David Cassidy on the Web
David Cassidy gets happy, gives fans a heartfelt show
Friday, September 03, 2004
www.heraldextra.com
By Jessica Eyre
There was no colorful bus or fake family of children pretending to play instruments. And, apparently, Wednesday's final concert in the SCERA Shell's summer season was also almost without its star.
After bounding out on stage, opening with two straight songs, David Cassidy admitted to a near-cancellation due to the death of a close friend that afternoon and to worries over members of his family evacuating their Florida home in anticipation of impending Hurricane Frances.
But luckily for fans, Cassidy said he felt the love and support of his fans in "Donny country" and decided the show must go on.
And there was a lot of love and support. Swooning women in the front three rows let their inner-groupie come out, waving signs and toting vinyl records of "The Partridge Family."
Because of his high emotions, Cassidy threw in a blues number, showing off his guitar skills while wiping tears from his face. Those tears would return on other numbers like "Echo Valley 26809" and "I'll Meet You Halfway." He also did a slow, sultry rendition of "I Think I Love You."
Along with the love songs, he also threw in some more rowdy numbers like "Rock Me Baby" and the Beatles' "I Saw Her Standing There," which got the whole crowd going.
Cassidy was very chatty meeting and talking with fans. One couple brought their toddler, the father mentioning that the last time his daughter heard Cassidy sing she was in her mommy's womb, and that Cassidy was the one his wife really wanted to marry.
A swing-sounding arrangement of "The Partridge Family" theme song, "Come On Get Happy" was an entertaining number and the crowd really went wild for "Cherish" as Cassidy went back and forth across the stage kissing and hugging fans.
Although it was enough already after the millionth time Cassidy gushed over the crowd, "Thank you so much for your love and your support," the former teen idol was quite entertaining and talented. The only other quibble was he seemed to have trouble with the sound mixing and getting his band to follow him.
Ending with the actual version of "I Think I Love You," Cassidy skipped back and forth across the stage, slapping the outreached hands of the fans in front, and you could almost see the feathered hair and ruffled shirt from his past.
This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page B8.
