Christopher Cross (born Christopher Charles Geppert; May 3, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

. He won five

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

for his eponymous debut album released in 1979. The singles "

Sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...

" (1979), 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. "Sailing" earned three Grammys in 1980, while "Arthur's Theme" won in 1982 the

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

for Best Original Song (with co-composers

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; May 12, 1928 – February 8, 2023) was an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist who is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential figures of 20th-century popular music. Start ...

Carole Bayer Sager Carole Bayer Sager (born Carol Bayer on March 8, 1944) is an American lyricist, singer, songwriter, and painter. Early life and career Carole Bayer was born in New York City, to Anita Nathan Bayer and Eli Bayer. Her family was Jewish. She gradu ...

, and Peter Allen).

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 Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

's grandchildren. He attended Alamo Heights High School in San Antonio and graduated in 1969. He was involved in football and track and field. Cross was married to Roseanne Harrison from 1973 until the couple divorced in 1982. His 1988 marriage to Jan Bunch ended in a 2007 divorce. He has two children, Madison and Rain. On April 3, 2020, Cross confirmed through his

Facebook page Facebook is a social-network service website launched on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg. The following is a list of software and technology features that can be found on the Facebook website and mobile app and are available to users of ...

that he had tested positive for the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

virus, and was ill, but was recovering. Cross later reported on Twitter that he had lost the use of his legs, but his doctors told him he should fully recover. Physicians told him his illness triggered an episode of

Guillain–Barré syndrome Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) is a rapid-onset Paralysis, muscle weakness caused by the immune system damaging the peripheral nervous system. Typically, both sides of the body are involved, and the initial symptoms are changes in sensation ...

that caused the nerves in his legs to stop functioning properly. By October 2020, he was able to walk with a cane, but said his memory and speech had been affected. In 2021 and 2022 he played his 40th anniversary concert tour, which had originally been planned for 2020. He is Catholic.

Career

Early musical career

Geppert, bassist Andy Salmon, and keyboardist Rob Meurer met in San Antonio when they were still teens. Geppert and Salmon became bandmates in Flash, with Geppert on guitar. Together, they formed Christopher Cross as a band and moved to Austin, where they added drummer

Tommy Taylor Thomas Taylor (29 January 1932 – 6 February 1958) was an English association football, footballer, who played as a Forward (association football), centre-forward and was known for his aerial ability. He was one of the eight Manchester United ...

. There, they played covers for cash while recording demo versions of original songs at Austin's Odyssey Sound, which later became Pecan Street Studio, which they shipped to record labels. Though they considered themselves a band,

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

signed Christopher Cross as a solo artist in early 1979.Margaret Moser
"The Reluctant Celebrity: Christopher Cross."
''The Austin Chronicle.'' January 20, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2022. Although best known for his vocals and songwriting, Cross is also a skilled guitarist.

Donald Fagen Donald Jay Fagen (born January 10, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and musician who is the co-founder, lead singer, co-songwriter, and keyboardist of the rock band Steely Dan, formed in the early 1970s with musical partner Walter Becker ...

and Walter Becker of

Steely Dan Steely Dan is an American rock band formed in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, in 1971 by Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals). Originally having a traditional band lineup, Becker and Fagen cho ...

invited Cross to play on their albums, but Cross declined. Cross also substituted for

Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English lead guitarist. He was a founding member and the guitarist of Deep Purple, one of the pioneering bands of hard rock. After leaving Deep Purple in 1975, Blackmore formed the band Rainbow ...

during a

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

concert in 1970 when Blackmore fell ill. Cross was the original owner of fellow Austin guitarist

Stevie Ray Vaughan Stephen Ray Vaughan (also known as SRV; October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble (band), Double Trouble. Although his ma ...

’s legendary “Number One” 1962/1963 hybrid

Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of double- cutaway electric guitar designed between 1952 and 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corpora ...

. Vaughan purchased the guitar at Ray Hennig's Heart of Texas Music in Austin in 1974, only one day after Cross had traded the guitar for a

Gibson Les Paul The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typic ...

First album and immediate success

Cross released his self-titled debut album, '' Christopher Cross'', on December 20, 1979. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 20 hits from this album included " Ride Like the Wind" (featuring backing vocals by Michael McDonald), "

", " Never Be the Same" and "Say You'll Be Mine" (featuring backing vocals by

Nicolette Larson Nicolette Larson (July 17, 1952 – December 16, 1997) was an American singer. She is best known for her work in the late 1970s with Neil Young and her 1978 hit single of Young's " Lotta Love", which hit No. 1 on the Hot Adult Contemporary ...

