Christopher Cross, riding a wave of yacht rock popularity, brought his classic musicianship to the Holland Center in Omaha on June 17.
While ‘yacht rock’ has seemingly expanded to include a variety of other smooth, soft rock acts, many from the US West Coast, Cross is considered one of the genre’s essential artists. The fact that the title of one of his biggest songs happens to be ‘Sailing’ is just a coincidence.
In Omaha, Cross masterfully brought the studio perfection associated with the genre into a live setting, bolstered by piano, bass, drums, horns, a trio of backup singers and his own guitar. Cross’ voice grew stronger throughout the show, although he wisely relied on the female vocalists to sing some of the highest notes.
Cross played all of his classic debut album, the ‘infamous green album,’ plus a smattering of songs from his follow-up LP, Another Page, and some deeper cuts. One of those tracks, ‘Back Of My Mind,'’ provided a reminder of the ups and down of Cross’ career. (Despite the seeming irony of reviewing a Christopher Cross concert on a Duran Duran-focused blog, music video didn’t kill all the radio stars, as contemporaries like Toto embraced videos and continued to have success throughout the 1980s.)
Cross also became more talkative as the show went on, recounting a story about how he flashed his passport at an airport recently and wasn’t recognized. He was instead asked whether the singer named Christopher Cross had passed away. (Cross did survive a near-debilitating bout with COVID-19 in 2020.)
After opening the concert with the one-two punch of ‘All Right’ and ‘Never Be The Same,’ Cross made the bold move of playing his most enduring hit, ‘Sailing,’ mid-set, allowing the serene track to wash over the crowd and set the mood for the rest of the evening. Another highlight was a short acoustic set that included one of his finest songs, ‘Minstrel Gigolo.’
By the end of the concert, the staid crowd was on its feet, dancing to ‘Ride Like The Wind’ as Cross rocked out a bit on guitar and his backup singers ably handled yacht rock king Michael McDonald’s iconic backing vocals.
Cross was then joined by the rest of his band at the front of the stage. Before exiting offstage, the ever-unassuming singer-songwriter stopped to sign an audience member’s copy of that ‘infamous green album,’ one which garnered Grammys and platinum sales and launched a nearly five-decade career that’s still going strong.
