Richard Marx the spot on the green

Music icon Richard Marx concedes he’s a “little bummed” to be missing the American Thanksgiving holiday.

US music legend Richard Marx in Adelaide. Picture: Tricia Watkinson

Music icon Richard Marx concedes he’s a “little bummed” to be missing the American Thanksgiving holiday.

“This is the first time I’ve ever not spent Thanksgiving with my family in my life,” says the chart-topping singer, who’s in Adelaide for two shows this weekend.

“My wife and my mom and one of my sons are celebrating together in Los Angeles. I’m a little bummed about it but I’m happy to be here. I’ve had nothing but good memories here, I’ve never had anything but fun.

“And I’m still going to... celebrate, we have a lot to be thankful for.”

Marx, 55, won’t be marking the occasion with the traditional turkey. Instead, the vegan singer, best known for his ballad, Right Here Waiting for You, will be enjoying a glass of wine at tomorrow’s Day On The Green concert alongside John Farnham and Daryl Braithwaite at Leconfield Wines in McLaren Vale.

Richard Marx.

“That is the plus, that was the headline for me, I was like ‘Wineries? Free wine? Tastings? And sing? I’m in.’ I’ve heard that some of the wineries here are fantastic,” says Richard, who’s also performing a solo show at Thebarton Theatre on Sunday night.

“I’m mostly a martini or tequila guy when I’m touring so it’ll be nice to switch it up, at a winery gig I’ll be having wine and the other show I’ll be doing the usual martinis.”

One of the most successful solo pop artists of all time, Marx has sold more than 30 million records over his 30-year career with hits including Hazard, Endless Summer Nights, Satisfied and his most famous song, Right Here Waiting For You.

“At this stage of a career like mine, I know that technically it’s nostalgia but it doesn’t feel that way,” says Marx, who’s also written songs for big names including Keith Urban, Kenny Loggins, Kenny Rogers and Luther Vandross.

US singer and songwriter Richard Marx.

“It feels very current, very electric and alive. I get the wistfulness of it, when people say you took me back to the my high school days or memory lane, I get all the that but it’s a celebration. I take the music seriously but I don’t take it myself or the shows seriously - we’re just having a laugh.

“The best compliments I get... are when people say, ‘I feel like we hung out for a couple of hours, it was like we were sitting there and having drinks’. That’s what I strive to be as a performer. We just have a blast - it’s like a party.”

Marx hasn’t released an album since 2014’s Beautiful Goodbye, but is working on a new record - including a song written with music legend Burt Bacharach - which he says will be out early next year.

“I’m about to spew out a whole bunch of new music but I’m not sure what the form will be, it may just be a bunch of tracks... I don’t even know what an album represents, especially for someone my age at this point. I’m certainly not trying to compete in the marketplace or anything,” he says. “But the dilemma is I feel like it’s some of the best songs (I’ve ever written).”

Tickets: Richard Marx with special guest Abbey Stone, thebartontheatre.com.au