COREY HART: REBEL WITH AN ANTI-TEEN-IDOL CAUSE

A few years ago a teen idol, drunk at a party, told me--off the record: “Being a teen idol is as much fun as having leprosy. Anybody over 17 looks at you as if you had leprosy. You’re ashamed of what you are. Nobody takes you seriously.”

That singer, now out of the teen-idol business, and Corey Hart, the 23-year-old Canadian heartthrob who sings the big hit, “Never Surrender,” should commiserate. Hart doesn’t like being a teen idol either. He won’t even acknowledge his status. The sad truth, though, is that he is a teen idol.

“It’s not what I am,” he insisted, quite exasperated. “I don’t like being put in that category.”

Being in that category really can be lethal, primarily because teen idols have a limited life span. They last as long as some of the teen fads. One day teen girls’ hearts are doing flip-flops over a cute, sexy singer. A year later, fickle young female fans are turning up their noses that this same singer. There’s no one colder than a fallen teen idol.

Looks are crucial to teen idols. Singers who are plain or unattractive are denied admission to that fabulous fraternity. But Hart made it easily. After all, he’s a double threat. Not only is he boyishly handsome but he also has that sullen, rebellious look. Though not quite as pronounced as James Dean’s, it’s in that same league. Cute rebels are a hot commodity with teen-age girls.

Hart’s handsome face, which should be a source of joy, is often a pain in the neck. “What the hell can I do about it?” he asked. “This is how I look. It shouldn’t have anything to do with my music.”

Because of his looks, which have been influential in branding him a teen idol, Hart contends he’s often the butt of prejudice. “People look at me and prejudge me,” he said. “They won’t listen to what I’m doing. They’re predisposed against me. They talk about image, not about music. They say, ‘This guy is just good-looking, period.’ They write me off right away. That bothers me. I’d like to be given fair acknowledgement for what I do.”

Hart seemed like a nice young man. Besides being friendly, forthright and cheerful, he didn’t seem to be burdened with an elephantine ego--the downfall of most teen idols.

Hart has been an instant success. His first single, “Sunglasses at Night,” from his first album, “First Offense,” was a Top 10 single. His “Never Surrender,” from his second album, “Boy in the Box,” is currently in the Top 10.

Responding to the charge that he mainly composes songs for shrieking teens, Hart insisted: “I’m writing for everybody. My songs are sophisticated, not kid stuff. If I was writing just for 13- and 14-year-olds, I’d be banging my head against the wall in frustration.”

Hart stressed that he’s not down on 14-year-olds. His point simply was that this group was only part of, but definitely not all of, his audience. “I don’t discriminate against the kids,” he said. “I want their support. It’s just that I have to appeal to a wide spectrum of people to survive.”

He is not a critics’ favorite. Some have savagely attacked Hart, who writes his own material. His songs are earnest and highly emotional. To some critics, songs like “Boy in the Box,” “Sunny Place-Shady People” and “Eurasian Eyes” are just melodramatic drivel.

Some critics also charge that Hart’s vocals are bland and undistinctive. They’re being unnecessarily nasty. There’s a plaintive, adolescent wail in his vocals that obviously appeals to young fans. Despite what the critics say, Hart isn’t a bad singer.

As a youngster, Hart lived for years in Spain and Mexico but was primarily raised in Montreal. His passion for singing and songwriting developed early. By 15, he was certain that would be his career.

But Canada seemed limiting to him. Being a star in that country wouldn’t be enough. “My dream was to reach as many people as possible,” he explained. “That meant being signed by an American record company.”

It also meant getting exposure in the United States. For a year Hart played clubs in New York while working in the studio. For about four years, record companies turned him down. When he was finally signed by EMI, a residue of those years of rejection colored his music.

“A lot of songs on that first album (“First Offense”) were written out of frustration at not getting a record deal,” he pointed out. “There are songs about getting the short end of the stick, about frustrating things like unrequited love.”

His second album, “Boy in the Box,” which bounded into the Top 40--No. 36--in just three weeks, is much better. He thinks so too.

“The writing is more sophisticated, the tone is more positive and the production is much improved,” he observed. “I was co-producer this time. It made a difference. I had some ideas that helped. I had a lot of ideas in the first one but I had no place to use them because I wasn’t co-producing.”

Hart is hoping that this album will be the key to his emergence as a star. He’ll certainly be promoting it heavily on tour. After many months of opening for major acts like Hall & Oates and Rick Springfield, Hart is now a headliner.

“I think I can get rid of that teen-idol image very soon,” he predicted. “After this tour, people will be looking at me differently. They’ll see me as a good singer-songwriter. They won’t be calling me ‘the kid with the nice-looking face’ anymore.”