RICHARD MARX

I didn't want my last chapter to be the guy who sits at the piano and sings love songs.

My joke, which isn't really a joke, is that there will be one of two tours: the tour for the album that does well, or the tour for the album that stiffs.

The only thing that's a little tricky about it is sometimes people assume that if it's a new song, it's a reflection of what you're feeling or going through now.

But once you have some success in one style, the business wants to lock you in that vein forever.

I've never, ever in my life enjoyed playing live the way I am now.

I understand that, but this disc shows the type of music that I've always liked and wanted to make.

I don't think I've ever laid out a batch of songs that pick myself apart the way that these do.

I love when people get songs wrong. I love when people take something from a song that's totally not what I intended!

One time Robert Plant was set to check into the same room after I checked out, so I removed every light bulb and ordered up a bunch of stinky cheese and put it under the mattress.

People take songs so literally.

I have complete freedom, and there's no way to get pigeonholed or bored. What could be better than that?

But more importantly, I think he remembered how very close I was with my own dad, who had died in 1997.

I can't wait to front my band with these new songs and play for fans, but I've decided to keep my day job too.

In the past, there has always been so much pressure about carrying a show and promoting a record.

It never ceases to amaze me that I get to do this for a living.

I fell off stage and bruised some ribs. The worst part was that the audience didn't realize I was gone.

It's funny; Luther and I have written many songs together, but we've never written songs in the same room.

I really didn't have any plans to record prior to doing My Own Best Enemy.

And to any new fans we made along the way, I say... welcome to our party. It's just starting to get going.

I think really what I'm saying is that I thrive on adversity.

I'm happy, I would say that I'm one of the happiest people I know but I've certainly had periods of profound sadness, depression and heartache and those are the kind of things that are interesting to me to write about.

So it was just a case of getting a bunch of songs that I had been writing for years but hadn't recorded together, and the result was My Own Best Enemy.

But I'm just having fun playing and giving Botox injections to the older songs.

As a songwriter, there's nothing better than winning Song Of The Year. But I couldn't really celebrate, because it wasn't right. Luther wasn't standing next to me, to receive the award.

I've always loved groups like U2 and Coldplay.