Simon Rushworth
Richard Marx – Hazard (Marx) b/w Right Here Waiting (Marx/Gaitsch) 1992
The softest of soft rockers and yet one of our favourite artists of the late 80s/early 90s, Marx proved himself a consummate purveyor of the power ballad. And if he will always be remembered for 1989’s worldwide smash Right Here Wating then this cracking tune is even better.
Hazard tells a chilling tale with Marx the central character in a murder investigation focusing on a woman called Mary. Haunting, emotional and boasting an incredibly catchy hook it’s little wonder this song went on to become one of the most played of the 1990s. Peaking at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 it went six better in the UK and topped the charts in Australia.
US fans got Big Boy Now on the B-side but here in the UK we got the album version of Right Here Waiting which is a good and a bad thing. On the one hand fans of Marx get his two biggest hits on one slab of seven inch vinyl but then it’s not as if anyone into this solo rocker wouldn’t already own the song which made him a star.
Last year’s Emotional Remains proves Marx can still rock and, indeed, even rock a little harder in his old age. But nothing on his new record betters the brilliant Hazard in our humble opinion. Take our word for it.