NEPA Scene Staff

Grammy-winning musician Christopher Cross performs at Sands Bethlehem Event Center on March 15

Grammy-winning musician Christopher Cross performs at Sands Bethlehem Event Center on March 15
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From a press release:

It was announced today that five-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, and musician Christopher Cross will bring his Take Me As I Am Tour, named after his latest album, to the Sands Bethlehem Event Center on Friday, March 15, 2019 at 8 p.m.

Tickets, which are $35, $45, and $55, plus applicable fees, go on sale this Friday, Nov. 2 at 10 a.m. and can be purchased at sandseventcenter.com, the Event Center box office (77 Sands Blvd., Bethlehem), ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster outlets, or by phone at 800-745-3000. A pre-sale for members of the venue’s Music Insiders Club will take place on Thursday, Nov. 1 at 10 a.m. through 10 p.m.

Christopher Cross burst onto the scene and made musical history in 1980 when his self-titled debut album earned him five Grammy Awards, including – for the first time ever – the four most prestigious awards: Record of the Year (for the single “Sailing”), Album of the Year, Song of the Year (also for “Sailing”), and Best New Artist.

In addition to “Sailing,” Cross’ debut album also included three other Billboard Hot 100 Top 20 hits: “Ride Like the Wind,” “Never Be the Same,” and “Say You’ll Be Mine.”

Cross’ second studio album, “Another Page,” included his biggest and most recognizable hit – “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do).” Written as the main theme for the 1981 film “Arthur” starring Dudley Moore and Liza Minnelli, the song spent three weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart and earned Cross an Academy Award for Best Song and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.

Since then, Cross has released 13 more albums, including 2013’s live album “A Night in Paris,” 2014’s “Secret Ladder,” and his latest record, “Take Me as I Am.”

Released in November of 2017, “Take Me as I Am” is a unique offering from Cross, a hybrid of sorts – the songs are instrumentals with choruses to create the lyrical landscape. This is not quite a “guitar” album, but it leaves the listener with no question about his expertise on the subject. Two very special songs are “Roberta,” dedicated to his mentor, Joni Mitchell, and “Truth” with a lyric by Rob Meurer, one of the last songs Meurer wrote before his tragic passing. This song is sung as a duet with Gigi Worth, a name that will be familiar to Cross’ fans. Worth and Meurer were also very close, which makes her performance on this track all the more meaningful. The album closes with a song in memory of Meurer called “Alvah” (his middle name), which features beautiful string arrangements by Chris Walden.

In Cross’ words, “It was a blessing to work with all these talented folks in the making of this album, which holds so many bittersweet emotions for me. I didn’t expect to make another one but, as Rob reminded me once, it’s what we do.”