episode
1 : Freud's Dilemma - 03/12/21001
Chris finds himself dumped by his girlfriend
and questions what women really want. On a location shoot for a music
video, he is reminded of his ex-girlfriend by Nedra (Jacqueline Samuda),
an attractive, but rigid production accountant on his music video shoot.
Nedra seems to have absolutely no interest in Chris when he tries to
talk to her, but then every night she does a strip-tease in the hotel
room across the alley from his, apparently oblivious to him. Unnerved,
Chris consults his psychologist mother (who plays herself in a cameo),
but Dr. Isaak will only tell him to come to terms with his own libido.
Further complicating matters is actress Bai Ling, who co-stars in the
video with Chris. She arrives on set with a head full of insecurities
and a jealous kickboxer boyfriend. Not that anyone else in the band is
doing any better with affairs of the heart. Anson's romance
with Jodie (Rebecca Nygard), a young horsewoman, fizzles when he finds
himself intimidated by the thought that she'll compare him to her
well-endowed stallion. And Yola's scheme to land Chris
a prime slot on a television special, takes an unexpected turn after she
sends her competitive associate Cody to win over the
network's president, Clay Choper (Mark Houghton), who happens to be
partial to young men.
episode
2 :
Fantasia - 03/19/2001
When Anson is arrested for unpaid
parking tickets, Chris catches the eye of the lovely Bonnie (Gabrielle Miller), one of the arresting
officers. Bonnie gives Chris her number
and later, when they go out on a date, Chris finds himself strangely
aroused by her stories of life on the beat. But Bonnie has a dark side
and Chris soon has second thoughts about pursuing the beauty with the
badge. Meanwhile, Yola is experiencing her own strange
attraction for Dr. Morse (Robert Wisden), the handsome sleep specialist
she's seeing for her insomnia. And Anson, assigned to community service
for 37 unpaid parking tickets, is thrilled to find himself rubbing
elbows with Bret Michaels, the bad boy lead singer of Poison.
episode
3 : Crime and Punishement - 03/26/2001
In
an attempt to win favor with his new love interest and duet partner,
movie star Minnie Driver, Chris agrees to take care of her English
sheepdog, Otto. Unfortunately, Chris forgets Otto's special food. Before
he knows it, the pet rabbit, Mr. Whiskers, who belongs to the little
girl next door, lies dead and covered in dirt, apparently a victim of
the hungry and oversized dog. Desperate, Chris tries to cover for Otto,
washing the dirt from the bunny's fur and blow-drying him to make it
look as though Mr. Whiskers died of natural causes. Meanwhile, Chris's
manager Yola and his keyboard player Anson
are having their own troubles. Yola's got problems in the boardroom when
her hot-shot colleague Cody makes her feel old and out of touch. Anson's problems are in the
bedroom. His latest girlfriend Carol (Linnea Johnson) is hot, but she's deeply religious and she's wracked by
guilt whenever they make love. Anson finds her innocence and tortured
spirituality strangely arousing, until he too gets the feeling that God
is watching them.
episode
4 : It's The Music Stupid - 04/02/2001
For
a long time, Chris has been stalked by Kim (Eliza Murbac), a mousy fan
who is so obsessed with him that she camps outside his house and tries
to win him over with homemade banana bread. She suddenly disappears,
leaving behind only a red tennis shoe. Chris is at first relieved, but
then, he begins to worry and hires Ray (Ben Cardinal), a
musician-turned-private detective to track her down. And Kim's
disappearance isn't the only mystery. At an auction of celebrity
memorabilia, Chris gets into a bidding war with Joe Walsh over a guitar
owned by Elvis' sideman Scotty Moore, only to be beaten out by an
anonymous phone bidder. Yola is determined to find out
who got the guitar, so much so that she sabotages a blossoming
relationship with Denver Lane (Peter Wingfield), the antique expert and
auctioneer who oversaw the sale. Anson, meanwhile, is doing some
sabotaging of his own. When his father Merrill (Kevin McNulty), a
demanding figure who doesn't approve of his music, asks him and his
sister Marissa (Rita Bozi) to play a piece by Brahms at their mother's
birthday, Anson can't help but do everything possible to mess things up,
including bringing along tattooed punk rock singer Bif Naked.
episode
5 : The
Real Me - 04/09/2001
Chris is initially thrilled when cousin Ordell shows up with his new
band, especially since he had encouraged his ne'er do well relative to pursue a career in music. His excitement turns to dismay when he discovers that Ordell's new
band, Blue Hotel, is a Chris Isaak tribute band.
