"Right Here and Now" by Bill Medley

Song#:  1199
Date:  10/02/1982
Debut:  80
Peak:  58
Weeks:  8
Genre:  Pop, Adult Contemporary



Pop Bits:  As a member of The Righteous Brothers, Medley amassed six Top 10 hits including two #1's. His post-Brothers solo career (the duo initially split in 1968) was nowhere near as successful. The best he could manage on the pop chart was the #43 "Brown Eyed Woman" in 1968. He bounced around labels trying to get something going, but nothing seemed to work. For his second solo album of the 80s, Medley switched to Planet Records and issued the LP "Right Here and Now." Producer Richart Perry, who was riding high with The Pointer Sisters, took control and got lots of names to participate including James Ingram and Michael McDonald. There was high expectations for this first single, written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, but it couldn't make any inroads at pop or AC (where it only got to #31). It was a disappointing result and would end up being his final solo single to reach the pop chart.

ReduxReview:  This seems like it should be playing over the closing credits of a rom-com movie. There were several AC-style movie themes going on around this time period and a good chunk of them sounded similar to this song. And they were typically written by big-time songwriters (in this case Mann/Weil). Most even featured that specific keyboard sound. Several were also like this - bland and boring. Considering all those involved in this song, I expected a lot more.

ReduxRating:  3/10

Trivia:  Although solo pop stardom eluded Medley, he would have some minor success on the country chart. After "Right Here and Now" failed, Medley changed over to the country market for his next album "I Still Do." The album produced three country Top 30 entries including the #17 title track.

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