Rick Springfield brings his 'End of the World' tour to Penn's Peak
On Thursday, Rick Springfield was in California.
Sunday night, he performed at Penn's Peak in Jim Thorpe and there was absolutely no sign of jet lag.He was full of energy, expending so much of it that by halfway through the concert his tee shirt was wet with sweat.The visit to the local venue was part of his "End of the World" tour, promoting his newest album "Songs for the End of the World."En route to Pennsylvania from California, he made stops in Oklahoma on Friday and in Miami, Fla. on Saturday.Instead of being a tour stop, it was a party at the Peak. He had the audience singing and dancing, there was audience participation, and at one point he even got off the stage and wandered deep into the midst of the stirred crowd.Springfield sang all his hits including the Grammy winning "Jesse's Girl," as well as songs from the new LP and some cuts from previous albums.His curtain call numbers included the Beatles' cover "All My Loving."One of the different elements to Sunday's concert compared to his previous visits to Penn's Peak was an awesome assortment of videos shown on a background screen.One of the favorites videos was the title cut from the "End of the World" album. The video included footage from the movie "Titanic" as well as original "Titanic" footage.Other videos contained family photos, cartoons, Civil War scenes, a journey through the galaxy, and general themes.His audience interaction was nothing less than amazing.At one point, he left the stage via the railing on the side of the auditorium. He almost fell at one point, but a blonde woman seemed delighted to be propping him up.He then went into the midst of the large crowd, singing "We All Need the Human Touch."The talented performer, who got acclaim on the TV soap opera "General Hospital" by playing Dr. Noah Drake and who starred in the 1980s hit movie "Hard to Hold," walked from one side of the auditorium to the others as especially the females greeted him with hugs.Another interaction moment came when he called six youngsters on stage. They ranged in ages six to 13.They helped him sing his hit song "Don't Talk to Strangers." The six-year-old, a boy, stole the show. He showed boredom as the rest of the children took their turns singing, doing fun routines with his hands.Springfield then gave him a can of string to keep him busy, and he sprayed it at the audience.The performer began his concert wearing a brown leather jacket, but he discarded it by the end of the third song and completed the show wearing a white tee shirt.He kept his signature song "Jesse's Girl" until the very end of his 21-song set, but teased it several times during the show.His concert was one of three held at Penn's Peak this past weekend.Country singer Jamey Johnson was at the venue on Friday.On Saturday night, the Led Zeppelin tribute band Get the Led Out performed before a sell-out crowd.Next up for the concert menu is Carl Palmer's ELP Legacy - the Twist of the Wrist Wrold Tour - at 8 p.m. Friday.