Rick Springfield carried a disturbing memory from Vietnam long before becoming a rock star. Decades later, he described the combat encounter that still troubled him while speaking to Joe Rogan.
The Australian singer traveled through Vietnam in 1968 with his band, entertaining American troops. What started as a paycheck soon placed a young musician inside a frightening attack.
Rick Springfield says he was caught in a deadly encounter while entertaining troops in Vietnam
Springfield discussed the experience on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast. He said U.S. soldiers wanted “girls that reminded them of home.” That helped his band secure work. “It was pretty insane. We were there for about four months,” he explained. Money barely mattered once the tour began. “Oh, great. We’ll make money,” Springfield recalled thinking. Instead, the musicians spent their earnings at the PX.
The danger became real at Marble Mountain, outside Da Nang. Springfield stayed with Navy personnel before an attack forced everyone into defensive positions. He took shelter in a radio shack while other band members occupied perimeter bunkers. Springfield recalled, “It was freaky.” He then began firing mortars from the radio shack.
The following morning brought the moment that stayed with him. Someone told Springfield that one mortar had struck an enemy combatant. “The hardest thing for me was that I had thrown a mortar down,” he said. “And it had hit somebody.” Springfield said that memory remained “a hard place to land” for him.
He later explained how the attack unfolded. Radio operators reported movement nearby and checked for friendly forces. After receiving confirmation, Springfield agreed to fire several mortars. “It was like the movies,” he recalled. He described his youthful mindset as “John Wayne time.”
Springfield admitted that he did not understand the consequences then. The reality became heavier after he learned someone had died. “I think it’s still there,” he said. Springfield struggled with accepting his responsibility for another person’s death. He acknowledged his youth and inexperience during the Vietnam War. Still, the memory never completely disappeared.
“But it was… pretty heavy when I think about the reality of it,” Springfield said.