But years later, as I listen to this collection, I am amazed at how well crafted Rick's pop rock really was. The songs are definitely aimed at the teenage market: "Jessie's Girl," "I've Done Everything for You," and "What Kind of Fool am I" deal with teenage love and heartbreak with emotional clarity and classic pop tunefulness. After I played this CD once, I was singing "Jessie's Girl," "Don't Talk to Strangers," and "What Kind of Fool am I" for weeks. Especially the latter song.

If you liked the catchier music of the early 1980's, then you couldn't go wrong picking this CD up.


They Call Him Bruce.   February 28, 2000
 17 out of 18 found this review helpful

If you are looking for the best of Rick Springfield, search no further. With the exception of the 1978 song, Bruce, everything popular from Rick Springfield is included on this disc. If you want individual cds, start with Working Class Dog or Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet--you can't go wrong with either. If you want Rick's early material prior to 1981, you might try finding the Australian import that has all of his early work AND his post-1981 work (except Karma). THAT's a greatest hits! To be honest, most of Rick's cds are middle of the road. I have Tao, Rock of Life and Karma, and none of them match Working Class Dog, Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet or Living in Oz. Stay away from the Hard to Hold soundtrack. So, his greatest hits is the perfect disc to have for those who aren't staunch Springfield fans.


This brings back memories of 80s pop music fun   June 25, 1999
 14 out of 14 found this review helpful

In an era of sampling and remakes, it is refreshing to hear this collection of Rick Springfield hits. This CD brings back memories of why pop music of the 80s was and still is fun. Springfield wrote or co-wrote almost all the songs on this collection. "Human Touch," "Love Somebody," "Affair of the Heart," and the timeless "Jessie's Girl" remind us of the 70s and 80s when truly talented musicians cared about lyrics as well as melody. Springfield and Springsteen we need more like you!


Not Hard to Hold onto if you're an 80s music fan   January 4, 2005
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

Four things prompted me to get this collection. One, the fact that I'm an 80's music guy. Two, its inclusion in the 13 Going On 30 soundtrack, three, I remember a girl I knew in high school, Stacey Perkins, telling me she was really into Rick Springfield, and four, the release of his latest album, Shock Denial Acceptance Anger. Even though Rick Springfield became lumped in the 1980's hard-rock/pop genre like Canadians Loverboy, he was already a big star in his homeland Australia during the 1970's until his work in General Hospital put his music career on hold. However, with the 80's, he was reinvented and went full throttle with a sound best described as jamming and grinding hard rock with some keyboard meshed within. With his heartthrob looks, he was clearly marketed towards the teen girls back then.

From Working Class Dog, came his best known song, so quintessentially 80s in sound, and so full of yearning with that couplet "I wish that I had Jessie's Girl/Where can I find a woman like that?" The guitars and the synth solos inbetween verses brings things back.
Also from that album is the hard-driving rock/post-punk of the Sammy Hagar-penned "I've Done Everything For You" which has the accusatory "you've done nothing for me" aimed at some girl who's all money and jiving. "Love Is Alright Tonight" which mentions the album's title, has a similar sound.

From Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet, comes the Top Ten "Don't Talk To Strangers" whose mid-paced, reflective melodies, and electric piano reminds me of Jackson Browne's "Somebody's Baby." Notable line: "Love hurts when only one's in love." That is followed by the ballad "What Kind of Fool Am I" which starts with a lilting synth akin to a Lionel Richie or Whitney Houston ballad before going uptempo in the chorus. The opening guitar and power riffs of "I Get Excited" make it kind of like "Jessie's Girl" meets "Somebody's Baby" in the chorus. Recycled but still listenable.

Living in Oz showed no signs of changing the formula, although "Affair of the Heart" showed a hardened Loverboy/Foreigner/Journey-style in the guitars. In the seven minute "Human Touch" with its bouncy Cars-like sound interspersed in the usual Springfield formula, the singer mentions everyone talking to computers and dancing to drum machines, to which he proclaims "We all need a human touch." "Souls" veers towards a Journey sound.

