Richard Marx’s First No. 1 as a Songwriter Was This 1984 Kenny Rogers Single

Years before Richard Marx hit it big with his late-’80s megahits “Should’ve Known Better,” “Hold On to the Night,” and “Right Here Waiting,” he was working as a session musician and backing vocalist after trekking to Los Angeles at 17 after his cassette of songs landed in Lionel Richie‘s hands. Eventually, Richie recommended Marx to Kenny Rogers as a backing singer, a union that led to the young songwriter’s first No. 1 hits.

“He [Rogers] was there in the studio and I went up to him and said, ‘I’m a songwriter and I’d love to play you a song I wrote for you,” recalled Marx of his first meeting with Rogers. “And he should have thrown me out of the studio. He should have had security throw me on the street. But he was cool and said, ‘Let me hear it.’”

Marx continued, “And we sat at the piano and he cut my song. And then he cut two more of my songs, and that launched my songwriting career.”

Along with recording Dolly Parton‘s “The Stranger,” Rogers cut three of Marx’s songs: “Crazy,” released as the second single, which went to No. 1 on the Country and Adult Contemporary charts, and the more pop-leaning “Somebody Took My Love,” co-written with David Pomeranz.

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[RELATED: 20 Songs You Didn’t Know Richard Marx Wrote for Other Artists]

“What About Me”

The third song Rogers cut, the title track and lead single, was sung in trio with James Ingram and Kim Carnes, and topped the Adult Contemporary chart. Along with co-writing the song with Rogers and producer David Foster, Marx also added background vocals on the track.

Centered around a love triangle, “What About Me?” also marked Marx’s first No. 1 as a songwriter.

I see you here with me
I’ve waited all my life for someone like you
Someone to give my heart and soul to

I look into your eyes
Your look for me was such a welcome surprise
I think at last I’ve found forever

Oh, what about me?
I’ll always love you
Oh, what about me?
I’ll always need you
You were my love before, but I need so much more of you

Time after time, I feel I’m losing my mind
Or maybe this is what lovers must go through
It never entered my mind
We could be wasting our time
What am I gonna do?

“You’re 18 or 19 years old, and now you start going, ‘Yeah, my buddy Lionel Richie and I went to lunch the other day,’” said Marx, who was still in his teens when he started working with Rogers during the early ’80s and had his second No. 1 with the country legend with the release of his second single “Crazy.”

“I remember once doing a session with Kenny Rogers at his studio called Lion Share, and in one studio down the hallway was Rod Stewart and down another hallway was David Lee Roth, and passing these guys in the hallway, and just being part of that scene,” added Marx. “Being able to work within the industry as a songwriter, as a musician, as a background singer, I wouldn’t trade it. It was really fun and exciting, going studio to studio.”

Photo: Rebecca Sapp / Getty Images for The Recording Academy