If it was anyone else, Chris would raise hell, but he still feels guilty about his role in a lawn-dart accident that cost Ordell a toe years
before. Ordell borrows Chris's clothes and dates his old girlfriends. When Ordell records a cheesy commercial for a fried chicken outlet using one of Chris's
songs, Chris finally has to say something. Meanwhile, Chris's band members are both intrigued and appalled by their
alter-egos. Anson bonds instantly whith Deke, his wild-man counterpart in Blue
Hotel. And Roly has his eye on the woman who plays Hershel in the band, much to Hershel's consternation. Yola tries to sort everything out, all while struggling with her love-hate relationship with
Cody, the young and cocky new manager at the agency.
episode 6 : Hurricane -
04/16/2001
When his band's guitar tech drunkenly passes out backstage, Chris hires Jimmy Vane, an amazing player who used to front a band called the Hurricanes, to replace
him. It turns out Jimmy's had a few rough years since Chris last heard him play - substance abuse
problems, some time in jail for petty theft - but he swears he's clean now and he does know
guitars. Things are okay at first, but soon Chris senses that Jimmy resents his success and Hershel isn't too happy when Jimmy steals the spotlight after being invited onstage to play with
Silvertone. Hershel isn't the only one with a rival. Yola is surprised to discover that her formerly chunky college pal Meg has slimmed down considerably and now uses her newly luscious boby to provide inspiration for great songwriter - in short, guys like
Chris. Meanwhile Anson finds his own form of feminine - if somewhat ghoulish - inspiration in Lisa, the makeup girl at the funeral parlour where he's landed a moonlighted gig playing
organ.
episode 7 : T&A - 04/23/2001
Chris's public image takes a weird turn when his old girlfriend, comic Caroline
Rhea, tells The Daily Scoop tabloid that Chris was shy about showing his butt when they had sex. When Chris tries to set the record
staight, it only gets worse. He shows Rhea what she accused him of hiding (by mooning her over the video phone), and she takes a picture and posts it on the
internet, turning his behind into a cause celebre. Chris confronts the tabloid reporter, a middle-aged man named
Tricia, who promises to fix things only to manufacture a picture of Chris dressed up like a stereotypical gay
leatherman. Anson meanwhile, hits up Chris for $2,000 to pay for his girlfriend's medical
treatment, neglecting to mention that the treatment is breast enhancement
surgery. And Yola, eager to outshine her rival Cody at a birthday party for
Leon, the head of the agency, tells a few white lies to score the loan of an $8,000 dress from a high-end boutique.
episode
8 : Mr Isaak's Opus
-04/30/2001
Inspired by his surfing pal Doc, a doctor who spends hiw vacations helping the poor in Latin
American, Chris decides he should play a charity gig, not for the usual publicity boost but for the good of his soul. After Chris rejects several high-profile
gigs, Yola tells him about a local Catholic school where Father Ken
McCurdy, an old high school friend, is helping to organize a benefit concert to raise money for a new band room. Chris agrees to play the benefit and then brings the band along to meet the kids and play a few tunes.
