At 75, Australian born rocker Rick Springfield is living proof that the ’80s are still alive and well in the music world.
He’s most well-remembered for his 1981 No. 1 hit “Jessie’s Girl,” which has earned its place in the upper echelon of the decade’s pop music canon. But he had other hits, too — for example, “Don’t Talk To Strangers” reached No. 2 a year later, and was a crowd favorite at his Rivers Casino show on Saturday night.
His music career in the United States and abroad has spanned five and a half decades and he’s churned out albums with fair consistency this whole time, including last year’s “Automatic.” And he can still rock the stage like someone half his age.
And Springfield was an actor, as well — most notably on soap opera “General Hospital.” Between his screen roles and romantic tunes, he was the crush of ladies everywhere back in the day. It’s still easy to see why.
He took the stage a few minutes after 7 p.m. Saturday, casually cool in jeans, a white T-shirt, a black jacket and glittery red Chuck Taylors. The first notes reverberated throughout the room as he and his band launched into “I’ll Make You Happy,” an upbeat starter with an infectious guitar line. Springfield strutted and strummed as the audience screamed their enthusiasm.
“Affair of the Heart” really brought the ’80s out with some opening synths and booming drums. He followed it up with another of his top-10 hits, “I’ve Done Everything For You,” which was originally recorded by Sammy Hagar. Apologies to fans of Sammy — Springfield gave his cover a little more swagger.
Removing his jacket, he stopped to talk to the crowd. “We haven’t done this song for a long time,” he said, introducing “Little Demon.” “Hardcores will know it. Those of you who just came for ‘Jessie’s Girl’ won’t know it.”
One of the show’s highlights was the title track from his 2023 album “Automatic,” on which he also remarked. “This is a new song. This is not the time to go to the bathroom, we’ll be watching the exits. We’ll put the spotlight on you if you try to leave,” he joked.
It would’ve been a shame to miss it — “Automatic” has a lot of digital touches but maintains a rock sensibility, with heart-pumping speed and lightning-fast lyrics. Tons of fun live and worth a listen.
Keeping up conversation after the song’s close, he commented on being in Pittsburgh. “This is an awesome place. We went to the submarine down the street. … Being like that, under a few hundred feet of water? Those guys were a different breed.”
“We got a song now that I need to address,” he continued. “It’s really hard for me to get depressed in front of you amazing people. The reason I still tour is that it lifts me up, it’s my Prozac. But I still do get down, I still do get depression. When I get down, I try to do something positive. I try to write something. I do this every night because it lifts me up and I hope it does you, too.”
He played what he said was the first song he ever wrote about his depression, “World Start Turning.” It’s an anthemic song that the band performed vigorously, and Springfield jumped up and down, pumping his fist to the chorus that he sang with aching sincerity.
“I feel better!” he crowed as the song ended.
After the sultry “I Get Excited,” he turned back to the crowd. “Time for a singalong!” he said, and jokingly started playing “Michael, Row the Boat Ashore.”
Instead, he wanted the audience to sing backup yeah-yeahs during the slinky “Venus in Overdrive,” and they did with excitement. Ballad “State of the Heart” had the phone flashlights (and occasional actual lighters) swaying, and modern-sounding new single “Lose Yourself” was a shot of positivity that proved he can still write a great song.
“If that was the ’80s, that would be a big hit right now,” he said.
“For those of you wondering, where are the songs we know, here they are. We put them in a medley,” he said. That medley included single verses of songs including “Don’t Walk Away” and “What Kind of Fool Am I.” In the middle, he started to sing Tommy Tutone’s “867-5309/Jenny” before halting and saying, “Everyone thinks that’s my song. It’s not my song!”
“Voodoo House” — a bluesy song that’s almost a little transgressive — had another singalong. Introducing it, Springfield said, “It lights up a part of your brain when you sing along with a big group of people like this.”
He had some guitar fun after that, showing off his chops with a little rockabilly, a little Dick Dale-esque surf rock and a little electric noodling that sounded a lot like Marty McFly if he practiced for another 40 years. That messing around started to morph into a recognizable shape — the riff in the Kinks’ “You Really Got Me.”
His cover of the classic was energetic and blazing with guitar, something of a hybrid of the original and the famous Van Halen cover.
For “Don’t Talk to Strangers,” he pitted the under-55 fans and over-55 fans against each other in a head-to-head sing-off of the chorus. Us younger folks, well, didn’t fare so well.
“Now’s the time to talk about a movie I did in the early ’80s. Sorry about that, I’m still trying to make up for it,” he said, before playing “Love Somebody,” a memorable tune from the film “Hard to Hold.” When it was over, he practically pinwheeled around the stage. “Alright, this was fun!” he said, clearly electrified by the crowd.
The penultimate song was the charming “Human Touch,” and he sashayed across the stage and waded into the audience, performing the last verses amongst the crowd while rainbow spotlights danced overhead.
And then it was time for “Jessie’s Girl.”
It was clear that Springfield knew what the crowd wanted, and he had fun with it, drawing out the last few choruses and still imbuing the song with personality, even after he’s probably played it 40,000 times. And it still slaps.
The crowd spilled out of the auditorium still singing that immortal hook, but there were plenty more highlights to remember from a rocking show.
Alexis Papalia is a TribLive staff writer. She can be reached at apapalia@triblive.com.
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