Grammy award winner Rick Springfield, 59, may be best known for his 1981 Billboard Hot 100 chart sensation, “Jessie’s Girl”, but this Australian singer has weathered through the tumultuous music business. Spawning an enduring career spanning some 40 years, Springfield releases his first new full-length studio record, “Venus In Overdrive” on New Door Records/UMe demonstrating his brand of mainstream power pop. Springfield’s songs about love and loss, greed and envy, elation and heartbreak, speak to that part of human nature that is ever present. After a 2005 covers album and a 2007 release of Christmas standards that featured one extremely moving original track, “Christmas With You”, which was dedicated to all of our fallen troops, “Venus In Overdrive” clearly demonstrates Springfield’s dynamic range and exciting energy.
A creative collaboration between Rick and his longtime bass player Matt Bissonette, “Venus In Overdrive” was recorded in its entirety in only 32 days. “We were on a roll and just couldn’t stop. It all flowed so naturally. Writing and recording these songs has been the most fun I’ve had in the studio since the early ‘80s,” says Springfield. This effort is upbeat and fun, simultaneously classic and current – definitely the music fans have loved since Rick’s distinctive canine companion Lethal Ron first graced the cover of his classic and defining album “Working Class Dog.”
“In a way, I think we should have called this album, ‘Son of Working Class Dog.’ The songs explore some of the same themes, albeit from a slightly older perspective,” notes Rick. “It’s an album about love in all of its forms…good, bad, happy, sad the kind that drives you crazy…love and all of its human failings.”
The first single, “What’s Victoria’s Secret”, conjures up memories and influences of his monster hit, “Jessie’s Girl” and its musical formula. “It’s about the sexualization of women and the dichotomy most men feel. As males we want that on one hand, but then is scares the hell out of us and we resist it. Mainly, we need to connect with women as human beings,” explains Springfield. “The song is not ‘Jessie’s Girl’, but touches some of the same places lyrically and musically.”
The reggae-tinged title track, “Venus In Overdrive,” with its dance and alternative influences is as contemporary as it is retro. Still, its guitar tracks and raw sexual angst are signature Rick Springfield. “3 Warning Shots” pays homage to fallen Beatle John Lennon, and two tracks, “She” and “Nothing Is Ever Lost,” are Beatle influenced. “Bands like the Beatles and the Who made a huge impact on my life as a musician and a songwriter, but there are some really cool things happening in music now that inevitably find their way into my psyche,” says Rick.
Two tracks on the record, “God Blinked(Swing I Sister), somewhat Motown, and, “Saint Sahara,” pay tribute to Sahara Aldridge, a young girl who frequently attended Rick’s show and who recently lost her battle with cancer. These songs salute her strength and courage. The whole band has come to love her as a member of the extended family and felt a great loss with her passing, but the songs are a celebration of her life and recognition of the people she affected in the world, making good on a promise to give her a song she could dance to. “Saint Sahara” is mesmerizing utilizing the skills of a haunting children’s choir. It’s a fitting tribute.
To date, Rick Springfield has sold over 19 million records with a whopping 17 Top-40 hits. He has performed for millions of devoted fans over the last three decades and continues to play over 100 shows a year. Attracting new fans wherever he goes with his unique brand of audience interaction, unstoppable energy, and unforgettable songs that have become the part of the soundtrack to people’s lives. “Venus In Overdrive” features 12 new songs but also boasts a limited edition package with bonus video, 30-minute video track-by-track song analysis by Rick, fan photos and more. This CD is a definite must have for your collection. For all things Rick Springfield please go to: www.rickspringfield.com.
source: LA'sThePlace.com
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