Meanwhile, Yola's friend Vivian, is donating her eggs to an infertile couple an the female hormones she's taking are making her
weepy. Yola's hormones are likewise in high gear, especially when she discovers Father Ken, who she always thought was gay, is anything but and has things on his mind that would make the Virgin Mary blush. Anson's got hormone issues as
well, namely that despite his best efforts at debauchery, he apparently hasn't made the cut at the new groupie
website. Determined to save his raunchy reputation and that of his band mates, Anson gets on the web and starts posting
reviews, with disastrous consequence.
episode
9 :Tomorrowland - 05/07/2001
When his boyhood musical idol, trumpeter Jo Jo Burnett (Alvin Sanders), dies suddenly after playing with Silvertone, Chris is shocked to learn that he left no friends or family. Determined not to face a similar fate when he grows old, Chris invites his girlfriend Celeste to go on tour with him. It's a fine way of showing his commitment to the relationship, but it is not, as it turns out, a good idea. Especially since being on the bus allows Celeste to catch a glimpse of the groupies and breast-flashing female fans and the juvenile antics of the other musicians. Meanwhile, Anson, always the party dog of the band, is having his own crisis of faith, sparked by a young woman's observation that his teeth were beginning to yellow. And Yola, who's also decided to come along on the tour, is making a mess of things with her micro-management.
episode
10 : Dancin' - 05/14/2001
Chris has never been much of a dancer, but when he catches a glimpse of
Jenna, the beautiful woman who runs the dance class Hershel and Roly have been
attending, he signs up. Unfortunately, instead of getting to know Jenna
better, he's partered with Irene, a severe and unpleasant woman in her 50s who works as a
therapist. When Jenna gives him a few tips after class, Chris has Fred Astaire
fantasies, but those vanish when she asks if, as a favor to her, he would accompany Irene to her daughter's
wedding. Chris reluctantly agrees only to learn later that Irene is really a dominatrix named Mistress
Livia. And Chris isn't the only one who finds himself in a world of kink.
When Cody persuades Yola to mentor Lauren, a friend of his from Harvard, he neglects to mention they're sleeping
together. Not only that, Yola must listen as Lauren describes in explicit details all of Cody's exotic sexual tricks, none of which he employed when he slept with
her.
Meanwhile, Anson finds himself homeless and wearing out his welcome on the couches of his
bandmates.
episode 11 : The Professionals - 05/21/01
When a stalker throws a brick through Chris's window, his record company insists he hire a bodyguard at their
expense. He's reluctant at first, but eventually he picks Brock Rudman, an intimidating and eminently qualified personal security expert. Brock cramps Chris's style and scares off his friends - Lisa Loeb is visibly
disappointed, thinking Chris has succumbed to the worst temptations of being a celebrity - but that's not the only
problem. It seems the hired
muscle has a broken heart and it falls to Chris to find a way to heal it.
Meanwhile, Anson is swept up in the paranoia and, since the record company won't pay for a
bodyguard, he arms himself with a stun-gun. And Yola, desperate to look her best for a Billboard magazine Women is Music
feature, has a very bad hair day when she gets tangled in a romantic triangle with her favorite
stylists, Maurice and Bridget.
episode 12 : Smackdown - 05/28/01
When Chris tries to convince Malcolm Gambol, the new VP at his label, to sponsor a major international tour, his pugilistic skills turn out to be as important as his musical
ones. The diminutive executive, it seems, is a big fight fan and he wants to spar with
Chris, who was once a successful amateur boxer. Chris takes it easy at
first, but when Malcolm begins to taunt him, he puts the VP on the
canvas. Strangely, that seems to win Malcolm over and he promises Chris the tour. But Chris soon learns that Malcolm doesn't limit his fondness for fisticuffs to the ring.
Anson, meanwhile, has an amazing new 18-year-old girlfriend named
Melissa. Unfortunately for Anson, Melissa turns out to be Kenney's niece and she's got a very protective
uncle. And Yola finally gets to meet Cody's parents and discovers
that they are anything but the bluebloods he's been making them out to
be.
