By Rita Hartman
for The Beacon
In 1978, nearly every tween girl in America was in love with Shaun Cassidy, and I was no exception.
He was a cute teen idol with feathery blonde hair, brown eyes, a charming smile, and oodles of syrupy, wholesome cuteness. He enjoyed huge success with his multi-platinum, self-titled album which contained several chart-topping hits including “Da Doo Ron Ron.”
Last Friday night, I met up with two high school friends at the Hoyt Sherman Place concert venue in Des Moines to see Cassidy on his summer tour titled “Magic of a Midnight Sky.”
The Des Moines show was the seventh of a 12-date tour.
The Hoyt Sherman Place is an impressive 1252-seat, historic theater in the heart of the Sherman Hill district with domed, gilt ceilings, and red velvet seats.
Before the show, we witnessed mostly fifty-something ladies meandering around buying merchandise; some carried large signs to hold up during the show.
The signs read, “I’ve waited 45 years for you to come to Iowa!” and “You’re the Justin Bieber of my mom’s generation.” All but the smallest signs were confiscated by the ushers before the show began so as not to block the view for others.
The show started about ten minutes late with the crowd squealing and clapping in excitement the moment Cassidy stepped onstage alone with his electric-acoustic guitar.
He was dressed all in black and appeared as slim and fit as when he was at 18.
From our sixth-row seats, it was clear that although the 64-year-old Cassidy has grayed and aged as much as the rest of us, he still has the charming smile and “all-American boy” quality about him. From the comments I heard around me, no one seemed disappointed.
He opened his eleven-song set with, “That’s Rock ’N’ Roll” which got the crowd clapping, squealing, and singing along.
He was then joined by his keyboard player, Kathleen Sieck and guitarist and nephew, Cole Cassidy, who accompanied him for most of the show. Shaun Cassidy, who comes from a talented, musical family, played piano on several numbers including a new song he wrote for the tour, “Magic of a Midnight Sky,” a poetic ballad about the twists and turns of life. His voice sounded slightly deeper and more mature than I remembered, but he could still hit the notes and his voice sounded fantastic and familiar.
Cassidy has spent the bulk of his career writing for television and film since leaving the pop-rock world in the 1980s, so he was right at home storytelling in between songs.
He included songs and stories from his late half-brother, David Cassidy and his mother, Shirley Jones.
He included funny anecdotes about his famous family — like sharing a childhood bedroom with David and his experiences as a teen idol in the late 1970s.
One thing Cassidy does not do is take himself or his fame too seriously.
He talked about his children ribbing him about going out on a rock concert tour at 64 years old and being chased by starry-eyed girls who tore at his clothes and hair at the height of his music fame. “You scared me,” he joked to the crowd.
He took a detour from humorous anecdotes when he spoke of his close relationship with David, the influence he had on Shaun’s life, and the heartbreak when he died from alcoholism in 2017.
The show included a lovely acoustic rendition of “Do You Believe in Magic,” a song from 1965 by the band Lovin’ Spoonful.
Cassidy reached the top 40 with the song on his first album in 1978.
The finale’ was the song most people in the auditorium were waiting for, “Da Doo Ron Ron,” which brought everyone to their feet with many singing along and dancing in the aisles.
A few minutes later, the crowd left elated.
They had come to see their first crush, relive a bit of their youth, and hear him sing those memorable songs.
But they left with much more — they got to know Cassidy for an hour or so, hear his life stories and his humble words of appreciation to his fans. It truly was a magical night.