European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 6, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse By Walter Berry associated presso outrageous 1 Loncle Richie s favorite word i s i so the title of his new world Lour ant if Host Way to describe his meteoric Rinir in career and massive record halos to Singer songwriter has passed Paul Mccartney Stevie wonder and Cole Porter Lor the Moat cons Cut a years of having a no 1 song on the charts and is tied Wilh Irving Berlin at nine. A record setting Lola year appears certain with dancing on rur Sejm cd. The title track of his new top belting l p Bui to inc soil spoken native of Tuskegee Ala Success always is something of a Surprise i can never reel used to the idea of an album or a song going All the Way to the top. That s still like Christmas to me i go Oul and celebrate Richie said m a recent interview before starting his 60-cily american Lour which began in Phoenix Ariz. But i Don t Lake anything for granted. To me the More you win the More people expect you to become Laded about the situation but i Ireal each album like it s the first album i be Ever done and i a such a High Standard for fifteen Yean Ullh the commodores produced 10 los and two no l hits three times a lady in 1978 and Sim m 1979 plus such smash singles As easy and sail on Richie also wrote the no 1 single lady for Kenny Rogers in 1900 and topped he charts with endless love in a duet with Diana Ross the following year. As a Solo artist he s had five straight no. 1 songs Starling Wilh truly m 1982 and followed in annual succession by a night Long a night. Hel of we Are the world and say you say my. Say you. Say a also was on the White knights movie soundtrack and earned the 37-year-old musician an Academy award and a Golden Globe this year in the Best song category. He won six american music awards in 1985, to grammy in each of the past two years and has been named asap writer of the year the last three years in a Row Richie has two of motown records three biggest the commodores Lionel Richie has had a meteoric Solo music career and massive record Talent. Page 16 the stars and stripes albums Ever with his self tilled debut Solo up Selling 4 million in Chr United states and can f slow Down released a year Laler in 1983. Setting 15 million worldwide dancing on the ceiling was due Oul last december be did t surface until Midsummer rumours circulated thai Richio had writer s Block. I wish it was something Hal simple he said i started hip album right up through the we Are Trie world project. That was like an album by itself. But you cannot get involved wild a program like that and Walkaway Naff Eclov i had writ Len another album and i was All ready to Pul it Oul and was quite proud of it until my consciousness was raised by what was happening in the world. So i stopped the album and said i Don t want 10 do those songs you cannot walk the streets of new York late Al night and sea the subculture living under the ground and say it does t bother me you can t walk the streets of los Angeles and see people living in boxes and say. They just need jobs i Eit i needed to express what i Felt the world was boxing itself into the end result was the new album which features such upbeat ballads As love will conquer a i and the reggae inspired be la. I had to go Back and discover How to express love songs in a different Way Richie said everything on the album is to Sieve but everything is a Little bit More in thought. The Basic Angle of be la is what if like what if the world was full of love and people living happily together i m basically saying we have the Power to be that Way. The Only thing holding us up is Richie who hums his tunes into a tape recorder before adding his piano chords writes lyrics the night before a recording session and sometimes on the spot monday october 6,1986 and agonies Over every word. Whal you hear in the lyrics is basically what Lionel Richie is Aboul each album is a documentation of my life at that particular time i m Prelly much an open Book to said. After the Usa Lor Africa project Hough Richie said i could have changed my career to reverend Richie. I cannot Lell you How Many Man of the year awards i was up for. I could have done iwo to five years of just Honor a live album and Cable to concert May emerge from the world tour. Richie has also been asked to do a Miami vice episode and is searching for a movie Deal. And i got to sing in it he said. I Don t care if i have Only three lines with great words like yeah no and of somewhere in the Middle of it i m going to Aing a whole an economics and accounting major at Tuskegee Institute Richie planned to be an entertainment lawyer until the commodores opened a 1971 concert for the Jackson five. They came off stage after a 45-minute show and Michael had a Check in his hand or $108,000," Richie recalled. "1 never saw any real viable career in the music business until then i just thought it was a Bunch of Guys having Richie hoped the commodores would become the Black Beatea. And they were. We had everything ambitions hit records. I had dreams and passed them about five years ago. I was going to retire happily As a very famous Commodore. But i can t think of anything else i d rather do the fun and lha thrill of performing is still there. I feel the sky is the Limi and i would t Trade this life for All hate in