episode 13 : Wages of fear - 06/04/01 Chris starts to worry when the IRS announces it will be conducting an audit of his tax returns, especially since he's been using a low-rent accountant for years. And when his attempts to charm Greta Prussy, the IRS auditor, are met with cold stares, he figures he's in real trouble. To further complicate matters, Yola's relationship with Brian, an environmental inventor and activist, is starting to heat up and Chris is beginning to feel a little bit jealous that his manager is going to have a life in with he plays no part. Yola's colleague Cody, with whom she had a brief fling, also feels pangs of jealousy. Anson meanwhile, is getting an altogether different feeling - an itch, courtesy of a rash that has erupted in his nether regions. Panicked, Anson figures he picked up some exotic disease while visiting the family of his new Russian
girlfriend, Svetlana.
episode
14 : Lost & Found - 06/11/01 After a month in the studio, Chris and the band have finally finished recording the title song for the new David Lynch movie. The next day, the studio burns down, taking with is the master recordings of the new song. Good thing Chris burned a CD version and brought it home. Now, if only he could find it. He tears his place apart and is cousin Ordell, who's also got a track on the same CD, stops by with a dowser, but the CD remains missing. As the clock ticks down to the deadline, it look like they'll have to record it again. But can they do in four hours what it took four weeks to do the first time.
As the tension rises, Anson is wondering if his new girlfriend Deedee is responsible for the CD's disappearance. After all, she is an obsessive collector who's already got Dave Matthew's old Snapple bottle and Fleas's toothbrush, not to mention Alanis's barrette. Yola, meanwhile, is exploring her creative side in a pottery class run by a charismatic and hunky ceramics artist named Stone. episode
15 : Storytime - 06/18/01 When Chris tears his hamstring surfing and is confined to a wheelchair, Yola hires a physical therapist to help nurse him back to health. The therapist, a beautiful Chinese woman named Debbie Fung, catches Chris's eye, but when he makes a play for her, she ignores him. Maybe it's the rejection, maybe it's the scary old movies he's been watching, but Chris starts to notice that there's something strange about Debbie. First, she won't tell him where she's from. Then he walks in on her while she's practicing kung fu. When he discovers another Chinese woman lurking in his garage, Chris is convinced something sinister is going on. To add to the intrigue, Anson gets wind of the fortune that, according to urban legend, is buried in the secret tunnels under Bimbo's. He heads down to look for it and when Kenney comes along to get his keys back from Anson, the two of them are trapped in the subterranean passages. Hershel, meanwhile, has an idea for a movie, but can't get anyone to listen. episode
16 - Our Place - 06/25/01
Chris is thrown for a loop when Rhonda, the winner of a radio station's 'Win a Date with Chris Isaak' contest seems to be a man in a dress. When Rhonda shows up backstage at Bimbo's just before Chris and the band are to play a live radio broadcast, Chris suspects that he/she is part of a practical joke but as they get acquainted, Chris discovers that Rhonda is a real fan, both of his music and of vintage rockabilly. At least Rhonda's certainly better company than his old flame Tanya, the DJ who is hosting the broadcast and who keeps asking strangely personal question during the interview segments. To further complicate matters, Chris's guest star on the broadcasts, Sheryl Crow, still hasn't arrived. Yola tries to manage the crisis without completely neglecting her new boyfriend, Sam, who has given up a chance to see Kathleen Battle in Porgy and Bess to come to the show. Anson, meanwhile, invites his classical music snob father to the show and discovers a secret from his dad's past.
episode 17 - Behind the Isaak
- 07/02/01
When VH1's Behind the Music arrives to do a segment on Chris, the record company sends over Dana, a woman who works in publicity. Knowing that Behind the Music loves tragedies and stars with feet of clay, Dana is determined to dig up all the dirt on Chris. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be much dirt to dig. Then Chris meets up with Maria, a photographer who dumped him nine years earlier and who now has an eight-year-old daughter named Chloe. He starts to notice that he has a lot in common with Chloe - they both love to surf and like old music, they both hate broccoli - and, after doing the math, he comes to the conclusion that he must be the little girl's father. But what if Dana finds out ? Dana, meanwhile, is getting busy with Anson, whise slovenly habits and sleazy style seem to be a strange sort of turn-on for the classy executive. And Yola is wracked with guilt after her complaints cost Gwen, a deaf-and-blind masseuse, her job.
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