When I was in high school, Rick Springfield was always one of my favorite singers. What was scary was that my mom even liked him since he played a doctor on "General Hospital" a soap opera that she religiously watched everyday back then. It's not right when your mom likes one of your pop stars when you are a teenager, but I still thought he was pretty cool. He even played a small role on Battlestar Galactica which was a favorite series of mine at the time. Unfortunately, his movie wasn't all that hot.
So it's not a surprise that we would be going to his concert. The venue is the Stafford Centre which we've never been to before. It's on the southwest side of town.
The Stafford Centre is not hard to get to. Mary drives it in about 40 minutes using the Beltway. There's free parking with lots of space. They checked Mary's purse for a video camera, but little else. 107.9 had a table just inside. Outside the theatre are tables for the Ronald McDonald House which helps cancer victims and their families and PAWS which does animal rescue.
The Stafford Centre consists of a convention center and a theatre. The theatre was no larger than my high school auditorium. It appears that they didn't care about digital cameras since one guy even had an SLR. We were on Row J at almost the center part of the row. Rick's backup band Squirt did a half hour of songs. The sound was way too loud. The speakers were breaking up, and I can barely hear the lead singer over the music. When they finished, I figure I would take a quick restroom break before Rick took the stage. Men were standing before the single restroom for handicap. The men's restroom were converted into a women's restroom as well. People were saying that there were men's restrooms upstairs, but none of the men wanted to risk it. I was only second in line so I just waited for my turn.
People were standing the moment Rick walked on stage, and the crowd remained standing throughout his performance. Cameras strobed him with flashes as he stood before the mike. Women of all ages were in the audience but they were mainly our age. I even saw a grandmother in the stands. About a half dozen posters were scattered around. Rick wore a sleeveless white shirt and blue jeans. He was in much better shape than I am. The first song was something I hadn't heard before. He grabbed a bouquet of flowers and strummed the final note with it. Petals showered the stage. As he started into another new song, he began taking all the guitar picks on the mike stand and tossing them into the crowd. When he finished the song, he tossed the guitar high into the air and tried to catch it like he did in the previous song, but missed. It slammed to the floor. With a smile, he picked up the guitar and smashed it. He then handed the remains to young boy in the front row. "I've Done Everything for You" got everyone into the concert.
I was beginning to wonder if he was really playing the guitar when he went into a guitar solo before some kids in the front row. That's when I realized from the girl's decorative skullcap that she was probably from the Ronald McDonald's House. "Not bad for a doctor," he joked to a young boy. The kid probably never realized that Rick once played a doctor on "General Hospital." He sang a mix of new and old songs. It was disappointing that he didn't sing the old songs like I remembered them. He began singing "Don't Talk to Strangers," and got the crowd into singing the chorus. He then climbed into the seats and had individuals sing the chorus. He was only 4 rows away from us when he returned back to the stage. He played a few more songs then the roadie hooked him up to a wireless guitar and a wireless headset. That's when he really went into the stands to give - as he put it - a personal concert. He moved up and down the rows. People were whipping out their cellphones and cameras to take his picture. He shook hands and scrawled autographs as he sang. Someone even had a record. I saw one lady wipe his sweating arm with a silk like scarf. Another lady had a picture taken of her holding him up by his butt. Yes, I even held his hand as I helped him cross our row. That's when he finished his song and started singing "Human Touch" which was quite appropo. He went to the center of the theatre and then began returning to the stage. Next to Mary was one lady in her fifties taking his photo with her cell. He took the cell and took a photo of the lady. He then began playing the guitar using the cellphone as a slide across the frets. He told everyone to take out their cellphones and told the roadies to dim the spotlight and lights. Cellphone lights were everywhere. He was lit up with red light of cameras. He had the lights turned back on and called the first number on the cellphone. The girl on the other side didn't quite know what was going on. He had the entire audience say hello to her and told her that he was Rick Springfield. He asked if she could get some pizza and beer. She answered yes and he said that she would need enough for 10,000. That's when he hung up. He returned back to the stage and played a medley of songs followed by a new song he called "White Trash." That's when he left the stage. People began cheering and chanting Rick for an encore. Instead of lighters, people held open their cellphones and you can see the blue glow of the screens throughout the theatre. He came out and sang "Love is Alright Tonite" then took his final exit.
