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Born in the late 60's, Chesy hails from a Welsh mining village with a long name and was pretty glad when he got the Hell out of there. He got into Rock/Metal in about 1980, thanks to a TISWAS related incident (Rainbow video for All Night Long) and thankfully has never looked back. Chesy often sang solo in the school choir, but thanks to a puberty related incident his voice is now completely bolloxed, although in his own head Paul thinks he sounds like a blend of Coverdale and Dio (R.I.P). He was brought up on the classics - Deep Purple, Rainbow, Thin Lizzy, Rush, Whitesnake and loved melodic rock and the Hair Bands of the 80's. (Nowadays, he has progressed a little and prefers a more technical and/or progressive metal - Dream Theater, Rush, Symphony X, Porcupine Tree, Pain Of Salvation, Spock's Beard. He hates Black and Death Metal (can't stand the grunting) but for some unknown reason loves the magnificent Opeth! He wont stop this blog until his beloved FM finally play the likes of the NEC as a headlining act!!!

Wednesday, 31 October 2012

Rick Springfield - Songs For The End Of The World Album Review

 For all his accomplishments as an actor, a best-selling author and the subject of a recent documentary, Rick Springfield’s first love has always been music, since the first time he picked up a guitar at the age of 12 in his native Australia. That passion for writing and performing songs, as well as playing guitar, comes through loud and clear on his new album, “Songs for the End of the World”.
  
“There’s real feeling in it, but you can’t write about that stuff too seriously,” he says of his sometimes tongue-in-cheek approach to serious subjects. “In the end, it’s about the world in flames, but from a personalized viewpoint. I take what’s happening to me and place it in a universal context. It’s what I’ve always tried to do with my songwriting.”

 
 With 25 million albums sold, 17 U.S. top-40 hits, including “Don’t Talk to Strangers”, “An Affair of the Heart”, “I've Done Everything for You”, “Love Somebody”, and “Human Touch”, as well as a 1981 Grammy® Best Male Rock Vocal win for his No. 1 single hit “Jessie’s Girl” behind him, Springfield proves that he has still got more to say




Considering the bloke is 63, and been a music performer since 1969 ( I was just two!!), hes still as relevant today as he was at his pinnacle in the 80’s. Listening to the new album, nothings  missing at all, not a single fault in his vocal rage. Fuck me, he still looks great too.


His 2010 autobiography, Late, Late at Night…: A Memoir, for Simon & Schuster’s Touchstone imprint, entered The New York Times best-seller list at No. 13, hitting the Los Angeles Times and Publishers Weekly lists as well, with Rolling Stone recently naming it one of the Top 25 rock autobiographies of all time. In the book, Springfield revealed the life-long depression he’s battled throughout his career, a theme he returns to in such songs as “I Hate Myself” and “Love Screws Me Up.” “I’m not the shiny, happy guy people think I am from my role in General Hospital,” insists Springfield. “I tend to put that angst into my music.”
 



Its is first album in four years since 2008’s Venus In Overdrive, and all the songs on Songs For The Edge Of The World are all short, trimmed little Duracell power packed nuggets with hardly a song over 4mins. If youre a fan of ‘The Springfield’ then this one will have you in multi-orgasm territory. All his trademarked strengths  are here, take the opener for example, Wide Awake has a chorus that just gets under your skin immediately (in a good way I might add). In a similar vein is the extremely catchy ‘A Sign Of Life’. ‘My Last Heartbeat’ is a groovier/ heavier rocker than most on the album, and also features Mr Mister’s Richard Page on backing vocals. Going back to the 80s, Rick had a knack for writing pop songs, and Theres a couple on offer here in the acoustic ‘Gabriel’, and ‘Joshua’ in particular.

 

Im guessing Springfield's long term friend and guitarist Tim Pierce is in session on the rockier ‘Depravity’ as it’s the sole song with a guitar solo. It would be a waste otherwise if Pierce wasn’t utilised in one way or another. (Check out Pierces allmusic page for all his credits…astounding work)
Springfield has set his sights on the collector in us all. Its being sold as four different versions, each one complete with different bonus material, and covers

So to round up, looks great…check, sounds great…double check, as an album, I doubt there's many better than this for your buck in 2012. Power pop/rock, unashamedly 80s in parts, all delivered with a style and panache that only Rick Springfield can.

I hate the bloke!!!

SCORE 90/100


Tracklisting:  Wide Awake; Our Ship’s Sinking; I Hate Myself; You And Me; Gabriel; A Sign of Life; My Last Heartbeat; Joshua; Love Screws Me Up; I Found You; Depravity; One Way Street ; Let Me In (Bonus Track); My DUI (Exclusive Bonus Track).
 
The Bug – album only I-tunes exclusive track

 

RICK SPRINGFIELD

Rick Springfield: Guitars, Lead Vocals
Matt Bissonette: Bass & Keyboards, Background Vocals
George Bernhardt: Guitars
Rodger Carter: Drums
Additional Guitars: George Nastos, Dan Strain, Tim Pierce
Additional percussion: Ronnie Grinel
Additional vocals: Richard Page on 2,7,12
Additional vocals: John Waite on 2

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