). "Ride Like the Wind" hit number two on the U.S. Hot 100, while "Sailing" topped the chart for one week. "Never Be The Same" went number one on the Adult Contemporary chart. Cross, the album, and the song "Sailing" were nominated for six Grammy Awards in 1980 and won five.23rd Annual GRAMMY Awards
at Grammy.com. Retrieved July 25, 2022. Cross was the first artist in Grammy history to win all four general field awards in a single ceremony, bringing home

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...

("Sailing"), Album of the Year (''Christopher Cross''), Song of the Year ("Sailing") and

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1960 (except in 1967) "for a new artist who releases, during the Eligibility Year, the first recording which establishes the public identity of that ar ...

at the

23rd Annual Grammy Awards The 23rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 25, 1981, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City and were broadcast live on American television. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1980. Album of the Year went to ...

. This feat was not replicated for 39 years, until

Billie Eilish Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell ( ; born December 18, 2001) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained public attention in 2015 with her debut single "Ocean Eyes (song), Ocean Eyes", written and produced by her broth ...

won all four awards at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards in 2020."A Virtual College of Grammy Knowledge"
by Wook Kim, ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'', 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2008. In addition, "Sailing" won for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s). ''Christopher Cross'' has been certified

platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...

five times in the U.S., selling over 5 million copies. Later in 1981, Cross released " Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)", co-written by

and Peter Allen, which was the main theme for the 1981 film ''

Arthur Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...

''. The song won the

for Best Original Song in 1981, and was nominated for three Grammys, but did not win.24th Annual GRAMMY Awards
at Grammy.com. Retrieved July 25, 2022. In the U.S., it reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and on the Hot Adult Contemporary charts in October 1981, remaining at the top of the Hot 100 for three weeks while it also was a top-ten hit in several other countries. The song became the second and last American number-one hit by Christopher Cross.

Second album

Cross's second album, '' Another Page'' (1983), produced " All Right", "No Time for Talk", and " Think of Laura". "All Right" was used by

CBS Sports CBS Sports is the American sports programming division of Paramount Global that is responsible for sports broadcasts carried by its broadcast network CBS and streaming service Paramount+, as well as the operator of its cable channel CBS Sports N ...

for its highlights montage following the

1983 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1983 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 52 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 17, 1983, and ended with the champion ...

, while "Think of Laura" is used as a reference to characters on the soap opera ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

''. Against his wishes ABC used 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 Denison University is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Granville, Ohio, United States. One of the earliest colleges established in the former Northwest Territory, Denison University was founded in 1831. It was first called ...

college student Laura Carter who was killed when she was struck by a stray bullet. Cross has stated on his social media platforms that he felt it was inappropriate for ABC/General Hospital to use the song against his wishes and those of Carter's family. ''Another Page'' sold well, getting

Gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

certification. He also co-wrote and sang the song "A Chance For Heaven" for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games.

1980s

After 1984, Cross's commercial success faded. As music television channel

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

grew to dominate the mainstream music scene in the United States, Cross's style of music proved to be a bad fit for the network, and his brand of

adult contemporary music Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, sou ...

declined in popularity. 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. His track, Charm the Snake, was the sole success from his album "Every Turn of the World." It reached No. 68 in the Billboard Hot 100. He did, however, place the song "Swept Away" in the TV show ''

Growing Pains ''Growing Pains'' is an American television sitcom created by Neal Marlens that ran on ABC for seven seasons from September 24, 1985, to April 25, 1992. The series follows the misadventures of the Seaver family, including psychiatrist and fathe ...

''. It was used during a video montage while

Kirk Cameron Kirk Thomas Cameron (born October 12, 1970) is an American actor, author, Evangelism, evangelist, television host, documentarian and producer. He first gained fame as a teen actor playing Mike Seaver on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC si ...

's character Mike fell in love with a local girl while vacationing with the family in Hawaii.

1990s

Cross made three more albums in the 1990s, and although some of his releases gained positive critical response, he was not able to attract the mass audience he once enjoyed. After his decline in fame in the mid to late 1980s, he toured and opened for various acts during the 1990s.

2000s

The year 2002 saw the release of the ''Very Best of...'' album, and in 2007 he completed a Christmas album titled ''A Christopher Cross Christmas''. In 2008, Cross recorded a new acoustic album of his hits titled ''The Cafe Carlyle Sessions''.

2010s

In 2011, Cross released a new studio album titled ''Doctor Faith''. 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. 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 ''Secret Ladder'', followed in November 2017 by ''Take Me as I Am''. In 2017, he played a concert in his hometown, at the Tobin Center, San Antonio, Texas. In late 2019, Cross toured with

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the bands Nazz and Utopia. He is known for his sophistica ...

