Charles R. Cross, the celebrated Seattle music writer, passed away peacefully in his sleep on August 9th, 2024.
His family announced the sad news, expressing their deep sorrow and explaining they are struggling with the next steps. He was 67 years old.
Cross had a significant impact on Seattle’s music world through his work as a journalist and fan. He started at The Rocket, a free biweekly music magazine in Seattle, in 1982 and became its editor by 1986 until it ended in 2000. During this time, he witnessed Kurt Cobain’s rise from seeking band members to becoming Nirvana’s iconic frontman featured on The Rocket‘s cover.
In 2001, Cross released Heavier Than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain, which hit the New York Times bestseller list and earned him the ASCAP Award for Outstanding Biography in 2002. To write this book, he conducted over 400 interviews and accessed Cobain’s personal journals, lyrics, and photos provided by Courtney Love. Later works included Cobain Unseen, filled with rare artifacts from Cobain’s life that he discovered while writing his biography.
Fans often find themselves reflecting on how deeply Cross influenced their understanding of these musicians’ lives.
A bit earlier in his career journey, Cross focused on Bruce Springsteen by founding Backstreets Magazine. This fanzine started as something handed out at a Springsteen concert but turned into an important publication about Springsteen and his band for over four decades. This project led him to write his first book about Springsteen called Backstreets: Springsteen, the Man and His Music.
Nine books came from Cross’s pen throughout his career; among them were popular titles like the Jimi Hendrix biography Room Full of Mirrors, published in 2005; two books about Led Zeppelin; and collaborations such as one with Jim Berkenstadt on Nirvana’s album “Nevermind” or another with Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart for their memoir titled Kicking & Dreaming: A Story of Heart, Soul, and Rock & Roll. As a journalist contributing to major publications like Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Times,
