When you learn that RIchard Marx has written a memoir called Stories To Tell, your first reaction might be "what kind of stories could Richard Marx possibly have to tell?" (Okay, that might've been MY first reaction.)
But consider this: Richard Marx has sold more than 30 million albums in the past four decades. He's had 14 #1 songs, both on his own and written for other artists. Besides his own string of albums and hits, his songwriting and producing credits include Barbra Streisand, Keith Urban, Josh Groban, Vince Gill, LeAnn Rimes, N*Sync, Natalie Cole, Travis Tritt, Daughtry, Hugh Jackman, and LIfehouse. Oh yeah, and he's married to Daisy Fuentes, who you may remember from MTV's House Of Style back in the day. So the guy has seen some stuff, and he does indeed have stories to tell.
I had a chance to get a quick phone chat with Richard to talk about the book, and about some of his songs that you hear on 94.1 The Sound.
Before I dove into the book, I never knew how much of a Richard Marx supporter Lionel Richie was: RIchard was a young guy, just arrived in L.A., looking for a break, and after hearing his demo tape, Lionel invited Richard to join him in the studio and even used him for backing vocals on songs you've song along with a million times, He touches on that in our conversation, as well as giving the behind-the-scenes scoop about two of his best-known songs, "Hold On To The Nights" and "I'll Be Waiting."
Here's Richard and me:
Since everything's opening up again, you may well wonder if a Richard Marx tour is in the works. He told me he's got a small handful of dates in Northern California this August, a few more shows on the East coast in October and then he takes a break before a huge concert tour all over the place in 2022. And when I say "huge" I'm talking about 90-plus dates, so you know one of those shows will happen somewhere around here between Seattle/Tacoma/Everett. Stay tuned!