Rick Springfield: Working Class Dog CD Track Listing

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Rick Springfield Working Class Dog (1981)
Working Class Dog (Remastered + Expanded)\n\nOriginally Released 1981\nCD Edition Released 1986\nRemastered + Expanded CD Edition Released July 25, 2006\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Forget that Rick Springfield was a soap star for a moment and listen to his music, because he made some of the finest guitar-driven mainstream pop/rock of the early '80s. Working Class Dog is his finest moment, filled with expertly crafted pop songs, highlighted by the massive hit "Jessie's Girl." -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nGreat bonus material and cool liner notes, July 27, 2006\nReviewer: Dorrie Wheeler "Author of Be My Sorority Sister, founder of Thabiz.com" (Virginia Beach, Va United States)\nWorking Class Dog was the album that made Rick Springfield an international music star. True, Rick had released albums prior to Working Class Dog, but this was the release that set him into the pop music stratosphere. Working Class Dog has been re-released after 25 years--re-mastered and with bonus tracks. Working Class Dog includes Rick Springfield's most well known hit "Jessie's Girl." Other popular songs on the album include "I've Done Everything For You," and "Love Is Alright Tonite." The best part about this re-master (in addition to the songs sounding better than ever), is that included on the CD are three bonus tracks. "Easy To Cry," and the original version of "Taxi Dancing" which have not been released in the past are included. Also on the disc is the demo version of "Jessie's Girl." As for liner notes the CD includes extensive almost Q&A style album notes from Rick Springfield and people involved with the making of the album. Quite interesting reading I must say. Rick provides comments, some quite extensive for each song on the album. Also included is a reproduction of the handwritten lyrics for "Jessie's Girl." \n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nPOWERPOP CLASSIC....PERIOD!!!, April 23, 2005\nReviewer: Larry Davis (NYC/Long Island, NY, USA)\nHands down, EASILY, one of the greatest powerpop albums ever recorded!! As great as Cheap Trick's first 3 albums, the Knack's debut, Adam Schmitt's "World So Bright", anything by the Shoes, the Move, Small Faces, BADFINGER, Raspberries, even I should say THE BEATLES!!! \n\nSong for song, just a perfect 10-tune platter. No filler, no weak spots, all killer. Nice variety of sounds and moods...lean production, with just the right dose of polish. The songs are tight, ultracatchy, rocking, and even lyrically deep. Not really commercial either, just PURE in the songwriting and exuberant permormances...almost like enhanced demos, with the impression that Rick did this for himself, not to get himself a hit record...totally unpretentious. EVERY song could have been a hit here, but because Rick was never taken that seriously, this record never got it's due...enabling WCD to sound fresh and as good as it did 25 years ago...a QUARTER CENTURY, jeez!! \n\nNot surprised either, as 1979/1980/1981 was the time period of the best powerpop ever recorded, and "Working Class Dog" is among those classic records of that ilk. Many people think it sounds better than most pop records of the day, that the melodies and chord changes and production was a step above?? Of COURSE!! All the best powerpop was of this quality, explore more records of this type and of this era...that's my suggestion for you. \n\nBesides "Jessie's Girl", my fave tunes are all the others that weren't hits, espesh "Carry Me Away", "Daddy's Pearl" and "Inside Sylvia", which is such a beautiful, achingly pure song...then again, Rick has never been afraid to delve below the surface lyrically. \n\nBar none, Rick is one of the greatest male solo artists EVER!!! Now, all we need is this album newly REMASTERED with bonus tracks!!!\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nIt Still Stands Up, January 23, 2002\nReviewer: D. Leon "A reader" (United States)\nI'm having trouble believing this album was released 21 years ago. Widely considered Springfield's "first" album (he actually had three American releases before this, four if you count the Mission Magic soundtrack) it is a crisp, fresh, high-energy effort that still sounds just as great as it did back in 1981. Springfield's vocal delivery has passion, power, angst, and just a touch of Joe Jackson, and gives the material just the right energy and emotion. It's a real bare-bones record. Nothing fancy, just drums, bass, rhythm and lead guitar (but what lead guitar!! Guests Neal Geraldo and Robbin Ford both shine), and a little synth here and there. I think this is what gives the record such a clean, bright feel. No frills, just high spirits and lots of fun, and of course, flawlessly constructed pop rock songs. Springfield is one of the hookiest writers in the biz, and I've seen people who claim to eschew his music singing the choruses from this record. And he mixes it up here just enough, with a touch of reggae here (Everybody's Girl), a pinch of 40's bluesy big band there (Red Hot & Blue Love). It isn't straight pop, straight rock, straight new wave, or anything else, but it has the taste of all of the above and then some. Two decades later, still a fun ride.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nSolid, September 28, 2000\nReviewer: A music fan\nThis is a great album. I've had to apologize to people for daring to be the fan of such a bubble-gum pop star. But his songs are wonderful compositions. He has chord changes that you often don't hear in a lot of pop, and tempo changes, and they are very sophisticated songs as far as pop music goes. I'd compare him--dare I say it--with the Beatles songs. (No, he's not as good as them.) I never did buy anything else he did. But this is a solid record. I saw him in concert last summer in Newport Beach, California, and he gave a great show, was very enthusiastic, and did all the songs I love.