2009 Chris Isaak

Chris Isaak is a 90s pop icon who might seem more at home in the 50s and 60s. His tunes are reminiscent of the crooners he grew up listening to, like Dean Martin and Bing Crosby. Growing up in Stockton, California, Isaak listened to country western music, soul, and jazz. His music has tastes of those influences, including artists like Elvis Presley, Ricky Nelson, and Roy Orbison, but mysteriously appeals to the mainstream MTV audience aside pop stars like Ricky Martin and Britney Spears.

Isaak has an interesting past and a promising future, with his unique, blast-from-the-past style of music. He moved to Japan to attend college and pursued an amateur boxing career before he settled on trying to break into the music industry. It was Elvis Presley's Sun Records recordings that inspired him to begin his singing career. He became a soloist in San Francisco without much personal success. He assembled a trio and called it Silvertone and was finally noticed by producer Erik Jacobsen. A deal was penned with Warner Bros. and Chris Isaak was on his way. In 1985 Silvertone released a self-titled album. The album was successful, but some believe it gained attention more because of Isaak's unique classic style and good looks. The music itself was a retro blend of his former idols that was not expected to appeal to a modern audience.

In 1987 Isaak, still with the Silvertone trio, released an album titled Chris Isaak that sold moderately well in the US, making it into the top 200, but did not gain fame or fortune for the promising young singer. The single 'Blue Hotel', featured on the album, became a major hit in France. The group soon decided to concentrate on the European market and began touring around the continent. They successfully promoted the album in Europe for a year before Isaak returned to the US to take a part in the film Married To The Mob. Isaak's charisma and good looks soon landed him a cameo in Silence of the Lambs. A small role came in the film Twin Peaks, and soon a starring role in Bernardo Bertolucci's Little Buddha. His film career only seemed to help his music career. His face and name became well known by the public through cinema, and his connections in the film industry helped in getting his songs featured in major motion pictures.

In 1990 his song 'Wicked Game', which Isaak and his managers felt was long since dead, became a top 10 hit after being featured in the film Wild At Heart. The album eventually went platinum. Isaak, focused again on his music, released San Francisco Days in 1993, which was enjoyed by fans around the world. The album went gold and reached a respectable number 35 on the pop charts. Isaak was soon touring again, this time in the US. He toured with Tina Turner, bringing his sound to the fans who loved his idols three decades before, as well as young pop fans of the time. Isaak released three more albums in the 90s: Forever Blues, Baja Sessions and Speak of the Devil and continues to tour worldwide to packed venues.