Legendary Rick Springfield

In order to supplement the Rick Springfield Anthology set (see this post) I also picked up this set, entitled Legendary. The two complement each other well as far as providing a solid overview of Springfield's career. I mentioned the draw of Anthology is that it contains several early hits. Most of these are absent from this set, although "Speak to the Sky" and "Take a Hand" are here. However, the main draw of Legendary is that it provides a good overview of his 1980s output. Songs included here that initially drew me to the set include the hit duet with Randy Crawford, "Taxi Dancing," the rock radio hit "Calling All Girls," and the album track "Living in Oz." For chart-inclined people, I'll include a look at Springfield's hits at the end of this post.

New standouts for me include "Carry Me Away," "The Light of Love," "Daddy's Pearl," "Calling All Girls," "Living in Oz," "Can't Stop Hurting You," "Walk Like a Man," and "World Start Turning," which are the sort of rock Springfield became famous for in the early 1980s; "Red Hot & Blue Love," which is a bit of an adventurous romp with a rockabilly influence; "Tonight," which sounds like a classic waiting to happen had it been released as a single and not just the b-side of "Don't Talk to Strangers;" a rockin' remake of the Los Bravos hit "Black Is Black;" "How Do You Talk to Girls" and "Tiger by the Tail," which seem to take stylistic nods from Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello and artists of that sort; and "Honeymoon in Beirut," an awesome song that really should have been a huge hit.

And am I really the only person who loves "Taxi Dancing?" Springfield's slow songs usually aren't my favourites, but I think he and Crawford do an ace job on this. Haven't seen many other reviews which are very kind to this particular song, though.

I forgot to mention in my Anthology review that "I've Done Everything for You" was written and originally recorded by Sammy Hagar. I've not heard Hagar's, but damn I love Springfield's version. Such a great song! Another brief personal note: "State of the Heart" has been growing on me with every listen. I think it's among my Springfield favourites now.

Track listing for the set:
1. Speak to the Sky
2. Love Is Alright Tonite
3. Jessie's Girl
4. Hole in My Heart
5. Carry Me Away
6. I've Done Everything for You
7. The Light of Love
8. Everybody's Girl
9. Daddy's Pearl
10. Red Hot & Blue Love
11. Inside Silvia
12. Calling All Girls
13. I Get Excited
14. What Kind of Fool Am I
15. Kristina
16. Tonight
17. Black Is Black
18. Don't Talk to Strangers
19. How Do You Talk to Girls
20. Still Crazy for You
21. Just One Kiss
22. April 24, 1981
23. Human Touch
24. Alyson
25. Affair of the Heart
26. Living in Oz
27. Me & Johnny
28. Motel Eyes
29. Tiger by the Tail
30. Souls
31. I Can't Stop Hurting You
32. Like Father, Like Son
33. Love Somebody
34. Taxi Dancing (with Randy Crawford)
35. Bop 'Til You Drop
36. Take a Hand
37. Dance This World Away
38. Celebrate Youth
39. State of the Heart
40. Walking on the Edge
41. Walk Like a Man
42. Rock of life
43. Honeymoon in Beirut
44. World Start Turning
45. One Reason to Believe
46. Soul to Soul
47. Tear It All Down
48. Woman
49. Dream in Colour
50. Hold On to Your Dream

I saw one review complain about the mastering on this set, but to my ear it sounded just fine. I do not have particularly discerning ears when it comes to these matters, however. My only problem is the skimpiness of the included liner notes, but that's a minor issue.

As I mentioned I'd provide, here is a rundown of Springfield's U.S. charted tunes. I'll also make a note as to which set contains which songs: (A) for Anthology and (L) for Legendary.

1972
"Speak to the Sky" (#14) (A) (L)
"What Would the Children Think" (#70) (A)

1974
"American Girls" (#98) (A)

1976
"Take a Hand' (#41) (A) (L)

1981
"Jessie's Girl" (#1) (#10 album rock) (A) (L)
"I've Done Everything for You" (#8) (A) (L)
"Love Is Alright Tonite" (#20) (#40 album rock) (A) (L)

1982
"Don't Talk to Strangers" (#2) (#11 album rock) (A) (L)
"Calling All Girls" (#4 album rock) (L)
"What Kind of Fool Am I" (#21) (A) (L)
"I Get Excited" (#32) (L)

1983
"Affair of the Heart" (#9) (#23 album rock) (A) (L)
"Human Touch" (#18) (#34 album rock) (A) (L)
"Souls" (#23) (L)

1984
"Love Somebody" (#5) (#13 album rock) (A) (L)
"Don't Walk Away" (#26) (#41 album rock)
"Bop 'Til You Drop" (#20) (A) (L)
"Taxi Dancing" (#59) (L)
"Bruce" (#27) (A) (recorded in 1978)

1985
"Celebrate Youth" (#26) (A) (L)
"State of the Heart" (#22) (A) (L)

1988
"Rock of Life" (#22) (#45 album rock) (A) (L)

As you can see, from a hits perspective, both sets do a pretty good job collecting them, with each having a few that the other omits. The main draw of Legendary is not just the hits, but also the many cool Springfield album tracks, such as those mentioned in this post. The only hit omitted by both is "Don't Walk Away."