Chris Whitley
| Chris Whitley | |
|---|---|
Chris Whitley in concert in Belgium, 1998
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Christopher Becker Whitley |
| Born |
August 31, 1960 Houston, Texas |
| Died | November 20, 2005 (aged 45) Houston, Texas |
| Genres | Blues rock, Blues |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, Songwriter |
| Instruments | vocals, resonator guitar, guitar, banjo, dobro, foot stomp |
| Years active | 1983–2005 |
| Labels | Columbia, Work, Messenger, Valley Entertainment, ATO, Legacy, Sony |
| Website | www.chriswhitley.com |
| Notable instruments | |
| 1940 National Style O 1929 National Triolian |
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Christopher Becker Whitley (August 31, 1960 – November 20, 2005) was an American blues/rock singer-songwriter and guitarist. During his 25-year career he released more than a dozen albums, had two songs in the top 50 of the Billboard mainstream rock charts and received two Independent Music Awards. Whitley's sound was drawn from the traditions of blues, jazz and rock and he recorded songs by artists from many genres. He died in 2005 of lung cancer at the age of 45.
Whitley was born in Houston, Texas and learned to play guitar when he was fifteen. His father was an art director and his mother was a sculptor. During his youth he lived in Dallas, Texas, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Mexico and Vermont. His parents "grew up on race radio in the South" and their musical tastes—including Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix—influenced Whitley.
During the early 1980s Whitley was busking on the streets of New York City and collaborating with musicians Marc Miller, Arto Lindsay and Michael Beinhorn. He was given a plane ticket to Ghent, Belgium in 1981, and lived there for six years, recording several albums and playing with the bands Kuruki, 2 Belgen, Nacht Und Nebel, Alan Fawn, and A Noh Rodeo.
In 1988, producer Daniel Lanois heard Whitley perform at the Mondo Cane club in New York City and he helped Whitley obtain a recording contract with Columbia Records. In 1991 two of Whitley's songs charted on the Billboard Mainstream Rock charts: "Big Sky Country" (#36) and "Living with the Law" (#28).
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