Illinois Senate gets a visit from Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen
Laura S. Faeth
June 21, 2007
The band formed in the mid-1970s and became a national success in 1979 with an album recorded in Japan known simply as Live At Budokan. In the past 30 years, Cheap Trick has sold more than 20 million albums and performed over 5,000 concerts to countless fans. Their hits include "I Want You to Want Me," “Surrender,” "Dream Police" and "The Flame."
April 1st, commonly known as “April Fool's Day,” seems quite apropos to celebrate the Trickster’s influence upon fans. Nielsen’s on-stage antics often make him appear like a fool or court jester of the middle ages, poking fun at the audience and himself throughout a concert. His continual flinging of picks with the band’s logo at unsuspecting fans generally ends in a rainfall of hundreds of plectrums during the song “Dream Police,” to which dozens of audience members scramble to grab a concert memento from the floor. A day at the State Senate is no different than a night at a rock concert. To the laughter and applause of senators, Nielsen plunged into his pockets and threw fistfuls of guitar picks at the senators and their staff.
The exact origins of April Fool's Day are disputed, but the image of The Fool adorns all Tarot cards. Sometimes referred to as “The Trickster,” The Fool represents spontaneity, acting on impulse, and being full of surprises. Tricks, pranks, and lyrics filled with double entendres are the staple of Cheap Trick’s songs and concerts. Going to a Cheap Trick concert or listening to their CDs is kind of like a box of Cracker Jacks…it’s always filled with a little surprise.
There has not yet been a vote on the resolution to establish Cheap Trick Day, but Syverson expects the Senate to vote in favor of the Cheap Trick resolution next week.
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