Biography
Chris Gaffney spent his formative years in Arizona, picking up the accordion during early childhood, an instrument that would later shape his distinctive fusion of norteño, country, and rock & roll. He later added mastery of the guitar to his skills and passed his teenage years performing with various cover and house bands. A 1977 alliance with keyboardist Wyman Reese led to the latter producing Gaffney's first solo recordings. The 1986 release Road to Indio incorporated elements of '50s rock, soul, and dusty Bakersfield honky tonk. Chris Gaffney & the Cold Hard Facts arrived in 1990 and explored the performer's Hispanic roots. Mi Vida Loca, his third solo album, came out in 1992. Production on the 1995 album Loser's Paradise came from blue-collar stalwart Dave Alvin, who also enlisted contributions from Lucinda Williams and Jim Lauderdale. Gaffney joined forces with Dave Gonzalez of the Paladins in 2002 to establish the Hacienda Brothers, resulting in three albums before a liver cancer diagnosis; he passed away on April 17, 2008. The following year brought the tribute collection A Man of Somebody's Dreams: A Tribute to the Songs of Chris Gaffney, which included appearances by Alvin and Los Lobos among its participants.
Albums
