 |
Tommy Taylor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Tommy Taylor |
| Born | May 8, 1957 Denton, Texas, U.S. |
| Genres | Rock, blues, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Drums, guitar, percussion, vocals |
| Years active | 1968–present |
| Labels | Capitol Records, Warner Bros. Records |
| Website | www |
Tommy Taylor (born May 8, 1957) is an American musician, vocalist and songwriter, who is best known for being a touring and recording member with Christopher Cross and Eric Johnson.
Developing an infatuation with many types of music at a very early age, he quickly expanded his interests, exploring the playing of various musical instruments and singing. He acquired his first guitar at the age of eight in December 1965, discovering by chance, that he was also potentially quite adept at playing the drums, drumming became his primary objective.
By age eleven he was working professionally as a drummer, and by age thirteen, he was headlining the most prominent night spots in Austin, TX.
In 1977, Taylor became drummer and vocalist in the burgeoning original music group, Christopher Cross. [1] [2] [3] His performances on Cross's classic debut LP, "Christopher Cross," helped garner five Grammy Awards in 1981, Including Album of The Year, along with a five-time Platinum Certification. [4] [5] Taylor also featured on two tracks on Cross' second album, Another Page . When touring the world, Christopher Cross opened for Bonnie Raitt, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Foreigner, Cheap Trick, and America, as well as headlining their own concert dates.
In 1984, Taylor began what would become a lifetime partnership with fellow Austin musician Eric Johnson. In 1988, Taylor played with Eric Johnson on the TV show, Austin City Limits , it has since become the most requested episode in 40-year history of the show, and subsequently became a CD/DVD release, along with Gold Certification. [4] Taylor has been featured on almost every single album of Johnson's as either a drummer, percussionist, vocalist, writer, or arranger. [6] Taylor is featured on the Grammy Award-winning [7] smash hit, "Cliffs of Dover" from the Platinum album Ah Via Musicom [4] among many of the studio performances over the years.
In 2018–2019, Taylor played a sold-out tour with Eric Johnson and Kyle Brock, re-playing the Ah Via Musicom album from cover to cover, along with new cuts from Johnson's record Collage. The tour featured a headline spot at 2019's Crossroads Guitar Festival, returning to the festival after 15 years. [8]
In 2020, Taylor was due to release a debut solo LP titled, Across The Stars. It is co-produced by Mark Hallman, and features Michael Omartian, Roscoe Beck, David Lee Holt, and Mark Andes among others. On October 15, 2022, Taylor released his debut single, "Summit", from his upcoming solo album. A follow up single "Across The Stars" was also released.
In 2023, Taylor released his third single, "Everybody's Gonna Let You Down". The Across The Stars album was released on September 22, 2023.
Eric Johnson is an American guitarist, vocalist and composer. His 1990 album Ah Via Musicom was certified platinum by the RIAA, and the single "Cliffs of Dover" won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.
Ah Via Musicom is the second studio album by guitarist Eric Johnson, released in 1990 through Capitol Records. The album reached No. 67 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and remained on that chart for 60 weeks. All four singles charted on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, with three of them being top 10 hits: "High Landrons" at No. 31, "Righteous" at No. 8, "Cliffs of Dover" at No. 5 and "Trademark" at No. 7. "Cliffs of Dover" went on to win the Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance at the 1992 Grammys.
Christopher Cross is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist from San Antonio, Texas. He won five Grammy Awards for his eponymous debut album released in 1979. The singles "Sailing" (1979), and "Arthur's Theme " peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. "Sailing" earned three Grammys in 1980, while "Arthur's Theme" won the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1980.
Christopher Cross is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Christopher Cross. It was released on December 27, 1979, by Warner Bros. Records. Produced by Michael Omartian and recorded in mid-1979, the album was one of the first in popular music to be digitally recorded, utilizing the 3M Digital Recording System.
Econoline Crush is a Canadian rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, formed in 1992. They have released five studio albums and two studio EPs, and are best known for their charting singles such as "You Don't Know What It's Like", "Home", "Surefire ", "All That You Are (X3)", "Make It Right", and "Dirty". They achieved platinum status with the 1997 album The Devil You Know and also received two Juno nominations, in 1995 for Purge and in 1998 for The Devil You Know.
Stone Sour was an American rock band formed in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1992. The band performed for five years before disbanding in 1997. They reunited in 2000 and since 2015, the group has consisted of Corey Taylor, Josh Rand (guitar), Christian Martucci (guitar), Johny Chow (bass) and Roy Mayorga (drums). Longtime members Joel Ekman and Shawn Economaki left the band in 2006 and 2011, respectively. Former lead guitarist Jim Root left in 2014. The band has been on an indefinite hiatus since 2020.
Krokus is a Swiss hard rock and heavy metal band formed in 1975. They were popular in North America during the 1980s. The band was founded in Solothurn in 1975 by Chris von Rohr and Tommy Kiefer (guitar), both former members of Kaktus. Former TEA vocalist Marc Storace joined the band as frontman in time for their Metal Rendez-vous album in 1980.