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nAn unrecognized classic!, January 10, 2000\nReviewer: Leslie (Richmond, VA)\nThis album never got the critical acclaim it deserved when it was released (probably due to the perception that Rick was just another soap actor trying to be a rock star), but it has recently gotten some very belated critical respect. As Rick himself said in VH1's "Behind the Music" about his life and career, "It's about freakin' time!" There isn't a weak track to be found here. The least likable song is arguably "I've Done Everything For You", but Sammy Hagar wrote that one, so..'nuff said. Overall, this is 80's power pop/rock at its finest, the kind of music that simply reminds you of how joyful good rock music can be. "The Light of Love", "Carry Me Away" and "Everybody's Girl", in particular, resonate with the joy of musicians who love what they're doing. This is a must-own for every fan of early 80's pop music. Though it may have been his most commercially successful album, a fact which often renders such releases "too commercial" for true fans to admit liking, no hard-core fan can deny the sheer brilliance of this one.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nClassic Springfield, August 27, 1999\nReviewer: M. Norris "Seattle Fan"\nWorking Class Dog has arguably the best A-side ever recorded in pop history, from "Love is Alright Tonite" through "I've Done Everything For You." Even the album's most notorious song, "Jessie's Girl" holds up to continuous listenings and sounds just as fresh today as it did almost two decades ago. Is there possibly a Springfield fan who DOESN'T have this CD in their collection?\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nRick is way overrated..., March 2, 1999\nReviewer: A music fan\nTrue, the melody is upbeat and lively, but if you listen to some of his lyrics, Rick sounds like a jealous teenager in "Jessi's Girl," thinking being "funny & cool with the lines" will get him a girlfriend. Also bothersome is that in that song, he sings about the body of Jessi's "girl" as if she were a piece of meat and complains about her "loving him with that body." Rick also sounds like a complainer in "I've done Everything..." Some of those lyrics make you wonder if he has a negative attitude toward women. He sure could use a few lessons from Steve Perry. Steve isn't "funny & cool with lines," but knows how to respect women as human beings. I was always so amused that when I was a teenager, so many girls were drooling over Rick, but me...my fave was Steve Perry.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nYou are not a true Rick fan, unless you own this album!, March 1, 1999\nReviewer: A music fan\nWhat a great way to start the decade off! This 1980 album threw Rick into the spotlight for all to see. With the energy of "Love is Alright Tonite" and "I've Done Everything for You," it was quite apparent that this musician was not going to be a one-time wonder. Both songs worked quite well as they were the typical sound of the early 80s soft-rock genre. Their upbeat pop sound was danceable and the lyrics were easily-digestible for both radio disc-jockeys and Rick's pre-teen fans. But flip to the "B" side and you'll hear some Rick flavor that didn't get any air play until years later with the album "Living In Oz". The song "Red, Hot and Blue Love" is bluesy with suggestive lyrics like: (Whatcha doin' baby, come on over tonite...we'll have a joint, we'll be doin' it all nite.) "Everybody's Girl," about an "easy" woman who breaks Rick's heart. "Inside Sylvia," is appropriately titled, as that is what the song is literally about. There's even an extended version of "I've Done Everything For You," which includes the verse: "when I first met you, you didn't know how to love a man...," which for some unknown reason was cut out for the single. All in all, the album is great! For all who thought that Rick couldn't surprise his listeners with soulful and sexy lyrics until "Living In Oz," you're wrong. Pick up this earlier piece, and hear for yourself that the man's been rockin' all along. By the way, the album also includes an okay song entitled "Jessie's Girl."\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nAlways a Hit!, August 3, 1998\nReviewer: mcmaddox@aol.com (California)\nThis album will always go down for me as one of the best of the 80s. I still hum the tunes in my head every now and then. Remeber all the joy we had with our friends as we sang along to the songs. The music is alive and upbeat. This album should be a part of everyones collection!\n\nHalf.com Details \nProducer: Rick Springfield \n\nAlbum Notes\nRick Springfield may have been a soap-opera heartthrob, but he started out as a rocker in his native Australia, and his 1981 U.S. breakthrough, WORKING CLASS DOG, is a power-pop classic. "Jessie's Girl" remains a part of the collective pop consciousness decades after its release, and the mix of pop and New Wave-tinged rock on "I've Done Everything For You" is just as credible as anything Matthew Sweet has ever turned out.\n\nThe addition of two previously unreleased tunes and a bare-bones demo of "Jessie's Girl" sweeten the pot for the Legacy reissue of this benchmark '80s pop gem. YEAR: 1981
This rock cd contains 13 tracks and runs 42min 49sec.
Freedb: c10a070d
Buy: from Amazon.com

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