Craig David Ross is an American guitarist, best known for his work with singer

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. His style incorporates elements of rock, blues, soul, R&B, funk, jazz, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, pop and folk. Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male Roc ...

Early life

Craig Ross was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He borrowed a guitar from a neighbor's garage at age eight. He began playing the music of the Beatles and Chuck Berry, his early influences.

Career

By the age of 16, Ross began playing guitar at

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

clubs, and formed the band the Broken Homes 1980s; he performed under the stage name Kreg Ross. The band opened for prominent musical acts including

Stevie Ray Vaughan Stephen Ray Vaughan (October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble. Although his mainstream career spanned only seven years, ...

INXS INXS (a word play, phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian Rock music, rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The band's founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboar ...

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis made ...

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

and

Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1985. The band consists of vocalist Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric Avery. Jane's Addiction was one of the first bands from t ...

. The Broken Homes signed with

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wit ...

to release three albums during the 1980s, on which they worked with producers such as Andy Johns. This seminal period gave Ross his start in professional musical work. He describes his musical influences include Freddie King, Albert King,

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

, and

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Page is prolific in creating guitar riffs. His style involves various alternative ...

. A "chance meeting" in an Los Angeles pool hall with

(facilitated by Kathy Valentine of the Go-Go's) led to a long-tenured musical partnership. After touring with Kravitz for 1991's " Mama Said", Craig joined Lenny in the studio, co-writing and playing guitars on his track "

Are You Gonna Go My Way ''Are You Gonna Go My Way'' is the third studio album by American singer Lenny Kravitz, released on March 9, 1993, by Virgin Records. It was recorded at Waterfront Studios, Hoboken, New Jersey, by Henry Hirsch. It became Kravitz's first top 20 ...

", an anthem that helped elevate Kravitz's career. The collaboration continued with stand-out solos on tracks such as "Believe" and "Is There Any love in Your Heart". Ross has since written and performed instruments on each of Kravitz's albums, as well as for other artists including

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shimm ...

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

The Black Crowes The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1984. Their discography includes eight studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer Geo ...

, and Nikka Costa, among others. Ross co-wrote the songs " Spinning Around Over You", "

", "

Is There Any Love in Your Heart "Is There Any Love in Your Heart" is a song by American singer Lenny Kravitz and released on November 22, 1993, as the fourth single from his third studio album, ''Are You Gonna Go My Way'' (1993). Following its release, the song reached the top ...

", "

Where Are We Runnin'? "Where Are We Runnin'?" is a song performed by American rock musician Lenny Kravitz. It was released on April 5, 2004, as the lead single from his seventh studio album, ''Baptism'' (2004). Kravitz wrote the song with his long-time collaborator C ...

", "

Stillness of Heart "Stillness of Heart" is a song written by Lenny Kravitz and Craig Ross. The song was included on Kravitz's 2001 album, '' Lenny'', and was released as a single on January 14, 2002. "Stillness of Heart" charted at number 38 on the US ''Billboard'' ...

", and "

Lady The word ''lady'' is a term for a girl or woman, with various connotations. Once used to describe only women of a high social class or status, the equivalent of lord, now it may refer to any adult woman, as gentleman can be used for men. Inform ...

" with Kravitz, as well as various songs on Kravitz's 2008 album ''

It Is Time for a Love Revolution ''It Is Time for a Love Revolution'' is the eighth studio album by American rock musician Lenny Kravitz, released on February 5, 2008. The album produced four singles released in 2007 and 2008. This is Kravitz's final album for Virgin Records. ...

''. He also toured with Kravitz, most notably at the Glastonbury Festival in 1999. Ross and Kravitz performed at the 2012

Kennedy Center Honors The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. They have been presented annually since 1978, culminating each December in a gala celebrating five hono ...

tribute to

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

, covering their 1969 song "

Whole Lotta Love "Whole Lotta Love" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is the opening track on the band's second album, ''Led Zeppelin II'', and was released as a single in 1969 in several countries; as with other Led Zeppelin songs, no single was r ...

". Ross played on

2001 album, ''

Lions The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult ...

'' on the track "Greasy Grass River", as well as on the band's former guitarist

Marc Ford Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system o ...

's first solo album, ''It's About Time'' in 2003.

Personal life

Ross has two daughters named Mia and Devon with his first wife Anna. Since 2014, he has been married to Spanish actress

Goya Toledo Gregoria Micaela Toledo Machín (born 24 September 1969 in Arrecife, Lanzarote), professionally known as Goya Toledo, is a Spanish actress and model. She has appeared in ''Amores Perros'', '' Killing Words,'' and ''13 Roses''. Before venturing ...

."Goya Toledo confiesa en la alfombra roja que se ha casado"
''El Confidencial''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Craig Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American rock guitarists American male guitarists Guitarists from Los Angeles