Richard Marx brings his songwriting chops to the Gallo Center

If you turned on the radio in the late 1980s and early ’90s and did not hear a Richard Marx song, your radio probably was broken.

The prolific hitmaker was a mainstay with songs such as “Hold on to the Nights,” “Don’t Mean Nothing,” “Satisfied,” “Right Here Waiting,” “Keep Coming Back” and more. Over his three-decade career he has sold more than 30 million albums and holds the record as the only male artist in history to have his first seven singles hit the Billboard Top 5.

Yet as the soft-rock crooner’s radio career began to fade with the emergence of grunge, Marx pivoted back to his first love – songwriting and producing. He penned Josh Groban’s first hit “To Where You Are” and won a song of the year Grammy for co-authoring “Dance With My Father” for Luther Vandross. He also has crossed genres writing hits for ’NSYNC (“This I Promise You”), Keith Urban (“Better Life”), Ringo Starr (“Mystery Of The Night”), Toni Braxton (“Suddenly”) and many others.

“My songwriting and production résumé looks like ‘Sybil’ – it’s really schizophrenic. It’s been really fun to jump from genre to genre,” Marx said in a phone interview from his home base of Los Angeles. “I’m a student of music and still consider myself a student of music. So I go into a project pretty knowledgeable, and what I don’t know I learn along the way. I’m a fan of music; there’s something in any genre I love.”

But Marx hasn’t stopped making his own music, either. The 52-year-old singer-songwriter released his eighth album, “Beautiful Goodbye,” last summer. It was his first studio release of all-new material in a decade. Last year Marx also appeared back in the spotlight on the season finale of “American Idol,” performing alongside a tone-deaf Ryan Seacrest.

He brings his solo acoustic tour to the Gallo Center for the Arts on Wednesday, Sept. 30. He said fans should expect all of his hits – and maybe a couple of new numbers as he takes audiences on a journey through his songwriting career.

Marx spoke with The Modesto Bee about his new material, his songwriting process and how monster hit “Right Here Waiting” almost didn’t get released.

Q: Last year you released your first studio album of new material in several years. What inspired that project, and why did you feel it was time to put out new music?

A: Well, for the back half of that question, I don’t know if there is an optimal time to put out new music unless you are Bruno Mars or Adele. The idea of new music as an event has become less and less. The dissemination of music is so overwhelming, it’s harder and harder to get people’s attention with new music. So, for me, I just gauge it completely selfishly; if I feel the need to record and write, I do it. I don’t worry about the climate and timing.

The concept of the album is passé. We had a Top 40 album and it was somewhat successful. But the idea of putting out music on a regular basis – those days are pretty much over. It has just become a continuous release of music. At a point, it’s all just a collection of singles.

Q: So what inspired you with “Beautiful Goodbye”?

A: I wasn’t actively trying to come up with music for an album. I am just always writing. I write something pretty much every day – whether a lyrical couplet or a melody. I had been going through ideas and just accidentally listened to a few tracks in a row. and I thought, “Oh, this is different.” I thought they really went well together. There was a real sensual, sexy vibe in these two to three pieces of music. I had never made a conscious effort to make the sexiest album I could. I’d certainly written songs deemed romantic. But the idea of making an album almost as a soundtrack for seduction was a great canvas to paint on.

Q: You mentioned you write almost every day. For you, what is key to a good song, and how do you know when you have one?

A: I am not going to finish a song I don’t think is good. Anything I have my name on is a complete song that I think is good. In terms of what I think is a hit song or widely received songs, I don’t know. Some of the songs I had the most success with are songs I almost didn’t record or didn’t think I’d put out on singles. I gave up years ago trying to figure that s--- out. I don’t really get hung up on that stuff.

Q: Which of your hits almost didn’t get released?

A: The two most glaring, are “Hazard,” which I almost didn’t finish. The more I worked on it, the dumber I thought it was trying to write a story song in 4 minutes. I was a fan of mystery novels and murder mystery novels, so I was trying to write a “Twin Peaks” episode in 4 minutes. Although I really loved the music, I thought no one would understand it. (It went on to hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.)

The other most powerful example is “Right Here Waiting.” I knew it would be a good song, but I was in the middle of making a bona fide rock album, so I didn’t feel it fit in as a ballad. I had been working with Barbra Streisand and offered it to her. She said, “I love this music, this melody – but I am not going to be right here waiting for anybody.” So she passed on the song. By the time she passed, enough people had heard it and said, “You have to do this.” But I didn’t write that song thinking, “Oh, I really have one here.”

Q: Many of your songwriting projects recently have been for country artists like Keith Urban, Jennifer Nettles and Vince Gill. Is it more challenging working in other genres?

A: I don’t find it any more difficult. That’s probably my favorite part of my career. When I write for other artists, I am trying to come up with a song or produce a record from the standpoint of a fan. The last thing I want to do with Vince Gill is write a song that sounds like 10 things he has already done. People like Vince and Keith and Jennifer are so open to other ideas. I think probably my favorite stuff – besides the Luther Vandross and ’NSYNC songs – were the country collaborations.

Q: I know at least one of your sons is also pursuing music. What does it mean to you that your children are following in your footsteps and continuing a family legacy that started with your father (renowned jazz musician and jingle writer Dick Marx)?

A: All of my three sons are in music. From a personal standpoint, it is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. They are incredibly gifted songwriters and singers. I see them following their bliss and emulating the family business. They grew up watching me produce and record and went on tour with me. They got to see me express myself creatively and be rewarded for it.

At the same time, the industry couldn’t be more polar opposite right now. The way I paid my dues was so fun. I did backup vocals on Madonna records and produced demos in garage studios. It was all fun, educational and enriching work. It let me be able to get in on the big game. Those opportunities are few and far between. (Now) it’s all about social media platforms. In a sense, we’re all battling things that are destroying the industry – streaming and YouTube.

So on the one hand, I have not just one, but three incredibly talented sons. But the fact that they also want to pursue music is really frightening to me.

Q: Do you think you would have still gotten into the business if it was like it is today?

A: It’s such an impossible question to ponder. I think at the end of the day it comes down to your motivation. Even though I grew up in a musical family – my father and mother were both successful in the music business in their own way. I never pursued it wanting to be famous or rich. I just had to do it. If your motivation is that if you don’t do it you will feel like you’re going to freaking die, whatever happens is right. If you’re pursuing it because you want to buy a Bentley, I guess that’s not horrible – but it’s not why I wanted to do it.

This story was originally published September 23, 2015 at 12:07 PM with the headline "Richard Marx brings his songwriting chops to the Gallo Center."