Singer and vocalist Chris Isaak was born in Stockton, California on June 26, 1956. Chris was born to Shirley and Joe Isaak at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Stockton and his father worked as a forklift operator while his mother worked in a potato chip factory. Throughout college, Isaak worked equally hard at becoming a professional boxer and being a musician. After years spent touring and working with a series of different musicians as his backing band, Isaak scored his first record contract with Warner Brothers in 1984. Speaking of his unique sound with Spin in 1987, Isaak said it’s a delicate balance between emotion and masculinity:“There’s a difference between being wimpy and being world-weary. Like, Roy Orbison has songs where he’s talking about real-world times, and he doesn’t sound wimpy at all,” he explains.