Rick Springfield Speaks on Christmas Album

Rick Springfield took time out of his busy touring schedule to speak with Soap Opera Digest about his new CD, Christmas With You.

General Hospital fans can pick it up on December 18.

Soap Opera Digest: So, let's talk Christmas.
Rick Springfield: This whole thing came about as a way to do something for our troops. There's only one original song on the Christmas CD. It's the title track called "Christmas With You." Derek Hilland wrote it about the perspective of the troops being away from home at Christmas and the music video for it features photos and names of fallen soldiers. The song isn't long enough to put all of them in, but it does feature a lot of our fallen soldiers, men and women.

Digest: Where did the inspiration come from for that?
Springfield: We wanted to do something rather than complain. If I see one more "War isn't the answer" bumper sticker I'm going to drive my car right into the other car. It's not a political statement. It's just in support of the troops, the men and women who gave their lives in service to their country. My dad was a lifer in the army. I grew up on army bases. Derek's dad was in the Air Force and he fought in Vietnam.

I played for the troops in Vietnam in 1968 and 1969, so it's something we felt honest and truthful about. I've been to Bethesda [National Naval Medical Center in Maryland] and talked to some of the guys who just came back from Iraq with serious head wounds. People ought to get out and actually do something other than just f---ing talking. I don't mean to get on my high horse.

This is a little tiny thing that we thought we could do and the proceeds go to the gold star mothers, who are parents who've lost children over in Iraq.

Digest: How would you describe the rest of the tone of the CD?
Springfield: I wanted the stuff to be traditional sounding, but I never liked rock Christmas albums. I like stuff you can put on, light a fire and put up the Christmas tree by. They're all songs that I grew up with and loved.

When people used to write songs back then, they wrote them for the church and for God — and that's basically what these are. These are some of the best pop songs of the day. Some of the music is staggering when you get into it, when you look at the chord structures and the melodies.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.