, Jason Scheff,

Micky Dolenz George Michael Dolenz Jr. ( ; born March 8, 1945) is an American musician and actor. He was the drummer and one of two primary vocalists for the pop rock band the Monkees (1966–1970, and reunions until 2021), and a co-star of the TV series ''T ...

and Joey Molland of

Badfinger Badfinger were a Welsh rock music, rock band formed in Swansea in 1961. Their best-known lineup consisted of Pete Ham (guitar), Mike Gibbins (drums), Tom Evans (musician), Tom Evans (bass), and Joey Molland (guitar). They are recognised for th ...

in celebration of

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' ''White Album'' on the "It Was Fifty Years Ago Today – A Tribute to the Beatles' White Album". Cross performed "

" and " Ride Like the Wind".

2020s

During 2021–2022, Cross played in his 40th anniversary tour which had been rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Freedonia

In 2018, he joined with other musicians in Austin to form the band Freedonia. With Freedonia, he has released two full-length albums: "Freedonia" (2018) and "Firefly" (2019) and an EP titled "Bring Back The Dinosaurs" (2021).

Flamingo

One common feature of Cross's album covers is the appearance of a

flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes () are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbe ...

. According to Cross, there is no meaning behind this other than the painting chosen for his first album cover featured the bird, which has been used as a motif ever since.

Discography

Studio albums

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

*1981: ''

'' (Motion picture soundtrack) " Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" *1983: ''

'' (TV series soundtrack) "Think of Laura" *1984: '' Official Music of the XXIIIrd Olympiad'' "A Chance For Heaven" (swimming theme) *1986: '' Nothing in Common'' (Motion picture soundtrack) "Loving Strangers (David's Theme)" *2010: ''

30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...

'' (TV series soundtrack) "Lemon's Theme"

Singles

Other appearances

*1974: ''Electromagnets'', (with Eric Johnson) – "Motion" *1981: ''Chris Christian'', Chris Christian (Boardwalk Records) – "Don't Give Up on Us" (guitar solo) *1982: ''Long Time Friends'', Alessi Brothers – "Forever" (background vocals) *1985: '' Soul Kiss'',

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British and Australian singer and actress. With over 100 million records sold, Newton-John was one of the List of best-selling music artists#100 million to 119 million record ...

– "You Were Great, How Was I?" (background vocals) *1985: '' Crazy from the Heat'', David Lee Roth – " California Girls" (background vocals) *1988: ''

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often Brian Wilson is a genius, called a genius for his novel approaches to pop compositio ...

'',

– "Night Time" (background vocals) *1989: ''Christmas at My House'', Larry Carlton – "Ringing the Bells of Christmas" *1991: '' Love Can Do That'',

Elaine Paige Dame Elaine Jill Paige (born Elaine Jill Bickerstaff, 5 March 1948) is an English singer and actress, best known for her work in musical theatre. Raised in Chipping Barnet, Barnet, Hertfordshire, Paige attended the Aida Foster Theatre School, m ...

– "Same Train" *1994: ''Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume III'' – " Arthur's Theme" (live version) *1996: '' Venus Isle'', Eric Johnson – "Lonely in the Night" (background vocals) *1996: ''

On Air On air or On Air may refer to: Music *On Air (The Yardbirds album), ''On Air'' (The Yardbirds album), 1991 *On Air (Alan Parsons album), ''On Air'' (Alan Parsons album), 1996 *On Air (John Fahey album), ''On Air'' (John Fahey album), 2004 *On Air ...

'', Alan Parsons – "So Far Away" *1998: ''

Imagination Imagination is the production of sensations, feelings and thoughts informing oneself. These experiences can be re-creations of past experiences, such as vivid memories with imagined changes, or completely invented and possibly fantastic scenes ...

'', 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 Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

– "Love Remains" *2004: ''Confidential'', Peter White – "She's in Love" *2006: ''Skylark'', Gigi Mackenzie – "That's All" *2008: ''Soundstage:

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

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 and nominations

Notes

References

External links

* * *
Living Legends – Christopher Cross Interview Series
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cross, Christopher 1951 births Living people Alamo Heights High School alumni American acoustic guitarists American male pop singers American male guitarists American male singer-songwriters American pop rock singers American pop guitarists American rock guitarists American rock songwriters American soft rock musicians American ballad musicians Best Original Song Academy Award–winning songwriters Golden Globe Award–winning musicians Guitarists from Los Angeles Guitarists from Texas Grammy Award winners Singers from San Antonio Reprise Records artists Singer-songwriters from Texas Warner Records artists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers 20th-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from California American people of German descent American people of Irish descent The David Lee Roth Band members