Born in Mill Valley, California in 1970 (home to the Grateful Dead and other prolific acts), Chris Chaney was destined to become a renowned and accomplished bass player. The Rolling Stones, Stevie Wonder, the Beatles, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin and the progressive rock sounds of Yes and Rush shaped his youth and influenced him heavily at a young age. Chris' high school years led him to explore the depths of jazz music including Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson. His appreciation of jazz music and a wide variety of musical styles attributed to his bass playing- specifically John Paul Jones, Jaco Pastorius, Tony Levin and Stevie Wonder's left hand. This bass playing extraordinaire considers his style a hodgepodge of these artists and their individual influences in his musical journey.
Chris moved to Los Angeles in late August of 1991 and quickly found success. He joined Alanis Morissette for the Jagged Little Pill tour in 1995; selling out arenas around the world. Chris recorded four albums with Alanis (Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, MTV Unplugged, Under Rug Swept and Feast on Scraps) where he worked alongside multi-platinum artists including Taylor Hawkins from the Foo Fighters. Chris'relationship with Taylor continued and led to the formation of the Coattail Riders, a progressive rock band that has moments of Queen, Yes and Genesis, with a speck of hard edged pop. The Coattail Riders just recently finished their first album, slated to be released in the Spring of 2006.
His credits continue- reaching across genres, showcasing his abilities as a multi-faceted bass player. Chris has recorded albums with Tommy Lee (Never a Dull Moment, Tommyland: The Ride), Rob Zombie (Sinister Urge, House of a Thousand Corpses), Michelle Branch (Hotel Paper), Shakira (Fijacion Oral, Volumes 1 & 2) and has just completed work on Santana's newest record (All That I Am) amongst many, many others. His ability to work with numerous musicians led him to drummer Stephen Perkins while recording with Tommy Lee. Perkins and Chris immediately hit it off both as musicians and friends. As a result, Chris joined Jane's Addiction for a world tour and the bands last studio record, Strays, in 2003.
Reaching beyond the scope of bands, Chris plays on various movie soundtracks including City ofAngels, the 40 Year Old Virgin and Two for the Money. Most recently, he has been working with Camp Freddy, a band consisting of well known rock musicians (Matt Sorum, Donovan Leitch, Billy Morrison and Dave Navarro) playing shows with Steven Tyler and many other talented musicians.