Mushroomhead is an American heavy metal band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1993 in the Cleveland Warehouse District, the band is known for their avant-garde sound and horror film-inspired imagery which features masks and costumes as well as their unique live shows usually performed at smaller venues. They have sold over two million media units worldwide, and have released eight full-length albums and 35 music videos.
Skillet is an American Christian rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1996. The band currently consists of husband and wife duo John Cooper and Korey Cooper along with Jen Ledger and Seth Morrison. The band has released eleven studio albums, two of which, Collide and Comatose, received Grammy nominations. Two of their albums, Comatose and Awake, are certified Platinum and Double Platinum respectively by the RIAA, while Rise and Unleashed are certified Gold as of June 29, 2020. Four of their songs, "Monster", "Hero", "Awake and Alive", and "Feel Invincible", are certified Multi-Platinum, while another three, "Whispers in the Dark", "Comatose", and "The Resistance" are certified Platinum, and another five, "Rebirthing", "Not Gonna Die", "The Last Night", "Legendary", and "Stars" are certified Gold.
Tones is the first studio album by guitarist Eric Johnson, released in 1986 through Reprise Records; a remastered edition was reissued on February 23, 2010 through Wounded Bird Records. Both "Zap" and "Emerald Eyes" are re-recordings from Johnson's then-unreleased 1978 debut album Seven Worlds, which eventually saw an official release in 1998. The instrumental "Zap", released as a B-side to the single "Off My Mind", was nominated for Best Rock Instrumental Performance at the 1987 Grammy Awards.
Venus Isle is the third studio album by guitarist Eric Johnson, released on September 3, 1996, through Capitol Records. The album reached No. 51 on the U.S. Billboard 200, the highest position in Johnson's career, and remained on that chart for six weeks. "Pavilion" was released as a single and reached No. 33 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, while its B-side "S.R.V." is a tribute to guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan and features his elder brother Jimmie Vaughan as a guest soloist. "Camel's Night Out" is featured as downloadable content for the video game Guitar Hero World Tour (2008) and can also be exported to Guitar Hero 5 (2009).
Live from Austin, TX is Eric Johnson's first live album, released in November 2005. The album showcases Johnson's seminal 1988 performance at Austin City Limits. The performance included a number of songs from Ah Via Musicom before its release in 1990, the album that a few years later would launch Johnson to fame as well as a pair of Jimi Hendrix covers.
"Sailing" is a 1979 soft rock song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Christopher Cross. It was released in June 1980 as the second single from his self-titled debut album (1979), which was already certified gold by this time. The song was a success in the United States, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on August 30, 1980, where it stayed for one week. The song also won Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Arrangement of the Year, and helped Cross win the Best New Artist award. VH1 named "Sailing" the most "softsational soft rock" song of all time.
"Cliffs of Dover" is an instrumental rock composition by the American guitarist, singer and songwriter Eric Johnson, released on his 1990 studio album Ah Via Musicom. Johnson had performed it as early as 1984.
Charles Roscoe Beck is an American bassist with a reputation as "a solid bottom-liner". Beck has played with artists like Robben Ford, Eric Johnson, Leonard Cohen, and The Dixie Chicks. He is also a successful record producer with two Grammy Award nominations.
Loren Gold is an American keyboardist, vocalist, music director, and songwriter. Gold is a keyboardist and vocalist for The Who and Chicago. In addition, Gold has been the touring keyboardist and backup vocalist for Roger Daltrey since 2009. Gold also performs with Rita Wilson and has toured regularly with Don Felder since 2009. Other artists he has toured with include Kenny Loggins, Natalie Maines, and American Idol winner Taylor Hicks. Gold has been musical director for pop stars Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, and Hilary Duff, and he continues to build and develop bands for other artists. Gold has published two instructional books through his collaboration with Alfred Music, and his original compositions have been featured on HBO and Showtime.
Robert Gary Smith is an American musician and songwriter. He was a member of Chase and a founding member of Survivor. Smith has also performed or recorded with B.B. King, Joe Williams, Vic Damone, Patrick Leonard, Leslie West (Mountain), Steve Forman, Will Lee, Elliott Randall, Bobby Kimball, Tommy Shaw, Darryl Jones, Jim Peterik, John Gary, Bruce Gaitsch, Eric Miyashiro, Clark Terry, Chuck Findley, Larry Carlton, Jaco Pastorius and many others.
Crown the Empire is an American metalcore band from Dallas, Texas formed in 2010. The band comprises vocalist Andrew "Andy Leo" Rockhold, guitarist Brandon Hoover, bassist Hayden Tree, and drummer Jeeves Avalos. They are currently signed to Rise Records and have released five studio albums. Their most recent studio album, Dogma, was released on April 28, 2023.
This is the discography for American rock musician Eric Johnson.