For a certain generation of fans, the name Rick Springfield conjures up some very specific memories -- namely, his heartthrob stint as "General Hospital's" Dr. Noah Drake and the ubiquitous No. 1 hit song "Jessie's Girl," for which he won the Best Male Rock Vocalist Grammy Award in 1981. But Springfield was more than just a two-trick pony, as he became one of the hottest stars of the 1980s with 17 top-40 singles.

Like many stars of that decade, his name has faded from public view, but he never stopped working. He recorded several albums in the 1990s and even returned to acting, playing one of a pair of brother detectives on a syndicated TV show called "High Tide." But while his recent releases haven't set the world on fire, the wave of 1980s nostalgia has secured his place as a pop culture icon. VH1 did his "Behind the Music" special in 1999, and his songs have popped up in movies as diverse as "Boogie Nights" and "13 Going on 30."

Today, Springfield continues releasing music both new and old. Forming his own label, Gomer Records, named after his dog, he released an album of new material called,"Shock/Denial/Anger/Acceptance" in 2004. Then, this year, he put out a record of cover songs, including "Life in a Northern Town," "Waiting for a Girl Like You," "Broken Wings" and even "Imagine."

Bankrate spoke to Springfield about the economics of being both a pop icon and a scrappy indie artist.

Bankrate: Why did you decide to record a covers album?

Rick Springfield: I wanted to take a break from writing, and it seemed like the right time. There's a bunch of songs I've always loved, and I wondered what they would sound like if I did them.

Bankrate: How did you choose the songs?

Rick Springfield: The last record I did was a very challenging, hard-hitting record, with big guitars and everything, and I wanted to do a companion record -- the other side, very mellow and atmospheric. I also wanted to pick songs from the era I was known in, so much of it is from the '70s and '80s.

Bankrate: What does having songs in movies mean for you, businesswise?

Rick Springfield: It obviously means residuals. In marketing terms, it increases the strength of the brand, and it keeps it current. It's kind of a free ride, really, because it's nothing that you did. Because the song meant something to someone, they put it in a project

Bankrate: When you had your first big hits in the early '80s, were you smart about the business end of the music industry?

Rick Springfield: I was absolutely clueless, and I paid the price. I lost a lot of the money I originally made. Most of the money I have now was made after the fact. I handle all my own finances now and took them over at a real tough point in my life when I said, "Wait a minute. This is all I have left?"

Bankrate: What are some of the mistakes you made?

Rick Springfield: I was counting on other people to handle it. There wasn't anyone who was crooked, just egos involved. They made a really bad investment for me in a real estate deal, and they didn't want to inform me because they thought I'd get mad, so they kept pouring money into this losing investment. One day I found out, I don't know how, but by that time, it had been bled. So I learned a hard lesson and passed it on to my kids. Most of us aren't really raised to know how to handle any kind of money. My parents said, "Always pay your bills and never borrow money." Those kind of lessons I stuck to, but they never said what to do if you made money.

Bankrate: What turned it around for you?

Rick Springfield: The cold hard facts. I realized that no one's going to care about my finances like I do. So I fired everybody and took it over myself, and my wife and I started to grow it ourselves. Thanks to computers it's easy. I handle 12 different accounts, and I love doing it. It's a great feeling of power to know you have awareness. I met a bunch of wealthy guys after I'd made some money, and I got some great advice. One of them said, "Always cash your own check, and always sign your own checks, so you know what's coming in and what's going out."

Bankrate: When you release your own records, what's involved for you?

Rick Springfield: Basically, putting your money where your mouth is. You have to get a distribution company who believes in it, and we have the best one, R.E.D. (Relativity Entertainment Distribution), which is part of Sony. But then you have to pay for everything. You become the bank. And for a guy who grew up walking the studios for free -- or thinking it was free, but you were really paying for it through the record company -- it was a bit of a shock. But I probably got paid more and spent less than I was doing with a regular record company. They're all padded.

Bankrate: What does it cost you to make and put a record out into the market?

Rick Springfield: It depends. Both of these have been anywhere from half a million down to $200,000 to $250,000. It's an expensive proposition.

Bankrate: Wow. I assumed it would be more of an indie endeavor, but those sound closer to major label costs.

Rick Springfield: I probably spent more than I should have on the first record. But I really believe in it. I wouldn't say I lost money, but it was a lot more of an investment than I thought it was. I probably broke even.

Bankrate: You also own your own publishing and merchandising, don't you?

Rick Springfield: And my own recording studio, which is one of the best things I've done.

Bankrate: How does the fact that you control all of this affect your personal financial situation?

Rick Springfield: It's very positive, because when you control more, you have a better understanding of the figures. We cut ourselves better deals. Overall, it's been a much smarter way to do it. I wish I'd thought of it originally. The thing with musicians is that you struggle for years, and when it hits, it hits really fast, and you're just trying to assimilate everything that's going on. It's not a steady build.

Bankrate: Out of all the separate aspects of your career -- touring revenue, CD sales, publishing, merchandising, movie licensing -- which are the most lucrative?

Rick Springfield: Probably touring and publishing, because the songs get played. "Jessie's Girl" has kind of become a symbol of the '80s, and the record gets played a lot. I was stunned when I found out how many '80s radio stations there are.

Bankrate: How do you invest? Are you a big real estate guy, or more in the market?

Rick Springfield: I have a great guy I've been with for a long time. I was with his father before that. He said to me, you have this amount of money just sitting in a bank CD. Do you want to do something with it? And I started to get into the whole investment thing, which I had never done before. Mainly stocks and private deals. I have been very lucky. Apart from that one thing in the '80s, I've been pretty lucky real-estatewise, just from buying and selling at the right time with no knowledge, just pure luck.

Larry Getlen is a freelance writer based in New York.
-- Posted: Nov. 15, 2005