Aaaah… CHOO! ‘Scuse me, folks, but I’ve been hit with a nasty cold that I just can’t seem to shake. Two pots of soup (one chicken and the other lentil), and countless bowls of oatmeal and cups of tea (and I don’t even like tea!) later, and quite frankly, I’m still not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Oh, and did I mention that I’ve lost my sense of taste? Always a fun part of being sick, to be sure. At least it cuts down on my desire to eat, given that I can’t really enjoy any of the food that I put into my mouth.
Of course, being sick also means that I get to stay home from work, which means copious amounts of daytime television. While not nearly as “exciting” as it is in the US, isn’t too bad at all, despite the fact that I’ve had the misfortune to be sick on a Sunday, leaving me stuck with boring weekend fare on both Star World and BBC Prime. While channel surfing earlier, I suddenly found myself watching General Hospital, a soap opera that was popular to the point of obsession among many of my friends back in the 1980s. I was more of a Young and the Restless girl myself, but given the popularity of GH, I was able to develop more than just a passing knowledge in the show and its characters, even though I’d never actually watched an episode. Luke and Laura were discussed incessantly, as were Blackie Parrish (played by a young John Stamos) and various members of the Quartermaine family.
And then there was Doctor Noah Drake. Noah was played by Australian Rick Springfield, who immediately became the full-time obsession among my friends, both for the character he played on GH and for his musical talents. Even I got caught up, and if I were to dig through my collection of cassettes, I believe I’d find at least two Rick Springfield albums, purchased via a record club.
Anyway, because I’m feeling seriously under the weather (and will soon have to recharge my laptop, meaning that I’ll have to get up from the couch because I can’t be bothered to climb behind it in order to plug in from here), I’m going to leave you with one of Mr Springfield’s greatest hits…
Jessie’s Girl
Rick Springfield
Jessie is a friend,
yeah, I know he’s been
a good friend of mine
But lately something’s changed
that ain’t hard to define
Jessie’s got himself a girl
and I want to make her mine
And she’s watching him with those eyes
And she’s lovin’ him with that body,
I just know it
Yeah ‘n’ he’s holding her
in his arms late,
late at night
You know, I wish that I had Jessie’s girl,
I wish that I had Jessie’s girl
Where can I find a woman like that
I play along with the charade,
there doesn’t seem to be
a reason to change
You know, I feel so dirty
when they start talking cute
I wanna tell her that I love her,
but the point is probably moot
‘Cos she’s watching him with those eyes
And she’s lovin’ him with that body,
I just know it
And he’s holding her
in his arms late, late at night
Like Jessie’s girl,
I wish that I had Jessie’s girl
Where can I find a woman,
where can I find a woman like that
And I’m lookin’ in the mirror all the time,
wondering what she don’t see in me
I’ve been funny,
I’ve been cool with the lines
Ain’t that the way
love supposed to be
Tell me, where can I find a woman like that
[Solo]
You know, I wish that I had Jessie’s girl,
I wish that I had Jessie’s girl
I want Jessie’s girl,
where can I find a woman like that, like
Jessie’s girl,
I wish that I had Jessie’s girl,
I want,
I want Jessie’s girl
Sending you feel better wishes.
Great song. I can’t believe all these great songs of childhood are turning a quarter-century. Where was the publicity for 25 years of “Thriller”? I’m outraged. But this is still a great song-timeless.
Sorry to hear about your cold. That stinks!
But oh, how I love this song!
I remember the summer of 1981, travelling cross-country with my parents and sister. We stopped in Denver where Dad had a conference and imagine our joy when we saw that Rick Springfield would be signing autographs at the local record shop!!! We waited in line in 104 degree weather to meet him and get our precious autographs that have long since ceased to be so important and have most likely disappeared! Great song, though!!
A cold! Just about the worst thing, not the least because it is demeaned by the adjective “common” and yet you are feeling miserable. I wish you a speedy recovery and just as much solicitous attention as you can tolerate!
How did I miss this post? It’s really funny- I don’t like soaps (though I used to watch them in high school- I was home sick one day and saw Luke and Laura’s wedding and that started it all for me) but several months ago I was at the gym, on a friend’s guest pass- I look up at one of the TV screens and was SHOCKED to see Dr. Noah Drake, whom I lusted after 25 years ago!!! Loved his music!
I just reread your post and I don’t know if you actually saw Noah/Rick the other day- he was recently brought back to the show for a while, don’t know if he’s still there tho. He still looks pretty good!
Thanks for the blast from the past! It started off my monday morning in a great way.