Right Here Waiting - Richard Marx (1989) 6/11/23

Early in his career, Richard Marx had written a song so personal, he had no intention of recording it for release.

"Right Here Waiting" was a love letter to his wife-to-be, actress Cynthia Rhodes, who was in South Africa shooting a film. He wanted to visit her, but his visa application was rejected.

So he recorded a personal copy and sent it to her by mail. (This, of course, was the '80s, when there was no such thing as email or Skype.)

That was that...until it wasn't.

One day, Barbra Streisand asked Richard to "write her a hit." After some serious internal debate, he sent her "Right Here Waiting." The next day, she called Richard and told him she loved the music and the melody...BUT if she were going to record it, he'd have to rewrite the lyrics because, and I quote: "I will NOT be right here, waiting for ANYBODY!"

Now that may SEEM like a classic example of "Barbra the Diva" talking, but Richard has always felt that it was actually a kick in the pants to record and release the song himself.

So he did...and "Right Here Waiting" became a monster hit!

When it was released from the album, "Repeat Offender," it reached the Top 10 in 11 countries, including #1 on both the Canadian and US Top 40 and Adult Contemporary Charts." It also went to #1 in Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland.

"Right Here Waiting" by Richard Marx: Thanks to a not-so-subtle nudge from Barbra Streisand...it became a Great Song of 1989! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_E2EHVxNAE

Note: Richard and Cynthia were married from 1989 to 2014.

Tomorrow: Back to the '70s--sort of.