Remembering David Cassidy’s last area appearance
By Alex Lloyd Gross
David Cassidy, one of the biggest teen heartthrobs of the 1970,s died today, November 21,2017. He was 67 years young.
On August 9, 2009, the township of Bensalem hired him to play a show at the outdoor amphitheater . It was to be a huge deal. While the Partridge Family had been off the air for almost 40 years, his new show Ruby and the Rockets was doing well. He would always be Kieth Partridge to the thousands that showed up for the show. His fee for the show was $25,000. The mayor and town council wanted to show off the amphitheater and give something back to the township.
As August 9 rolled around, the area was buzzing with excitement. The plan was for Cassidy tofly into Philadelphia International Airport, get a limo. As the limo driver approached Street Road, and Interstate 95, the driver called A police officer,s cell phone. Cops were waiting to give him a police escort through town, direct to the township complex. Thankfully, everything went well and the plane was not delayed.
Within one hour of Cassidy arriving, he was on stage, playing songs like “I woke Up in Love This Morning”, and “Cherish”. He even took a seat behind the drums to play. He was a talented musician and showed it off that night for sure. There were many songs people wanted to hear that night, such as “24 Hours a Day” and “Point Me in the Direction of Albuquerque” and he played most of them.
Cassidy was on stage for about two hours. He played the biggest hit from the Partridge Family, “I Think I Love You” toward the end of the concert. For this show, there was a barricade set up in front of the stage.That has never happened at a show in Bensalem before, or since . Fans stretched out their hands in the front, hoping to get a hand slap from Cassidy. He slapped two hands that night. As fans begged for autographs, he could not sign them. People did throw towels on stage and he wiped his sweat and tossed them back to the delight of the females that caught them. He wore a white button down shirt that would be soaking wet by the end of the show.
In 1993, he made an in-store appearance at the now closed Tower Records on the 9100 block of the Roosevelt Blvd. He was promoting the fact that the Partridge Family records were being reissued. During this two hour stop, he signed free autographs and posed for photos with the crowd. In 1991 he sold out the Keswick Theater in Glenside Pa. In 1970 he sold out two shows at the Philadelphia Spectrum, playing a matinee show and an evening concert as well. Opening the show at the Keswick was Danny Bonaduce, who was a radio host for WEGX and later for WYSP. Both stations have since closed down and changed formats. For the show in Bensalem, there was no opening act.
David Cassidy will be forever missed by music lovers across the globe. He had crossover appeal to men because he was talented and could sing. Women liked him for his looks as well. Funeral arrangements have not been announced.