The pop stars stopped at Capital One Hall as part of their stripped-down dual-headlining show

Rick Springfield and Richard Marx sat center stage at Capital One Hall on Thursday night (Jan 11th) with just a few guitars at their disposal. The two iconic crooners swapped back and forth, trading off performing their biggest hits with the other accompanying.

The pair kept their acoustic evening upbeat, swapping stories and joking about a certain nickname for both of their first names themselves. It was pure hilarity between songs that kept those in the audience as rowdy as any arena show.

The “Dicks Squared”—their words—strummed their guitars as if they were the last instruments on earth. They opened with Marx’s “Endless Summer Nights” before launching into Springfield’s “Affair of the Heart.”

Springfield’s “Love is Alright Tonight” and Marx’s “Should’ve Known Better” had the crowd on their feet. The party atmosphere was a conscious effort on the part of the Richards. They fully admitted that solo evenings can come off as “fucking boring,” and self-aggrandizing in Marx’s words.

The crowd completely immersed themselves in the music as if there was a full band in tow. They ate up the byplay between Marx and Springfield, who mentioned that this was their first time staying on stage together during a co-headlining set. The format was new, as they watched each other playing to stay together musically. But this roughness just added to the charm of the evening.

Later in the set, Marx left the stage so that Springfield could deliver “My Father’s Chair” and the new number “Fake It Till You Make It” by himself. The Australian-American returned the favor as Marx stood center stage for “When You Loved Me,” featuring a backing track recorded by his three thirty-something sons. Afterward, he delivered “Angelia” completely unplugged. No mic and no amp for the guitar. Truly amazing and something I’ve never seen before. The crowd gave him the silence needed to achieve it.

The pair swapped verses on Marx’s “Don’t Mean Nothing,” the first time they had done so all evening. Then Marx delivered his biggest hit, “Right Here Waiting.” After teasing the crowd with the opening riff several times, Springfield finally gave the crowd the song he’d been threatening them with all night, “Jessie’s Girl,” and led everyone in a bonafide singalong.

These two pop-rock singer-songwriter legends complement each other wonderfully on stage as well as musically. Both can toggle between fun cut-loose numbers and meaningful songwriter fare. Who knows what they’ll achieve next? Maybe they’ll launch “Two Dicks Vodka” after all. (Yes, you had to be there).

SETLIST:

1. Endless Summer Nights RM
2. Affair of the Heart RS
3. Way She Loves Me RM
4. Love is Alright Tonight RS
5. Satisfied RM
6. I’ve Done Everything For You RM
7. Hazard RS
8. Don’t Talk to Strangers RM
9. Should’ve Known Better RS
10. My Father’s Chair RS
11. Fake it Till you Make it RS
12. When You Loved Me RM
13. Angelia RM
14. Human Touch RS
15. Don’t Mean Nothing RM
16. Love Somebody RS

ENCORE:

17. Right Here Waiting RM
18. Jessie’s Girl
19. We Can Work It Out (Beatles cover)