Ricky Ross | |
---|---|
Birth name | Richard Alexander Ross |
Born |
Dundee, Scotland |
22 December 1957
Genres |
Pop Alternative rock |
Occupation(s) | Musician songwriter producer broadcaster |
Instruments | Vocals Guitar Piano Keyboards |
Years active | 1983–present |
Associated acts |
Deacon Blue McIntoshRoss |
Website | Ricky Ross |
Richard Alexander "Ricky" Ross (born 22 December 1957) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and broadcaster. He is the lead singer of the rock band Deacon Blue.
Ross was born in Dundee, Scotland, in 1957 and attended the High School of Dundee, an independent school. Before the formation of Deacon Blue, he released a solo album So Long Ago, on the Glasgow independent label Sticky Records. After the band's break-up in 1994, Ross resurrected his solo career and Epic released his second solo album What You Are in 1996. As Ross's first solo album So Long Ago was a minor release on a relatively minor label, What You Are became his first solo release on a major label and as such is generally regarded as his debut solo album for a major label, notwithstanding any current or future projects on either category of label. Or release.
Ross released another album, New Recording, on his own label in 1997.
After Deacon Blue's reunion in 1999 and the release of their Walking Back Home and Homesick albums, Ross entered into a new publishing deal with Warner Chappell UK, and released another solo album, This Is the Life, through Chrysalis Records's short-lived Papillion label, in 2002. Papillion had released Deacon Blue's Homesick album the previous year.
As part of his publishing deal with Warner Chappell, Ross began co-writing with other artists. He currently spends more time writing than on his solo career or Deacon Blue projects. To date he has written for and with James Blunt, Ronan Keating, KT Tunstall, David Sneddon, Cathy Burton, Gareth Gates, Emma Bunton, Will Young and Jamie Cullum among others.