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Biography
More footnotes|date=July 2010lead too short|date=March 2010Infobox musical artist | name = Chris Isaak| image = Chris Isaak 1.jpg| caption = Chris Isaak at the Pompano Beach Amphitheater| image_size =| background = solo_singer| birth_name = Christopher Joseph Isaak| alias =| Born = Birth date and age|1956|6|26 Stockton, California|Stockton , California | death_date =| origin =| instrument = singing|Vocals , guitar | genre = Rock n' roll , roots rock , rockabilly , surf rock | occupation = Singer-songwriter , musician , actor , talk show host | years_active = 1984& ndash;present| label = Warner Bros. Records | associated_acts =| website = http://www.chrisisaak.com www.chrisisaak.com| notable_instruments = Christopher Joseph "Chris" Isaak (born June 26, 1956)cite book | first= Martin C. | last= Strong | year= 2000 | title= The Great Rock Discography | edition= 5th | publisher= Mojo Books | location= Edinburgh | pages= 480–481 | isbn= 1-84195-017-3 is an United States|American rock music|rock musician and occasional actor .
Early life
Isaak was born in Stockton, California|Stockton , California , the son of Dorothy ( married and maiden names|née Vignolo), a potato chip factory worker, and Joe Isaak, a forklift driver. Isaak's mother is Italian American , originating from Genoa . http://www.webcitation.org/query? url= http://www.geocities.com/sunsetstrip/hall/2690/article/art41.htm& date=2009-10-25+22:32:18 Geocities.com Isaak's father is German American .Citation needed|date=August 2011
Career
Music
BLP unsourced section| date=July 2010Isaak signed a contract to Warner Bros. Records in 1984 for his first album Silvertone (album)|Silvertone . The tracks "Gone Ridin'" and "Livin' for Your Lover", from this album, were featured in David Lynch 's cult classic Blue Velvet (film)|Blue Velvet . Isaak's second self-titled album Chris Isaak (album)|Chris Isaak was photographed by fashion photographer Bruce Weber (photographer)|Bruce Weber . Isaak's contract was renewed in 1988 when Warner Bros. moved him to their Reprise Records label. His best-known song is " Wicked Game ." Though released on the 1989 album Heart Shaped World (Chris Isaak album)|Heart Shaped World , an instrumental version of the song was later featured in the 1990 David Lynch film Wild at Heart (film)|Wild at Heart . Lee Chesnut, an Atlanta radio station music director who was obsessed with Lynch films, began playing the vocal version and it quickly became the station's most-requested song. Chesnut spread the word to other radio stations around the country and the single became a national Top 40|Top 10 hit record|hit in February 1991. The music video for the song was directed by Herb Ritts and was a big MTV and VH1 hit; shot in black and white, it starred Isaak and Danish supermodel Helena Christensen rolling on the beach, embracing and whispering in each other's ears. Another less-seen version of the " Wicked Game " is directed by David Lynch and comprises scenes from the film Wild at Heart (film)|Wild at Heart . " Wicked Game " also featured as the backing music in the 2001 TV advert for the Jaguar X-Type range of cars in the UK. In 1995 Isaak split with long time guitarist James Wilsey|James Calvin Wilsey , and that year's Forever Blue (Chris Isaak album)|Forever Blue and the accompanying tour featured Hershel Yatovitz on guitar.
In 1999, Isaak's " Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing " was featured in Stanley Kubrick 's final film, Eyes Wide Shut , starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman . The song is on his 1995 album Forever Blue (Chris Isaak album)|Forever Blue . The music video for the song is directed by Herb Ritts , it was shot in color, it starred Isaak and France|French supermodel Laetitia Casta in a motel room. This was Isaak's second collaboration with Ritts.
Isaak also composed a theme song for U.S. late-night television variety/talk show, The Late Late Show (CBS TV series)|The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn . In 2001, Isaak starred in his own television show, The Chris Isaak Show . It aired from March 2001 to March 2004 in the United States on the cable television network Showtime (TV network)|Showtime . This adult comedy show featured Chris Isaak and his band playing themselves and the episode plots were based on fictional accounts of the backstage world of Chris Isaak—the rock star next door. In 2004, his track "Life Will Go On" was featured on Chasing Liberty 's soundtrack, which starred Mandy Moore and Matthew Goode . His track "Two Hearts" was featured in the closing credits of the 1993 film True Romance , directed by Tony Scott , written by Quentin Tarantino , and starring Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette .
Isaak's longtime producer, Erik Jacobsen , was instrumental in his sound for 15 years. Jacobsen is known for his production work with The Lovin' Spoonful , and solo albums from Spoonful's John Sebastian and Jerry Yester . Isaak ceased working with Jacobsen on his 2002 album, Always Got Tonight . In 2007 Isaak opened for Stevie Nicks on her Crystal Visions Tour during the first leg of the tour.
Isaak was ranked #68 on VH1 's 100 Sexiest Artists.
Isaak collaborated with John Shanks for his 2009 album Mr. Lucky (Chris Isaak album)|Mr. Lucky .
He contributed a cover of Buddy Holly 's " Crying, Waiting, Hoping " for the tribute album, Listen to Me: Buddy Holly , released September 6, 2011.
Isaak recently released an album called Beyond the Sun (album)|Beyond the Sun , which was recorded in Memphis , Tennessee at the Sun Records studio.
