To the delight of his burgeoning Phoenician fan base, Chris Isaak returns to Celebrity Theatre for one night only at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, July 19th. Tickets go on sale this Friday, May 5th.
Expect the usual mixture of pathos and humor from this creative giant and his band. For Chris Isaak, first comes the song. And for First Comes The Night — Isaak’s stunning first album of new material in six years — this gifted singer-songwriter and bandleader is bringing us a bumper crop of strong and intriguing songs from which to choose.
“My last release was Beyond The Sun — my tribute to Sun Records with a lot of covers — so this time around I had a lot of new material that I was thrilled to record.”
First Comes The Night fittingly represents a number of firsts for Isaak, who recently signed on to become a judge for the first time on The X Factor Australia. As for First Comes The Night, this is the first time that Isaak has written and recorded so much in Nashville, Tennessee, a change in location he explored partly upon the suggestion of his friend Stevie Nicks. For all the firsts, there’s a strong through-line that continues from Isaak’s earlier triumphs like Silvertone (1985), Chris Isaak (1986), Heart Shaped World (1989), San Francisco Days (1993), Forever Blue (1995) and Always Got Tonight (2002).
“I guess you can make a drink with many ingredients, but if one is very strong, that’s what you taste,” says Isaak with a laugh. “For better or worse, I have a tendency to dominate because I have a big voice and some twisted ideas.”
Isaak’s reputation as a supreme showman and one of the funniest live performers today has not wavered. Standout hits by the Grammy nominated singer-songwriter include “Wicked Game,” “Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” and “Somebody’s Crying.”
The Stockton, California native with the haunting voice and perfectly coiffed hair has enjoyed a second life on screen. Isaak has appeared on TV’s Friends, the HBO miniseries From The Earth To The Moon, as well as several films (Married To The Mob, Silence Of The Lamb, That Thing You Do!) and starred in Showtime’s The Chris Isaak Show and the Chris Isaak Hour on the Biography Channel.
Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets ($60 and $90) go on sale at 10 a.m. this Friday, May 5 at Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St., in Phoenix, or online at www.celebritytheatre.com. To charge by phone, call 602-267-1600 ext. 1. All tickets are subject to a surcharge.
