David Cassidy on the Web
Come on, Get Happy
Original American idol David Cassidy comes to town to share the love with local fans for Valentine's Day
February 7, 2008
By DAVID SCHMEICHEL
www.winnipegsun.com
Given his history as a teenage heartthrob -- not to mention the juicy tell-all book he penned last year -- you'd think crooner David Cassidy would have better things to do on Valentine's Day.
But as the former Partridge Family frontman -- and object of many a young lady's affection, back in the '70s -- reminds us, life on the road doesn't always leave much room for romantic getaways.
"Entertainers have to work the holidays ... it's just part of the job," laughs Cassidy, who'll be in Winnipeg for back-to-back Club Regent shows next Wednesday and Thursday. "Everyone else gets the night off, and we're the entertainment."
Besides, even though Cassidy, now 57, may have once charmed the pants off an entire generation of female fans, he's been happily married for nearly 17 years. So even when he does have the night off, his plans tend to be of the "romantic dinner with my wife" variety.
It wasn't always that way. At least, not from the sounds of Cassidy's recently released autobiography, Could it Be Forever? My Story, in which the singer lays waste to his squeaky-clean image by divulging details of his past drug use, his sexual exploits, and the (not at all newspaper-appropriate) reason his brothers nicknamed him "Donkey."
"They handed me a very large cheque, which is always a great incentive," jokes Cassidy, when asked what prompted him to bare his soul in print. "No seriously, for so long now, I've had so many fans (who've) been asking about my life, it just seemed like the obvious thing to do.
"But it's not a kiss-and-tell book. I resent that kind of book, so I tried not to talk about specific individuals as much as I did my own life."
The book charts both the lighter moments in Cassidy's career (he started out acting on shows like Bonanza and Ironside), as well as the darker periods, most of which stemmed from his abrupt rise to fame.
Following the success of The Partridge Family (on which Cassidy convinced producers to use his own vocals, instead of canned backing tracks), he became a bona fide idol -- one capable of drawing hordes of hysterical teenagers to stadiums around the world.
And though his career was marked by ups and downs (the latter including the tragic death of a 14-year-old girl who was crushed at one of his concerts), he mostly managed to avoid the same celebrity trappings that would sideline '70s peers like Leif Garrett and Cassidy's Partridge co-star Danny Bonaduce.
"There's a lot of danger and a lot of pitfalls in the career I chose," says Cassidy. "You have to be able to endure it. And it helps if you have talent, because that's the only commodity that stays around. You can be young and beautiful all you'd like, but eventually that all goes away."
Which helps explain how Cassidy has managed to stay so busy all these years, whether collaborating on well-received pop albums with the likes of George Michael or former Beach Boy Bruce Johnston, or appearing on Broadway and the Vegas revue The Rat Pack is Back.
"I have a very strong work ethic -- I love my work and I love bringing light into people's lives," says Cassidy. "I put out everything I have in my body, every single night I'm on stage. I've never once just walked through it."
His most recent project, the dance album David Cassidy Part II: The Remix, saw him paired with producer Craig J. (Madonna, Gwen Stefani) on new versions of hits from his decades-spanning career.
He says he knew the record was on the right track after getting a thumbs-up from his teenage son's buddies.
"I played it for 'em and said, 'You're not going to hurt my feelings, but tell me what you think,' " he says. "After about three or four tracks, they were like, 'Gee, Mr. Cassidy, that's pretty cool!' "