My ears felt like I was in a plane that just dropped altitude. Everything was muffled. As we were leaving, we saw the lady who had her phone borrowed by Rick. I asked who he had called and she said that it was a friend from work. I'm sure she was surprised.
So it's not a surprise that we would be going to his concert. The venue is the Stafford Centre which we've never been to before. It's on the southwest side of town.
The Stafford Centre is not hard to get to. Mary drives it in about 40 minutes using the Beltway. There's free parking with lots of space. They checked Mary's purse for a video camera, but little else. 107.9 had a table just inside. Outside the theatre are tables for the Ronald McDonald House which helps cancer victims and their families and PAWS which does animal rescue.
The Stafford Centre consists of a convention center and a theatre. The theatre was no larger than my high school auditorium. It appears that they didn't care about digital cameras since one guy even had an SLR. We were on Row J at almost the center part of the row. Rick's backup band Squirt did a half hour of songs. The sound was way too loud. The speakers were breaking up, and I can barely hear the lead singer over the music. When they finished, I figure I would take a quick restroom break before Rick took the stage. Men were standing before the single restroom for handicap. The men's restroom were converted into a women's restroom as well. People were saying that there were men's restrooms upstairs, but none of the men wanted to risk it. I was only second in line so I just waited for my turn.
People were standing the moment Rick walked on stage, and the crowd remained standing throughout his performance. Cameras strobed him with flashes as he stood before the mike. Women of all ages were in the audience but they were mainly our age. I even saw a grandmother in the stands. About a half dozen posters were scattered around. Rick wore a sleeveless white shirt and blue jeans. He was in much better shape than I am. The first song was something I hadn't heard before. He grabbed a bouquet of flowers and strummed the final note with it. Petals showered the stage. As he started into another new song, he began taking all the guitar picks on the mike stand and tossing them into the crowd. When he finished the song, he tossed the guitar high into the air and tried to catch it like he did in the previous song, but missed. It slammed to the floor. With a smile, he picked up the guitar and smashed it. He then handed the remains to young boy in the front row. "I've Done Everything for You" got everyone into the concert.
I was beginning to wonder if he was really playing the guitar when he went into a guitar solo before some kids in the front row. That's when I realized from the girl's decorative skullcap that she was probably from the Ronald McDonald's House. "Not bad for a doctor," he joked to a young boy. The kid probably never realized that Rick once played a doctor on "General Hospital." He sang a mix of new and old songs. It was disappointing that he didn't sing the old songs like I remembered them. He began singing "Don't Talk to Strangers," and got the crowd into singing the chorus. He then climbed into the seats and had individuals sing the chorus. He was only 4 rows away from us when he returned back to the stage. He played a few more songs then the roadie hooked him up to a wireless guitar and a wireless headset. That's when he really went into the stands to give - as he put it - a personal concert. He moved up and down the rows. People were whipping out their cellphones and cameras to take his picture. He shook hands and scrawled autographs as he sang. Someone even had a record. I saw one lady wipe his sweating arm with a silk like scarf. Another lady had a picture taken of her holding him up by his butt. Yes, I even held his hand as I helped him cross our row. That's when he finished his song and started singing "Human Touch" which was quite appropo. He went to the center of the theatre and then began returning to the stage. Next to Mary was one lady in her fifties taking his photo with her cell. He took the cell and took a photo of the lady. He then began playing the guitar using the cellphone as a slide across the frets. He told everyone to take out their cellphones and told the roadies to dim the spotlight and lights. Cellphone lights were everywhere. He was lit up with red light of cameras. He had the lights turned back on and called the first number on the cellphone. The girl on the other side didn't quite know what was going on. He had the entire audience say hello to her and told her that he was Rick Springfield. He asked if she could get some pizza and beer. She answered yes and he said that she would need enough for 10,000. That's when he hung up. He returned back to the stage and played a medley of songs followed by a new song he called "White Trash." That's when he left the stage. People began cheering and chanting Rick for an encore. Instead of lighters, people held open their cellphones and you can see the blue glow of the screens throughout the theatre. He came out and sang "Love is Alright Tonite" then took his final exit.
My ears felt like I was in a plane that just dropped altitude. Everything was muffled. As we were leaving, we saw the lady who had her phone borrowed by Rick. I asked who he had called and she said that it was a friend from work. I'm sure she was surprised.
