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Christopher Cross

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This article is about the American singer-songwriter. For the hip-hop duo, see Kris Kross.
For other people named Chris Cross, see Chris Cross (disambiguation).

Christopher Cross
Cross backstage after a tribute concert to Michael McDonald, February 4, 2000
Cross backstage after a tribute concert to Michael McDonald, February 4, 2000
Background information
Birth nameChristopher Charles Geppert
Born (1951-05-03) May 3, 1951 (age 73)
San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
GenresPop rock, soft rock
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, musician, producer
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar
Years active1971–present
LabelsWarner Bros., Priority, CMC International
Websitechristophercross.com

Christopher Cross (born Christopher Charles Geppert; May 3, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter from San Antonio, Texas.

Cross won five Grammy Awards for his eponymous debut album released in 1979. The singles "Sailing" (1980), and "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (from the 1981 film Arthur) peaked at number one on the U.S Billboard Hot 100.[1][2][3] "Sailing" earned three Grammys in 1981, while "Arthur's Theme" won the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1981 (with co-composers Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, and Peter Allen). Cross is one of only two musical artists, along with Adele, win all four "major" Grammy Awards (Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, & Best New Artist) and the only artist to do it in the same year (1980).

Career

Early musical career

Cross first played with a San Antonio-based cover band named Flash (not to be confused with the early 1970s English band of the same name) before signing a solo contract with Warner Bros. in 1978.[4]

The first album, and immediate success

Cross released his self-titled debut album, Christopher Cross, in 1979. The Billboard Hot 100 top 20 hits from this album included "Ride Like the Wind" (featuring backing vocals by Michael McDonald), "Sailing", "Never Be the Same", and "Say You'll Be Mine" (featuring backing vocals by Nicolette Larson). Due to the almost immediate success and popularity gained by his first album, he was nominated for several Grammy Awards, garnering five.

The second album

Cross's second album, Another Page (1983), included the hit songs "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (on the CD & cassette versions only, as a bonus song), "All Right", "No Time for Talk", and "Think of Laura". "All Right" was used by CBS Sports for its highlights montage following the 1983 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, while "Think of Laura" is used as a reference to characters on the soap opera General Hospital. Cross allowed ABC to use his song in this context; however, he has stated that he wrote "Think of Laura" not in reference to the television characters, but to celebrate the life of Denison University college student Laura Carter who was killed when she was struck by a stray bullet. Another Page sold well, getting Gold Certification. He also co-wrote and sang the song "A Chance For Heaven" for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games.

The curse of the MTV generation

After 1984, Cross's star quickly dimmed. As music television station MTV grew to dominate the mainstream music scene in the U.S., Cross's style of music proved to be "a bad fit" for the network, and Cross's brand of adult contemporary music declined in popularity.[5]

Cross's next two albums, 1985's Every Turn of the World and 1988's Back of My Mind did not produce any top 40 hits or reach Gold or Platinum status.

He did, however, place the song "Swept Away" in the ABC TV Show Growing Pains. It was used during a video montage while Kirk Cameron's character fell in love with a local girl while vacationing with the family in Hawaii.

The 1990s

Cross made three more albums in the 1990s, and although some of his releases have gained critical response, he has not been able to attract the mass audience he once enjoyed. After his decline in fame in the mid-1980s, he toured and opened for various acts during the 1990s.[6][7]

The 2000s

In 2002 he released his Very Best of... album, and in 2007 he completed a Christmas album, A Christopher Cross Christmas. In 2008 recorded a new acoustic album of his hits titled The Cafe Carlyle Sessions.[8][9]

The 2010s

In 2011 Cross released a new studio album titled Doctor Faith.[10]

In 2013 he released A Night in Paris, a 2-CD live album he recorded and filmed in April 2012 at the Theatre Le Trianon in Paris, France.[11]

The song "Ride Like The Wind" was featured on the Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues original movie soundtrack, released in 2013.

In September 2014 he released his latest album, Secret Ladder.[12]

Cross has continued to garner a new fan base from 2015 through the present in his music's frequent plays on Sirius XM Radio's specialty channel, Yacht Rock Radio.

Personal life

A self-described "Army brat", Cross is the son of a U.S. Army pediatrician stationed at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C. in the mid-1950s, acting as physician for President Dwight Eisenhower's grandchildren.[13] [verification needed]

Cross was married to Roseanne Harrison from 1973 until the couple divorced in 1982. In 1988 he married Jan Bunch, divorcing in 2007 after 18 years of marriage.[14]

Cross has a son named Justin from his first marriage, and two children from his second marriage, son Rain and daughter Madison.[15]