Springfield's second wind came with his 1984 movie Hard To Hold, which was overshadowed by that other movie featuring a rock star-Purple Rain. It yielded single after single, including the catchy "Love Somebody" whose guitar and rhythm showed a more streamlined sound akin to "What Kind of Fool Am I" meets "Somebody's Baby." "Bop Til You Drop" featured a more funky beat while his ballad duet with Randy Crawford "Taxi Dancing" is merely decent.

His sound changed drastically with "Celebrate Youth" from Tao and "Rock of Life" the title track from his 1988 album, and by then, he was no longer the chart draw he was in the early 80's. Even though his peak era was from 1981 to 1984, he did provide part of that essentially 80's sound I look nostalgically back on.


Almost perect collection of an underrated rocker.   April 26, 2004
 6 out of 6 found this review helpful

Rick Springfield is one of the more underrated artists of the early/mid '80s. The critics may have bashed him and his music's credibilty just 'cause he was a soap opera star, and guys might not have given him a chance since he had a large female audience. Well, they're all morons, this guy rules! His high energy mainstream rock is like a more pop friendly version of Eddie Money, The Romantics or Loverboy.

As far as this particular collection goes, basically, it's just an extended version of his earlier "Greatest Hits" from 1989. 4 other tracks are added here, as well as the album versions of other songs which were the hit single versions on the earlier collection.

With that out of the way, let's get to the music itself.

The debut album, WORKING CLASS DOG, not surprisingly, gets a bit of attention. Rick's signature song, the surging jealous-of-love happy yet rocking "Jesse's Girl." The fast-paced dating tale "Love is Alright Tonight" is another winner, as is his own classic rock-ish version of Red Rocker Sammy Hagar's message to a girlfriend "I've Done Everything For You." It's a little lighter than Sam's version, but no less good!

1982's SUCCESS HASN'T SPOILED ME YET is, at least in my opinion, his best album, which nearly every song could've been a hit. Included here is the slightly cautionary mid tempo, cooled down keyboard rock of "Don't Talk to Strangers," the slower but no less fun low key ballad "What Kind of Fool Am I," and the lite arena rock of "I Get Excited," an underrated masterpiece left off the earlier collection.

1983's LIVING IN OZ was a little harder rocking and more serious themed, but just as good. Included are the poweful and passionate synth rocker "Affair of the Heart," the look of technology and its effects on us in the danceable, almost hard rock of "Human Touch," and the uptempo but more laid back "Souls."

His contributions to 1984's HARD TO HOLD soundtrack include what just might be my all-time favorite, the mid tempo keyboard rocker "Love Somebody." Straight fun arena rock like mid 80's Starship might've done, but even better! The guitar solo rules too (and rocks a little harder than you'd think).

After that, it might be hard to have the remaining tracks as good, but by no means are they bad. The new wavey dance of "Bop Till' You Drop," is okay, but the saxophone based rock ballad "Don't Walk Away is a nice underrated tune I only recently heard of. The softer duet ballad "Taxi Dancing" was a little strange, but not terrible.

TAO marked the change suggested in OZ of harder edged, yet more mature and serious songwriting. This time around, it ain't as good (this guy is just better at happy rock), but the loud drumming and synths of "Celebrate Youth," and the more typical, slight new wave rocker "State of the Heart," (which, weird as this sounds, reminds me a bit of a male version of Gloria Estefan's "Uh-Oh" in sound) are still not bad at all.

The late 80's effort ROCK OF LIFE includes the title track, a possibly autobiographical, mature-ish effort similar to something from TAO, but a little more toned down.

Well, there we have it. This is just about as complete a collection as I could imagine, unless you're a die hard fan. The only missing tracks might be "Alyson," or "Calling All Girls," but I have those on old casettes of the original albums.