View source for Chris Morris (music writer)

{{Short description|American music writer}}
'''Chris Morris''' is a music writer based in [[Los Angeles]], [[California]]. He is known for his coverage of L.A.'s independent scene in the 1970s and 1980s, which made him "a central voice in Left Coast music journalism."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.popmatters.com/under-the-big-black-sun-tells-of-an-l-a-before-the-kids-from-orange-county-arrived-2495438075.html |author=Beaudoin, Jedd |title='Under the Big Black Sun' Tells of an L.A. Before the Kids From Orange County Arrived |work=PopMatters |date= April 25, 2016 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref> He has also written well-received books on [[Los Lobos]] and [[Bob Dylan]].
== Career ==
=== Radio and journalism ===
Morris grew up in [[Chicago]]. His father was the program director for [[WTTW]], Chicago's public television station. As a teenager in 1968, Chris worked as an associate in WTTW's publicity department. He grew to love [[blues]] music and hosted a weekly blues show while working as a late-night FM DJ in [[Madison, Wisconsin]].<ref name = "morefun">More Fun in the New World: The Unmaking and Legacy of L.A. Punk, John Doe and Tom DeSavia, Hachette Books, 2019.</ref> That was on [[WIBA-FM]], also known as "Radio Free Madison," with all the DJs in control of their own programming. Morris had worked there part-time in the early '70s and moved back to Madison to take a full-time job with the 50,000-watt station. His shows also included [[R&B]] and [[rockabilly]], as well as [[Patti Smith]]—and [[The Ramones]], whose debut album got Morris fired when he played it in late 1976.<ref name="gobang">Make The Music Go Bang!: The Early L.A. Punk Scene, Don Snowden, ed., St. Martin's Griffin, 1997.</ref>
Morris relocated to Los Angeles on Good Friday, 1977.<ref name= "morefun" /> He became music critic for the ''[[Los Angeles Reader]]'' from 1978–1996. During this period and beyond, his writing helped build and preserve the reputation of leading L.A. bands that sprang up around that time.<ref name="gobang" />
Morris showed his eclectic knowledge of musical forms in writing for ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' about ''[[Uprising (Bob Marley and the Wailers album)|Uprising]]'', the last album that [[Bob Marley]] released in his lifetime.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/uprising-182433/ |author=Morris, Chris |title=Uprising |magazine=Rolling Stone |date= October 16, 1980 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref> That was also evidenced by his 1981 feature on [[Echo and the Bunnymen]].<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/echo-and-the-bunnymen-boonymusic-makes-its-mark-74072/ |author=Morris, Chris |title=Echo and the Bunnymen: 'Boonymusic' Makes Its Mark |magazine=Rolling Stone |date= July 9, 1981 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref> For the same magazine, he returned to the realm of [[reggae]] and [[African popular music]] in covering the 1984 tour co-starring [[Black Uhuru]] and [[King Sunny Adé]].{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}
Morris briefly left the ''Los Angeles Reader'' to work for local music trade weekly ''[[Music Connection]]''. He and several other writers resigned in September 1988, however, in protest against the firing of their colleague, senior editor Bud Scoppa.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-09-04-ca-1937-story.html |author=Hochman, Steve |title=Music Connection--A House Divided |work=Los Angeles Times |date=September 4, 1988 |accessdate=2022-08-06}}</ref>
In addition, Morris was senior writer for ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' in Los Angeles, where he worked from 1986–2004, writing a weekly column about independent music for 12 years. Shortly thereafter, he joined ''Billboard'''s sister publication, ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'', as music editor. However, he was let go in a major restructuring in 2006.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2006/scene/markets-festivals/more-layoffs-at-hollywood-reporter-1117955281/ |author=Snyder, Gabriel |title=More layoffs at Hollywood Reporter |work=Variety |date=December 7, 2006 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref>
Morris contributed a bi-weekly column, "Sonic Nation," to the alternative weekly ''[[LA CityBeat]]''. His writing has also appeared in the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'', ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'', ''[[LA Weekly]]'', ''Chicago Reader'', and other publications.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://celebrityaccess.com/caarchive/chris-morris-hollywood-reporters-music-editor-out-and-10-staffers-axed/ |title=Chris Morris, Hollywood Reporter's Music Editor, Out And 10 Staffers Axed |work=Celebrity Access |date=December 7, 2006 |accessdate=2022-08-06}}</ref> These outlets included the websites Trunkworthy,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.trunkworthy.com/author/chrism/ |title=Chris Morris: Trunkworthy|work=Trunkworthy|access-date=August 6, 2022}}</ref> Night Flight, and Music Aficionado.
