Guitars : Washburn D34 sce Cort AD880 ce Christopher Joseph "Chris" Isaak (born June 26, 1956[1]) is an American rock musician and occasional actor. Isaak was born in Stockton, California,[1] at St. Joseph's Medical Center,[2] the son of Dorothy (née Vignolo), a potato chip factory worker, and Joe Isaak (1929--2012), a forklift driver. Isaak's mother is Italian American, originating from Genoa.[3] His father was German American.[citation needed] Isaak attended Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in north Stockton, graduating in 1974. He was class president all three years, culminating with his election as Student Body President in his senior year, along with being the 1974 graduating class valedictorian and head of the all male cheer squad. He subsequently attended a local college, San Joaquin Delta Community College before transferring to the University of the Pacific, graduating with a bachelor's degree in communications in 1981. Isaak signed a contract to Warner Bros. Records in 1984 for his first album, Silvertone.[1] Two tracks from this album, "Gone Ridin'" and "Livin' for Your Lover", were featured in David Lynch's cult classic Blue Velvet. Isaak's second self-titled album, Chris Isaak, was photographed by fashion photographer Bruce Weber. Isaak's contract was renewed in 1988 when Warner Bros. moved him to their Reprise Records label. Chris Isaak onstage in Berkeley, California - 1986 Isaak's best known song is "Wicked Game".[1] Though released on the 1989 album Heart Shaped World, an instrumental version of the song was later featured in the 1990 David Lynch film Wild at Heart.[1] 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 10 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-Peruvian supermodel Helena Christensen rolling on the beach, embracing and whispering in each other's ears. Another less-seen version of "Wicked Game" is directed by David Lynch and comprises scenes from the 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 longtime guitarist James Calvin Wilsey. That year's Forever Blue album 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 Forever Blue album. The music video for the song is directed by Herb Ritts, it was shot in color and featured Isaak and 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 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. This adult comedy show featured Isaak and his band playing themselves and the episode plots were based on fictional accounts of the backstage world of 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. In 2006, he was guested by Johnny Hallyday to cover Fats Domino's hit Blueberry Hill. The duet was recorded and issued on Johnny Hallyday's live album La Cigale (2007, Warner Music). At the end of this record you can hear Isaak thanking the French Rock'n'Roll star as "The King". Isaak collaborated with John Shanks for his 2009 album Mr. Lucky. Isaak revealed in a 2002 interview with Acoustic Guitar that he uses a one-of-a-kind Gibson: For my electric, I've got a one-off Gibson version of a Gretsch 6120, a sort of Chet Atkins thing. People told me they thought it was a White Falcon, but it's not. It's just a white Gibson. Isaak also plays a Gibson J-200 acoustic guitar, which he uses for songwriting.[

• published: 03 Jun 2013
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