Discography

Studio albums

Year Album Label Chart positions Certifications
(sales thresholds)
AUS
[16] 		CAN
[17] 		GER
[18] 		JPN
[19][20] 		NLD
[21] 		NZ
[22] 		SWE
[23] 		UK
[24] 		US
[25]
1979 Christopher Cross Warner Bros. 6 26 — 18 14 16 — 14 6
1983 Another Page 6 23 2 1 7 9 12 4 11
1985 Every Turn of the World — — 44 27 — 34 37 — 127
1988 Back of My Mind — — 45 27 — 93 49 — —
1993 Rendezvous CMC — — — 96 — — — — —
1995 Window — — — 91 — — — — —
1998 Walking in Avalon — — — — — — — — —
2000 Red Room — — — — — — — — —
2007 A Christopher Cross Christmas Ear — — — — — — — — —
2008 The Café Carlyle Sessions — — — — — — — — —
2010 Christmas Time Is Here — — — — — — — — —
2011 Doctor Faith — — 48 — — — — — —
2013 A Night in Paris — — — — — — — — —
2014 Secret Ladder Christopher Cross Records — — — — — — — — —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Compilations

  • 1991: The Best of Christopher Cross (WEA)
  • 1999: Greatest Hits Live (CMC)
  • 2001: Definitive Christopher Cross (Warner Bros./Asia)
  • 2002: The Very Best of Christopher Cross (Warner Bros.)
  • 2011: Crosswords: The Best of Christopher Cross (101 Distribution)

Soundtracks

Singles

Year Single Peak chart positions Certifications
(sales thresholds) 		Album
CAN
[28] 		GER
[29] 		IRE
[30] 		NED
[31] 		NOR
[32] 		AUS
[16] 		NZ
[33] 		SWI
[34] 		UK
[35] 		US U.S.
AC
1980 "Ride Like the Wind" 3 — — — — 25 31 — 69 2 24 Christopher Cross
"Sailing" 1 — 21 18 — 46 8 — 48 1 10
"Never Be the Same" — — 25 — — 42 41 — — 15 1
"Say You'll Be Mine" 33 — — — — — — — — 20 15
"Mary Ann" (Japan only) — — — — — — — — — — — Single only
1981 "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" 2 — 7 — 1 13 10 6 7 1 1 Arthur (soundtrack)
1983 "All Right" 13 23 14 16 5 30 44 5 51 12 3 Another Page
"No Time for Talk" — — — — — — — — — 33 10
"Think of Laura" 9 — — — — 100 — — — 9 1
1984 "A Chance for Heaven" (swimming theme from 1984 Summer Olympics) — — — — — — — — — 76 16 The Official Music Of The XXIIIrd Olympiad Los Angeles 1984
1985 "Charm the Snake" — — — — — — — — — 68 — Every Turn of the World
"Every Turn of the World" — — — — — — — — — — —
1986 "Love Is Love (In Any Language)" — — — — — — — — — — —
"Loving Strangers" 94 — — — — — — — — — 27 Nothing in Common (soundtrack)
1988 "Swept Away" — — — — — — — — — — — Back of My Mind
"I Will (Take You Forever)" (with Frances Ruffelle) — — — — — 47 — — — — 41
1993 "In the Blink of an Eye" (Germany only) — 51 — — — — — — — — — Rendezvous (Germany & Japan only)
"Nothing Will Change" (Germany only) — — — — — — — — — — —
"Is There Something" (Germany only) — — — — — — — — — — —
1994 "Been There, Done That" (Germany only) — 55 — — — — — — — — — Window (Germany & Japan only)
"Wild, Wild West" (Germany only) — — — — — — — — — — —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Other appearances

  • 1974: Electromagnets (with Eric Johnson) "Motion"
  • 1982: Long Time Friends Alessi Brothers "Forever" (background vocals)
  • 1985: Soul Kiss Olivia Newton-John "You Were Great, How Was I?" (background vocals)
  • 1985: Crazy From The Heat David Lee Roth "California Girls" (background vocals)
  • 1988: Brian Wilson Brian Wilson "Night Time" (background vocals)
  • 1989: Christmas at My House Larry Carlton "Ringing The Bells of Christmas”
  • 1991: Love Can Do That Elaine Paige "Same Train"
  • 1994: Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume III "Arthur's Theme" (live version)[36]
  • 1996: Venus Isle Eric Johnson "Lonely in the Night" (background vocals)
  • 1996: On Air Alan Parsons "So Far Away"
  • 1998: Imagination Brian Wilson (special edition "Words and Music" bonus disc) "In My Room"
  • 2001: A Gathering of Friends Michael McDonald "Ride Like the Wind"
  • 2001: When It All Goes South Alabama "Love Remains"
  • 2004: Confidential Peter White "She's in Love"
  • 2006: Skylark Gigi Mackenzie "That's All"
  • 2008: Soundstage: America Live in Chicago "Lonely People", "A Horse with No Name"
  • 2013: Train Keeps A Rolling Jeff Golub, "How Long"
  • 2013: Imagination of You Eric Johnson, "Imagination of You"

