MY LIFE IN TRAVEL
The singer on air rage, getting married in Aspen and his boyhood infatuation with Australia
I TRAVELLED PRETTY MUCH NON-STOP
before the pandemic. Back then I was at our place in Miami for two-and-a-half days, and on our last night it was such a beautiful evening we were having a drink downstairs and I said: “Baby, I wish we had at least two weeks of this.” How I laugh at that comment now!
I ADORE THE FOUR SEASONS HOTEL GEORGE V
in Paris. It’s my favourite and I don’t think you can get better anywhere in the world. Even with my middle-school French I can survive there. It’s such a stunning building architecturally, but the staff are just perfection too.
TROPICAL BEACH GETAWAYS ARE MY THING
and I do a couple of big trips every year – everywhere from Bora Bora, Maui and the Maldives, to [Marlon] Brando’s private island Tetiaroa, north-east of Tahiti. I live in the water – paddling, swimming, surfing, you name it.
HOLIDAYS WERE PRETTY RARE
when I was growing up. Dad was a workaholic, always busy with his advertising business, but when I was 10 my parents bought a cabin in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, about a six-hour drive away from where we lived in Chicago. We’d go up there for two or three weeks at a time, hanging out on our pontoon boat, fishing and just relaxing by the water.
I TEND TO PLAN A GETAWAY WITH MY WIFE
[television host Daisy Fuentes] whenever I have a break in my work travel, so it feels like I’m never home. We love travelling so much, though I’m actually enjoying this enforced downtime, to be honest.
ASPEN, COLORADO, HAS ALWAYS BEEN A SPECIAL PLACE
for us. Daisy and I got married there in December 2015, one month after we got engaged. We’d been planning on spending the holidays there anyway with our families, so it just made sense to get married at the same time.
I BEGAN MY LOVE AFFAIR WITH AUSTRALIA
when I was 13. It was 1977, and I think my parents were pretty bad ass taking me on such a long-haul trip for a month. I’ve been more than a dozen times, touring and writing with other artists. There is not a corner of Oz that I don’t love.
NEW YORK CAN BE REALLY HIT OR MISS
for good accommodation. My favourite hotel used to be the Helmsley Palace, but now I think the Towers is the best one in NYC. It’s in midtown Manhattan, with wonderful staff and an invitation-only bar called Rarities which is like stepping back in
I can’t wait to get back to Edinburgh because it’s one of my favourite cities. It’s just magical time. I always expect Humphrey Bogart to walk in and order a Martini.
PORTLAND IN OREGON IS AN UNDERRATED CITY
but I’ve had wonderful experiences there. It’s an eclectic mix of restaurants, mom and pop businesses and more progressive stores. There are so many cool, charming artisan shops I lose myself.
PARIS WAS A REAL DISAPPOINTMENT
the first few times I went. I didn’t get why people loved it. Then, on the third visit, I had an incredible time and I was like, “I love it here.” I think any destination can be a let-down depending on who you’re with and if you don’t have a great experience.
I HELPED SUBDUE AN AIR RAGE TRAVELLER
en route from Hanoi to Seoul. He was drunk and started behaving erratically, attacking the female crew and breaking free from his seat three times; this charged situation went on for four hours! One crew member and two passengers were injured in the process. Luckily, when we landed, police boarded.
I WAS LUCKY TO GET A DAY OFF IN SRI LANKA
because, when I’m touring, I usually get into the city the morning of the show and leave the next day, which sucks. I had to cram a lot in, so I hired a driver to show us around. One thing that struck me was that, despite a lack of material wealth, so many people looked happy.
I’VE TOURED CHINA A LOT
and taken in mega cities like Beijing and Shanghai – but they’re not a true representation of the country. My best times were spent exploring the Great Wall and visiting the peanut-farming communities nearby. There were such strong thriving communities and the
villagers were so welcoming.
I CAN’T WAIT TO GET BACK TO EDINBURGH
because it’s one of my favourite cities in the UK. It’s just magical and steeped in so much history. I’ve only been once but I should be performing there in November
READING
I prefer an actual book if space allows. I’ll have two or three on the go – a novel, a biography or autobiography, and a social comment book. I’ve just started Lying, the bestseller by Sam Harris, and I’m dying to read Lady Blue Eyes by Frank Sinatra’s widow, Barbara. £10.99; waterstones.co.uk on my rescheduled tour. Hopefully, my world-traveller son and his girlfriend will still be able to meet up with us.
I FIND MOST AIRLINES DISAPPOINTING
but especially domestic US carriers such as United, Delta and American. The way they treat fliers is unbelievably awful; it’s as if they are doing you a favour rather than the other way round. Pride and sincerity are somewhat lacking. However, Emirates really is the gold standard of service.
A POST-LOCKDOWN PHOTO SAFARI IN AFRICA
is what Daisy and I are dreaming of doing next. As a vegan, I want to be able to observe and appreciate the beauty of those majestic animals without hunting them. Their preservation is so important. I just hope the world’s governments, especially my own, get their s--- together and help contain and control this pandemic.
For information about Richard Marx’s tour dates later in 2020, see richardmarx.com. His new album,
(BMG), is out now.