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Richard P. Addrisi was born on 4 July 1941 in Winthrop, Massachusetts, and grew up in a theatrical family whose grand-parents once performed across Europe as the travelling acrobatic troupe the Flying Addrisis.
Richard began performing professionally with his older brother Donald (Don) Addrisi as children and adolescents, and eventually the two brothers moved to California in search of opportunity in the entertainment industry. They recorded singles in the late 1950s and early 1960s and gradually shifted emphasis from performing to songwriting and studio work when their early releases produced only modest chart results.
As songwriters however, the Addrisi Brothers achieved enduring success. Their composition “Never My Love,” credited to Don and Dick (Richard) Addrisi, became a defining pop standard after the Association’s 1967 recording reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and thereafter entered the repertory of hundreds of artists; BMI later recognised the song as one of the most-played songs on American radio and television of the 20th century. The brothers’ catalogue also contained songs such as “We’ve Got to Get It On Again” and “Time For Livin’,” and their writing attracted covers and placements across multiple genres.
Alongside their songwriting, the Addrisi Brothers continued to record and perform under their own name. They wrote and recorded for film and television - most notably composing the theme music for the television series "Nanny And The Professor" and scored several chart appearances of their own in the 1970s, including the single “Slow Dancin’ Don’t Turn Me On” and a later recording of “Never My Love” that returned them to public attention in 1977.
Richard Addrisi’s work displayed a clear melodic gift and a facility for crafting simple, memorable harmonic structures that lend themselves to rich vocal arrangements and wide reinterpretation. “Never My Love” in particular combined economical lyricism with a yearning melodic line, and that combination produced a song whose emotional directness and structural economy made it readily adoptable by pop, soul, and easy-listening artists for decades.
His contribution belonged less to virtuoso performance than to the creation of material that entered and then sustained itself within the popular songbook. He wrote songs that have become part of the soundtrack to late twentieth-century American life; the ubiquity of “Never My Love” and its continued use and reinterpretation testified to a craft that prized clarity, tunefulness, and emotional accessibility.
Enduring public affection and the song’s extraordinary broadcast footprint gifted Richard Addrisi a secure place in the history of popular songwriting: not as a flamboyant stylist, but as a durable melodist whose work repeatedly proved its capacity to move listeners and to be reshaped by succeeding generations.
International Songwriters Association Hall Of Fame Member.
Richard died on the 14th of October 2025 at his home in Miami, Florida, USA, at rhe age of 84, from undisclosed causes.
To read our exclusive interview with Richard,click
here.
The above is just one of the many profiles of leading songwriters, singers, musicians and music industry personnel, published by the International Songwriters Association and "Songwriter Magazine". Please click HERE for more.
© Jim Liddane
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