[2] He moved to Los Angeles with an ensemble in the early 1960s, but his band failed and he returned to West Virginia.
Later in the 1960s he moved to New York City, playing upper East Side bars and eventually finding success.
[4] Known as the "West Virginia Superstar",[1] his debut album was released on Warner Bros. Records in 1970, and he scored two minor hit singles in the early 1970s.
[5] Richards made the first recording of Tom Snow and Nan O'Byrne's "You Might Need Somebody", which was subsequently a UK hit twice, reaching No.
He also acts a vocal coach with some of his students making it to the finals of The Voice and American Idol.