His time with ''CityBeat'' ended in 2008. Meanwhile, he continued to serve as a DJ under the "Indie 103.1" format of [[KDLD]], hosting a show devoted to roots music called "Watusi Rodeo".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-dec-18-ca-popmovers18.1-story.html |author=Cromelin, Richard |title=In the Mix |work=Los Angeles Times |date=December 18, 2005 |accessdate=2022-08-06}}</ref> After it was canceled in 2009, the show later resurfaced on Scion Radio 17 from [[Scion Audio/Visual]].
In 2011, while he was working for Scion Radio 17, Morris hosted a panel discussion at the [[Grammy Museum at L.A. Live]] as part of the ''Cleveland Confidential'' book tour. The panelists were [[Cheetah Chrome]], Mike Hudson of [[The Pagans]], former [[Hollywood Records]] president Bob Pfeifer, and [[David Thomas (musician)|David Thomas]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://grammymuseum.org/event/cleveland-confidential/ |title=Cleveland Confidential |work=GrammyMuseum.org |date=April 14, 2011 |accessdate=2022-08-06}}</ref>
Morris is currently a contributing writer at ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]''. Among other things, he is a prolific composer of obituaries of prominent figures in the music world. In recent years, his subjects have included [[Mo Ostin]], [[Mark Lanegan]], [[Ronnie Spector]], [[Charlie Watts]], [[Dusty Hill]], [[Mary Wilson (singer)|Mary Wilson]], [[Charley Pride]], [[Peter Green (musician)|Peter Green]], [[Charlie Daniels]], [[John Prine]], and [[Kenny Rogers]]. His obits also cover film stars such as [[Rutger Hauer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://redef.com/author/5e39d9f2ab643109c3b8b6c7 |title=Chris Morris Archive|work=Redef.com|access-date=August 6, 2022}}</ref>
=== Liner notes ===
As an authority on L.A.'s indie scene, Morris was chosen to write liner notes for several compilations and reissues of works by pivotal bands and artists of the era. They included:
* [[The Blasters]]: ''The Blasters Collection'' (1991 best-of anthology) and ''[[American Music (album)|American Music]]'' ([[Hightone Records]]' 1997 reissue of the band's debut album).
* [[Jeffrey Lee Pierce]]: ''Wildweed'' (1994 reissue on [[Triple X Records]] of the 1985 album).
* Los Lobos: ''[[El Cancionero Mas y Mas]]'' (2000 four-CD box set).
* [[Lone Justice]]: ''[[This World Is Not My Home (Lone Justice album)|This World Is Not My Home]]'' (1999 anthology) and ''[[This Is Lone Justice: The Vaught Tapes, 1983]]'' (2014 archival release).
* [[Circle Jerks]]: ''[[Wild in the Streets (Circle Jerks album)|Wild in the Streets]]'' (2022 40th anniversary reissue). For the 8,200-word essay, Morris conducted new interviews with founding band members [[Keith Morris]], [[Greg Hetson]], and [[Lucky Lehrer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.riverfronttimes.com/music/circle-jerks-to-celebrate-40th-anniversary-of-wild-in-the-streets-at-red-flag-37340273|author=Niesel, Jeff|title=Circle Jerks to Celebrate 40th Anniversary of Wild in the Streets at Red Flag|work=Riverfront Times|date=March 16, 2022|access-date=August 6, 2022}}</ref> (Keith Morris—no relation—jokingly referred to the writer as his "bastard dad" in the singer's memoir ''My Damage''.)<ref>My Damage, Keith Morris, Hachette Books, 2016.</ref>
An especially colorful example of his words may be found in the liner notes for ''Pigus Drunkus Maximus'' (1987), the only album from [[Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs]], another band central to that scene.
