Richard Adam Ziegler (December 15, 1938 – March 6, 2017), known professionally as Ritchie Adams, was an American singer and songwriter.

Biography

Born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, by 1959 he joined

The Fireflies The Fireflies were an American doo-wop group from Long Island, New York, from the late 1950s to early 1960s. They were one of the first groups in which all band members both sang and played instruments. In addition, they were the first all-white ...

, and sang lead vocals on their hit record "You Were Mine", as well as on their follow-ups including "I Can't Say Goodbye". He released a string of solo singles during the early 1960s on the

Ribbon A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily as decorative binding and tying. Cloth ribbons are made of natural materials such as silk, cotton, and jute and of synthetic mater ...

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

Beltone Beltone is a hearing aid company founded in 1940 and is now headquartered in Glenview, Illinois. Beltone products are sold in the United States, Canada, and over 40 countries across the globe. In North America, Beltone has over 1500 independent ...

and

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

record labels, but with little success. "The Fireflies", ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved 19 April 2017 He developed a more successful career as a songwriter, co-writing "

Tossin' and Turnin' "Tossin' and Turnin'" is a song written by Ritchie Adams and Malou René, and originally recorded by Bobby Lewis in the fall of 1960. The record was released on the Beltone label in December 1960. It reached number one on both the ''Billboard' ...

", a hit in the US in 1961 for

Bobby Lewis Robert Alan Lewis (February 9, 1925 – April 28, 2020) was an American rock and roll and rhythm and blues singer, best known for his 1961 hit singles "Tossin' and Turnin'" and "One Track Mind". Biography Lewis was born in Indianapolis, Indiana ...

; and " Happy Summer Days", recorded by

Ronnie Dove Ronnie may refer to: *Ronnie (name), a unisex pet name and given name * "Ronnie" (Four Seasons song), a song by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe *"Ronnie," a song from the Metallica album ''Load'' *Ronnie Brunswijkstadion, an association football stadium ...

in 1966. In the late 1960s he co-wrote songs with

Mark Barkan Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Finn ...

, including several on

The Archies ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

' debut album, and produced the Archies' song "Love is Living in You". He and Barkan are also credited with writing "

The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana) "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)" is a 1968 pop song, which was the theme song for the children's television program ''The Banana Splits Adventure Hour''.CD liner notes: Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, 1995 MCA Records Origina ...

", a hit for the

Banana Splits ''The Banana Splits'' is an American television variety show produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and featuring the Banana Splits, a fictional rock band composed of four costumed animal characters in red marching band hats with yellow plumes. ...

in 1969 and later in the UK by

The Dickies The Dickies are an American punk rock band formed in the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, in 1977. One of the longest tenured punk rock bands, they have been in continuous existence for over 40 years. They have consistently balanced catchy mel ...

. Adams was a music director on the ''

'' TV show, and also contributed to songs including "Goin' Back" from the band Toomorrow's soundtrack to the 1970 film of the same name, starring

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the ...

.Songs written by Ritchie Adams
, ''MusicVF.com''. Accessed September 27, 2015"Not Forgotten: Ritchie Adams", ''Record Collector'', #465, April 2017, p.142
Retrieved 19 April 2017 In the 1970s, he co-wrote songs with Alan Bernstein for Engelbert Humperdinck, including "

After the Lovin' "After the Lovin'" is a single performed by Engelbert Humperdinck, produced by Joel Diamond and Charlie Calello, and composed by Ritchie Adams with lyrics by Alan Bernstein. The single was a U.S. top-ten hit in late 1976/early 1977, reaching num ...

" (1976) and "

This Moment in Time "This Moment in Time" is a song written by Ritchie Adams and Alan Bernstein and recorded by Engelbert Humperdinck in 1978. The song was the title track of Humperdinck's 1979 album, "This Moment In Time" and was Humperdinck's last of four number on ...

" (1978), as well as

Al Martino Al Martino (born Jasper Cini; October 7, 1927 – October 13, 2009) was an American singer and actor. He had his greatest success as a singer between the early 1950s and mid-1970s, being described as "one of the great Italian American pop croone ...

's "The Next Hundred Years" (1977). Adams died in 2017, aged 78, after a long illness.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Ritchie 1938 births 2017 deaths Songwriters from New York (state) Singers from New York City