist who also happened to be blind. You might remember his hit "Angel Eyes," but if you love guitar, he is so much more. Continuing on the music side The Dude talks about Van Halen maybe not canceling their tour, just re-arranging a few dates, and laments that he probably won’t be seeing Jimmy Buffett at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, IL, because, well, he’s an idiot.
And what would a podcast be without him commenting on Oprah’s latest conquest, namely "Oprah’s Big Give" winning the ratings for Sunday night Primetime TV.

What’s New? A Podcast of: Hannah Montana, Baseball & Steroids, The Golden Globe Nominations, and Here Comes Santa!

The Dude on the Right is hoping during this podcast that a lot of baseball dudes get together and sue some of the major networks and radio shows for spouting that they did steroids even before the Mitchell Report came out, which then didn’t list them. He was also hoping Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus would be adding some new shows near his niece so he could try to get her tickets as the perfect Christmas present.
The Dude was also disappointed that the Golden Globe nominations didn’t include “Knocked Up” nor “Superbad” this year, and also wonders if Dewey Cox can out-funny McLovin? He also wants to lose weight next year, but what year doesn’t The Dude on the Right not want to lose weight?