The 1991 boxed set ''[[Howlin' Wolf]]: The Chess Box'' featured an "unusually complete" accompanying booklet, with the introduction by Morris providing a tribute and an overview.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1992-01-10-9201080826-story.html |title=Howlin' Wolf |work=Orlando Sentinel |date=January 10, 1992 |accessdate=2022-01-10}}</ref> Eventually, in 2020, this compilation was recognized by the [[Blues Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://blues.org/blues_hof_inductee/howlin-wold-the-chess-box-mca-chess-1991/|title=Howlin' Wolf: The Chess Box (MCA/Chess 1991)|work=The Blues Foundation|access-date=August 1, 2022}}</ref>
Morris annotated Rhino Records' punk rock boxed set ''No Thanks! The '70s Punk Rebellion'' (2003). In 2004, he received a [[47th Annual Grammy Awards]] nomination for best album notes.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QRMEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22chris+morris%22+Grammy+No+Thanks&pg=PA59 |title=Grammys |magazine=Billboard |date=December 18, 2004 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref>
=== Books and films ===
Morris provided the text for ''Beyond and Back: The Story of [[X (American band)|X]]'' (1983). He also held a number of full-time jobs in publicity, and one of his assignments came from [[Skouras Pictures]], distributor of another X project, the documentary ''[[X: The Unheard Music]]''.<ref name= "morefun" />
His book ''Los Lobos: Dream in Blue'' was published by University of Texas Press in 2015. It was the first book-length critical history of the veteran band from East L.A. The ''Lincoln Journal-Star'' called it "a much needed, insightful look."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://journalstar.com/entertainment/books/rock-n-read-los-lobos-dream-in-blue/article_36554b71-f9b2-504e-b8a2-002326916b24.html |author=Wolgamott, L. Kent |title=Rock 'n' Read: 'Los Lobos: Dream in Blue' |work=Lincoln Journal-Star |date= October 15, 2015 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref> ''Record Collector News'' observed that Morris was the ideal teller of this tale.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://recordcollectornews.com/2015/09/los-lobos/ |author=Sigman, Michael |title=Chris Morris Writes the Book on a Great American Band |work=Record Collector News |date=September 9, 2016 |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref> ''Latin American Music Review'' cited its "journalistic, accessible style" and viewed it as an excellent companion text for other studies of Mexican-American popular music.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/659502 |author=Parme, Kevin |title=Los Lobos: Dream in Blue by Chris Morris (review) |work=Latin American Music Review |accessdate=2020-01-27}}</ref>
The following year brought the release of ''Together Through Life: A Personal Journey with the Music of Bob Dylan'' (Rothco Press). In 2017, ''American Songwriter'' called Morris a gifted writer and the book "an enlightening exploration."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://americansongwriter.com/book-review-together-through-life-a-personal-journey-with-the-music-of-bob-dylan%E2%80%A8-by-chris-morris/paul-zollo/ |author=Zollo, Paul |title=Book Review — Together Through Life: A Personal Journey with the Music of Bob Dylan by Chris Morris |date=March 17, 2017 |accessdate=2020-01-27 }}{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> A few years later, another ''American Songwriter'' piece by the same columnist led off a series about "Favorite Bob Dylan Books" with an in-depth examination of ''Together Through Life'' that focused on the "informed passion" of Morris and his distinctive approach to the subject.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://americansongwriter.com/favorite-dylan-books-i/ |author=Zollo, Paul |title=Favorite Bob Dylan Books, Part One: 'Together Through Life' by Chris Morris |date=June 9, 2020 |accessdate=2022-08-01}}</ref>
Morris also made major contributions to the following histories:
* ''Make The Music Go Bang!: The Early L.A. Punk Scene'' (1997)<ref name="gobang" />
* ''[[Under the Big Black Sun (book)|Under the Big Black Sun]]'' (2016)<ref>Under the Big Black Sun: A Personal History of L.A. Punk, John Doe and Tom DeSavia, Hachette Books, 2016.</ref>
* ''More Fun in the New World'' (2019)<ref name="morefun" />
The audiobook editions of the latter two works also featured the voices of the contributors.
In addition, Morris appeared on screen providing insights in two documentaries:
* ''[[We Jam Econo]]: The Story of The [[Minutemen (band)|Minutemen]]'' (2005)
* ''[[Punk's Not Dead (2007 film)|Punk's Not Dead]]'' (2007)
He was chosen to write the essay accompanying [[The Criterion Collection]]'s edition of ''[[Border Radio]]'', a film that also sprang from the L.A. indie scene and featured rockers in acting roles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/461-border-radio-where-punk-lived|author=Morris, Chris|title=Border Radio: Where Punk Lived|work=The Criterion Collection|date=January 15, 2007 |access-date=August 1, 2022}}</ref>
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
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[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Writers from Chicago]]
[[Category:American music critics]]
[[Category:American music journalists]]
[[Category:American music historians]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:Writers from Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Rock music historians]]