Rick Springfield
Life has been good to “Jessie’s Girl” singer Rick Springfield. So good that, despite not charting a U.S. hit since Ronald Reagan was president, the Australian rocker is headlining a two-night stand at Embarcadero Marina Park South on July 13 and 14, part of this year’s Bayside Summer Nights concert series. After a shortlived experiment with country pop music a couple of years ago, he just released an all-blues album called The Snake King that, while nothing to make Clapton quake in his loafers, is at least as authentic a stab at the genre as you’re likely to find this side of the Black Crowes or Joe Bonamassa. By that, I mean it’s a rocker’s approach that eschews roots for riffs, with barnburners like “The Devil That You Know” paired with soulful wailers such as “God Don’t Care” and gospel-tinged ballads like “In the Land of the Blind.”