Awards

Nominations

Performances

  • Cross filled in for guitarist Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple (who had fallen ill) by performing with the band in San Antonio, Texas in 1970[38]
  • Cross contributed backing vocals (along with The Beach Boys' Carl Wilson) to David Lee Roth's 1985 hit "California Girls"
  • Cross performed the song "Sailing" alongside the pop band 'N Sync at the Fifth Annual Blockbuster Entertainment Awards in 1999
  • Cross also performed lead vocals on "So Far Away", a song from Alan Parsons' album On Air. When Parsons was touring in support of that album, Cross would sometimes join the band onstage to sing the song if he was available
  • Cross spent much of his youth living in a home on Newbury Terrace in Terrell Hills, just outside San Antonio, Texas. That home had earlier belonged to the Cummins family. Another notable San Antonian, the historian and author Light Townsend Cummins, had grown up in that same house a decade earlier. It has since been demolished.
  • A small snippet of Cross's early hit "Sailing" was played in the DreamWorks film Flushed Away
  • Sailing was also featured in an episode of the Fox sitcom Family Guy
  • Cross performed his hit song "Ride Like the Wind" on the NBC show Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on Monday, October 5, 2009, in a "Yacht Rock" themed episode. He was joined by Michael McDonald, whom he has worked with in the past. As the credits were rolling, Cross, McDonald, and The Roots, the Fallon house band, broke into "Sailing", which he also performed in an online-only performance on NBC.com
  • Toured as part of the 2002 "A Walk Down Abbey Road" tour with Alan Parsons, Mark Farner, Jack Bruce, Eric Carmen, and Todd Rundgren
  • Performed as part of the 2003 "A Walk Down Abbey Road" show, which consisted of two performances at the Atlantic City Hilton on August 8–9, with Alan Parsons, Todd Rundgren, Joey Molland, and Denny Laine
  • Christopher Cross was portrayed in the parody web series Yacht Rock by Justin Roiland.
  • "Ride Like the Wind" was featured in a skit on the television series SCTV in which the song's use of Michael McDonald's distinct yet decidedly sparse backup vocal is satirized. This skit would further be the subject matter of an episode of the aforementioned web series Yacht Rock.
  • Newman booked Christopher Cross for his Millennium party in Season 8 Episode 20 of Seinfeld.
  • Singer Robyn Hitchcock named "Arthur's Theme" as his 'most-hated' song in a 2013 A.V. Club interview.

References

  1. ^ "Christopher Cross - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  2. ^ "New York Times". Movies.nytimes.com. January 18, 2007. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
  3. ^ Holden, Stephen (April 17, 2008). "New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
  4. ^ "Christopher Cross & Flash". Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved April 26, 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "Christopher Cross has his first of two #1 hits with "Sailing" – History.com This Day in History – 8/30/1980". History.com. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  6. ^ "Classicbands.com". Classicbands.com. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
  7. ^ Weingarten, Marc (May 10, 1998). "Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
  8. ^ "Westcoastmusic". Noted.blogs.com. October 2, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
  9. ^ "Insidemusicast.com". Insidemusicast.com. May 4, 2009. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
  10. ^ "Christopher Cross Website – Doctor Faith Release". Christophercross.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved October 11, 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "Christopher Cross Returns with his First Live Release "A Night in Paris"".
  12. ^ "Christopher Cross Official Web Site".
  13. ^ Christopher Cross. Comments during Concert at Wolf Trap Performing Arts Center, Vienna, Virginia. January 19, 2013.
  14. ^ "Christopher Cross files for divorce". USA TODAY. April 27, 2007. Retrieved December 18, 2011.
  15. ^ "Christopher Cross to perform his hits in Pa". The Herald-Mail. September 29, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  16. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.Note: This reference gives Australian albums and singles information. It is used for chart peak positions as the early albums were released before ARIA regulated the Australian charts itself (1989)
  17. ^ Canadian Albums peaks
  18. ^ "Album Search: Christopher Cross" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved May 20, 2011.
  19. ^ Okamoto, Satoshi (2006). Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  20. ^ "クリストファー・クロスのCDアルバムランキング-ORICON STYLE". oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Original Confidence. Retrieved August 8, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)Note: Reference indicates chart positions from 1988 onwards, and part of the information are currently unavailable
  21. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl Christopher Cross discography". Hung Medien. MegaCharts. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  22. ^ "chart.org.nz Christopher Cross discography". Hung Medien. RIANZ. Retrieved August 8, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  23. ^ "swedishcharts.com – Discography Christopher Cross". Retrieved November 3, 2010.
  24. ^ "Chart Stats – Christopher Cross". Retrieved November 3, 2010.
  25. ^ "allmusic ((( Christopher Cross > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". allmusic.com. Billboard 200. Retrieved August 10, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  26. ^ a b c "American certifications – Cross, Christopher". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  27. ^ a b "British certifications – Christopher Cross". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 19, 2010. Type Christopher Cross in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  28. ^ Canadian Top Singles peaks
  29. ^ German peaks
  30. ^ Search for Irish peaks Archived June 3, 2009, at WebCite
  31. ^ Dutch Top 40 peaks
  32. ^ Norwegian peaks
  33. ^ New Zealand peaks
  34. ^ Swiss peaks
  35. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  36. ^ "Grammy's Greatest Moments, Volume III: Various Artists". Amazon.com. Retrieved November 23, 2011.
  37. ^ "Primetime Emmy Awards: Awards for 1988". Internet Movie Database.
  38. ^ "Deep Purple – San Antonio, Texas – August 28, 1970". Purple.de. August 28, 1970. Retrieved October 11, 2011.

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