Richard Marx 'Right Here Waiting'

Chart Peak: 2

YouTube

After phenomenal American success, Richard Max finally made his British Breakthrough this year firstly co-writing Cliff Richard's big hit 'The Best Of Me' and then reaching No.2 in late September 1989.

There's certainly no argument about the scale of the American success: this was his second Number One single over there and he'd had a load of hits from a debut album that was largely ignored here in the UK. With hindsight, it's maybe a little more questionable how permanent a breakthrough this was for him: he did go on to have three more Top 20 hits over the next five years, but never really made himself a consistent hitmaker. There's no disputing the bigness of this song, though; it sat in the runner-up position behind Black Box's all-conquering 'Ride On Time' for a fortnight, but we can safely guess that it had greater pan-generational appeal and would have been more of an airplay hit, though the sort of radio I listen to back then was playing both.

The record itself certainly seems of its time, though as I've noted here before, his 1990s recordings don't really sound any less 1980s. The whole aesthetic is very late-80s AOR: the gruff voice, the mullet, the pseudo-rebellious album title (Repeat Offender). In fairness, this does set itself apart with a relatively sparse production, concentrating mainly on piano and vocal and avoiding big thuddy drums. This does focus attention on the song itself though I can't entirely celebrate that as it's a bit too formulaic for me, as real as the emotion apparently is, and as much as I know that the silent majority of the general public lap this up. I'm only surprised Westlife haven't covered it, to be honest.


Also appearing on: Now 22, 23, 27
Available on: Repeat Offender

Richard Marx 'Now And Forever'

Chart Peak: 13

YouTube

Are you ready to rock? I say, are you ready to rock?
Well, tough, it's another slow song now.

Richard's emotional ballad 'Now And Forever' reached No. 12 in Britain in January 1994... His first three albums have produced sensational worldwide sales of 15 million copies.

If you'd asked me, I don't think I'd have guessed that he was still scoring major hits as recently as 1994. Listening now, the song does sound vaguely familiar but I wouldn't have been able to place it as being from any particular time. It certainly feels older than it is, being very much in the line of earlier Marx hits and topped by his very eighties vocal style: I've struggled to think of a description and come up with gruff-but-empty, the same sort of thing Bryan Adams did (and still does, I suppose).

It's a slushy ballad about how much he loved his wife, and since they're still together almost twenty years on we can safely say that he was telling the truth. I can completely understand why people like this, but it doesn't do what I personally want music to do. 

Also appearing on: Now 16, 22, 23
Available on: Paid Vacation

Richard Marx 'Take This Heart'

Chart Peak: 13

YouTube

Another song I can't remember hearing or even hearing of at the time. And indeed 24 hours or so after first hearing it, I still can't remember a thing about it. I suppose I'll have to listen to it again then....

Wow. That is so amazingly bland I'm genuinely struggling to find anything to say about it. No wonder the Wikipedia article is all about the video, and how it wouldn't be possible in real baseball. In places it reminds me slightly of the Baywatch theme. Not good.

Also appearing on: Now 16, 22, 27
Available on: Greatest Hits