"Jessie's Girl" is one of those pop songs that has undoubtedly slipped into the subconscious of every American. You hear the ‘80s hit on the radio and guiltily turn it up, singing along with Rick Springfield verbatim while rolling up your windows so the cars around you don't take notice. Long before "Jesse's Girl" hit the airwaves and propelled him into pop stardom, teen pop idol Rick Springfield lived an ordinary life as the son of an Australian military family in Sydney. The Springfield's moved around Australia and England during the would-be pop legend's childhood, allowing music to be his outlet from isolation in school. Springfield formed a ‘50s revival group called Rock House as a teenager before joining Zoot in 1968. The band became one of the most popular among teenyboppers in Australia and had several hits before Springfield went solo in 1971.

Springfield's Australian solo smash "Speak to the Sky" was re-recorded for a U.S. audience, and although the song soared to number 14, Springfield's star faded throughout the 1970s. Success struck twice in the early ‘80s when Springfield signed a recording contract with RCA and secured the role of Dr. Noah Drake on daytime soap General Hospital. As Springfield became a soap star, he continued work on RCA's Working Class Dog in the studio. The album featured "Jessie's Girl," which topped the charts and was followed up by "I've Done Everything for You," another Top-Ten single. Springfield shelved his acting career and returned to music full time, releasing 1982's Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet with hit single "Don't Talk to Strangers" and 1983's Living in Oz featuring Top Ten "Affair of the Heart." In 1984, Springfield merged music and acting, starring in film Hard to Hold and recording his last Top Ten song "Love Somebody" for the soundtrack.