Editing Christopher Cross (section)

===Early musical career===
Geppert, bassist Andy Salmon, and keyboardist Rob Meurer met in San Antonio when they were still teens. Geppert and Salmon became bandmates in Flash, with Geppert on guitar. Together, they formed Christopher Cross as a band and moved to Austin, where they added drummer [[Tommy Taylor (drummer)|Tommy Taylor]]. There, they played covers for cash while recording demo versions of original songs at Austin's Odyssey Sound, which later became Pecan Street Studio, which they shipped to record labels.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Frolik |first=Joe |title=Christopher Cross may let secret out of bag |page=29 |work=Austin American-Statesman |publication-date=March 10, 1979 |url=https://archive.org/details/20220728_20220728_2025}}</ref><ref name="Moser" /> Though they considered themselves a band, [[Warner Bros.]] signed Christopher Cross as a solo artist in early 1979.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="Moser">Margaret Moser. [https://www.austinchronicle.com/music/2012-01-20/the-reluctant-celebrity/ "The Reluctant Celebrity: Christopher Cross."] ''The Austin Chronicle.'' January 20, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2022.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Christopher Cross & Flash |url=http://www.saboomie.com/txband/flash.jpg |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715222114/http://www.saboomie.com/txband/flash.jpg |archive-date=July 15, 2011 |access-date=April 26, 2010}}</ref>

Although best known for his vocals and songwriting, Cross is also a skilled guitarist. [[Donald Fagen]] and [[Walter Becker]] of [[Steely Dan]] invited Cross to play on their albums, but Cross declined.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Flans |first=Robyn |date=September 25, 2015 |title=Classic Track: 'Ride Like the Wind,' Christopher Cross |url=https://www.mixonline.com/recording/classic-track-ride-wind-christopher-cross-425710 |website=Mixonline}}</ref> Cross also substituted for [[Ritchie Blackmore]] during a [[Deep Purple]] concert in 1970 when Blackmore fell ill.<ref name="Moser" /><ref>{{Cite interview |last=Cross |first=Christopher |interviewer=Greg Prato |title=Christopher Cross |url=https://www.songfacts.com/blog/interviews/christopher-cross |access-date=June 21, 2022 |work=Songfacts |date=October 18, 2013}}</ref>

Cross was the original owner of fellow Austin guitarist [[Stevie Ray Vaughan]]’s legendary “Number One” 1962/1963 hybrid [[Fender Stratocaster]]. Vaughan purchased the guitar at Ray Hennig’s Heart of Texas Music in Austin in 1974, only one day after Cross had traded the guitar for a [[Gibson Les Paul]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://acltv.com/2012/10/03/gear-blog-stevie-ray-vaughans-number-one/|title=Gear Blog: Stevie Ray Vaughan's Number One|website=Acltv.com|date=October 3, 2012|access-date=April 22, 2021}}</ref>