“Jessie’s Girl” Singer Reveals the Haunting Vietnam War Experience He’s Carried for Nearly 60 Years: “I Was Responsible for the End of a Life”

As both a member of Zoot and a solo artist, Rick Springfield produced a career that has lasted over five decades. During that time, he released hits like “Love Somebody,” “Affair of the Heart,” and “Don’t Talk to Strangers.” If that wasn’t enough, he also starred in series like Supernatural and American Horror Story. With more than a few years in the spotlight, Springfield had countless stories and memories. But sadly, they weren’t all great, as the singer admitted to accidentally killing a person while supporting troops in Vietnam. 

Recently, Springfield recalled a time when he was traveling in Vietnam to entertain American troops. With the world a different place in 1968, the singer explained how there weren’t many safety measures put in place. The only requirement was having a few ladies. “So as long as we had a couple of girls in the band, they would hire you, and you could tour Vietnam during the war zone. It was pretty insane. We were there for about four months.”  

With Springfield not making a great deal of money for the experience, he walked away with a story he never forgot. “We met these guys, and we really got along well, and we stayed overnight with them, and we all got in the bunkers, in the perimeter bunkers, and I stayed in the radio shack, and we got attacked, and I’m throwing mortars down the freaking tube of the radio shack.” 

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Rick Springfield Got A Personal Look At War

At the time, Springfield had no time to comprehend exactly what he was doing. With adrenaline pumping through his veins, he added, “The hardest thing for me was that I had thrown a mortar down, and it had hit somebody, and they came in the next day and said, ‘Hey, you got one. You got one.’” 

While the years brought Springfield clarity, he struggled to get away from the pain his hands caused. “I think it’s still there, you know? It’s hard for me to kind of face that I was responsible for the end of a life, even though it’s distant, and it’s war. And I didn’t really have anything to do with it and didn’t really know what I was doing…” 

Springfield might have been young and caught in the middle of a war, but time never completely erased what happened. And no matter how much time passed, that night in Vietnam remained one he fought to fully accept. 

(Photo by Barry Brecheisen/Getty Images)

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