Guitars
Isaak revealed in a 2002 interview with Acoustic Guitar that he uses a one-of-a-kind Gibson Guitar Corporation|Gibson : blockquote|For my electric, I've got a one-off Gibson version of a Gretsch 6120 , a sort of Chet Atkins thing. They made one of these things and gave it to me to see if I liked it, and I liked it so much I've been playing it ever since. People told me they thought it was a White Falcon, but it's not. It's just a white Gibson. I don't think they ever manufactured any of the things. They strung up this one prototype, scratched their heads, and said, 'Huh. Give it to Isaak.'cite web | title=Acoustic Guitar Central | work=What They Play: Chris Isaak | url= http://www.acousticguitar.com/issues/ag116/gear116.html#5 | accessdate=2007-04-26 Isaak also plays a Gibson J-200 acoustic guitar, which he uses for songwriting.cite web|author=by Dave on August 6th, 2008 |url= http://www.fretbase.com/fretbase/2008/08/chris-isaak-and.html |title=Chris Isaak and His Gibson Guitars |publisher=Fretbase |date=2008-08-06 |accessdate=2010-09-24
Acting and other work
Isaak has also appeared in numerous films, mostly playing minor cameo roles, though he starred with Keanu Reeves and Bridget Fonda in the 1993 Bernardo Bertolucci -directed Little Buddha , and also played a major role in David Lynch 's Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992). Other motion pictures include Married to the Mob (1988), The Silence of the Lambs (film)|The Silence of the Lambs (1991), That Thing You Do! (1996), and A Dirty Shame (2004).
Isaak starred in The Chris Isaak Show (2001–2004) playing himself and featuring actual members of his band along with numerous celebrity guests. He also guest-starred on the " The One After the Superbowl, Part One ", the Super Bowl XXX edition of the television sitcom Friends ; and on the HBO miniseries, From the Earth to the Moon (miniseries)| From the Earth to the Moon , as astronaut Edward Higgins White|Ed White , the first American astronaut to leave the confines of his spacecraft who later died in the Apollo 1 fire.
The Biography Channel aired The Chris Isaak Hour , a one-hour music interview and performance show in 2009.cite web|url= http://www.biography.com/chris-isaak-hour/ |title=The Biography Channel's '& #39;The Chris Isaak Hour'& #39; website |publisher=Biography.com |date=2009-02-18 |accessdate=2010-09-24 The series premiere featured Trisha Yearwood , and included the first ever performance of "Breaking Apart", a duet from Isaak's new album, Mr. Lucky (Chris Isaak album)|Mr. Lucky . Additional guests included Stevie Nicks , Smashing Pumpkins , Chicago (band)|Chicago , Glen Campbell , Michael Bublé , Yusuf Islam (formerly Cat Stevens ), and Jewel (singer)|Jewel .
In April, 2010, Isaak was the special guest during Conan O'Brien 's The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour performance at the Masonic Center, San Francisco|Nob Hill Masonic Center in San Francisco, California .
Discography
main|Chris Isaak discography
Silvertone (album)|Silvertone (1985)
Chris Isaak (album)|Chris Isaak (1986)
Heart Shaped World (Chris Isaak album)|Heart Shaped World (1989)
Wicked Game (Chris Isaak album)|Wicked Game (1991)
San Francisco Days (1993)
Forever Blue (Chris Isaak album)|Forever Blue (1995)
Baja Sessions (1996)
Speak of the Devil (Chris Isaak album)|Speak of the Devil (1998)
Always Got Tonight (2002)
Christmas (Chris Isaak album)|Christmas (2004)
Best of Chris Isaak (2006)
Live in Australia (2008)
Mr. Lucky (Chris Isaak album)|Mr. Lucky (2009)
Chris Isaak Live at the Fillmore|Live at the Fillmore (2010)
Beyond the Sun (album)|Beyond the Sun (2011)
Filmography
Married to the Mob ...The Clown (1988)
The Silence of the Lambs (film)|The Silence of the Lambs ...SWAT Commander (1991)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me ...Special Agent Chester Desmond (1992)
Friends (TV series)|Friends ...Rob Donnen (Season 2, Episode 12, 1996) The One After the Superbowl
From the Earth to the Moon (miniseries)|From the Earth to the Moon ...Astronaut Edward White II (1998)
The Greatest (TV series)|The Greatest ...Himself (50 Sexiest Video Moments, 2003)
Ed (TV series)|Ed ...Jamie Decker (Season 3, Episode 20, 2003) Second Chances
The Greatest (TV series)|The Greatest ...Himself/Host (100 Greatest Videos, 2003)
The Chris Isaak Show ...Himself (2001–2004)
American Dreams ...Roy Orbison (Season 2, Episode 14, 2004) Old Enough to Fight
The Footy Show (rugby league) ...Himself (Grand Final, 2004)
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson ...Michael Caine in Space (Season 2, Episode 177, 2006)
Great Performances Jerry Lee Lewis : Last Man Standing Live ...Himself (2007)
Australian Idol ...Himself ( Australian Idol (season 6)|Season 6 , 9–10 November 2008)
The Chris Isaak Hour ...Himself/Host (2009–Present)
Conan (TV series)|Conan ...Himself (Episode 192, 4 January 2012)
References
reflist
External links
http://www.chrisisaak.com Chris Isaak.com, official site of Chris Isaak
IMDb name|id=0001389
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section? Category=A_SPECIAL15 Chris Isaak at http://www.recordnet.com/ Recordnet.com: Page with stories, multimedia and more about Chris Isaak from The Record in Stockon, CA, Isaak's hometown.
Discogs artist
http://chrisisaak.yolasite.com/concert-history.php Chris Isaak Concert History
Chris Isaak Persondata | NAME = Isaak, Chris | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = | DATE OF BIRTH = 1956-06-26 | PLACE OF BIRTH = | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Isaak, Chris Category:1956 births Category:American actors Category:American male singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:Actors from California Category:Musicians from California Category:American people of Italian descent Category:American people of German descent Category:Living people Category:People from Stockton, California Category:University of the Pacific (United States) alumni Category:Warner Bros. Records artists
