Next to Eric Clapton and B.B. King, Robert Cray has probably done more to take the blues out of the juke joints and into the American mainstream than any other living bluesman.
From the blues purist point of view, he's a stylist in the Chicago tradition. To the masses, he's a bluesman with an uncanny knack for rock 'n' roll riffs that transcends the obscurity of the blues genre as a whole.Somehow, some way, Cray has walked the delicate balance between traditional blues and commercialism, and his latest release, "Some Rainy Morning," is no exception.
With this delightful, often-brilliant collection of mostly original tunes, Cray dives relentlessly into the topical well that historically has inspired great bluesmen: love and lust, fidelity and betrayal, despair and hope. Collectively, they are themes that cross racial and musical boundaries.
Cray will unveil "Some Rainy Morning" for Utah audiences Friday night at the annual jazz and blues festival at Snowbird.
Centered on Cray's astonishing electric guitar virtuosity, "Some Rainy Morning" kicks off with the sizzling "Moan," followed by another Cray original "I'll Go Out." Both tunes are an expression of Cray's still-emerging talent, not only as a bluesman, but as craftsman of original tunes.
In fact, eight of the 10 cuts on "Rainy Morning" were written
by Cray and/or members of his band.
Other great tunes on this Cray enterprise include "Tell the Landlord," "Jealous Love," "Never Mattered Much" and "Holdin' On," written by Cray's organist Jim Pugh.
Collectively, "Some Rainy Morning" may be too commercial for hard-core blues fans. There are no acoustic Delta blues, no inspiring remakes of classic blues tunes and no real tribute to the masters who preceded him.
But Cray's music is not so much about looking back - there are plenty of other bluesmen capable of that. Rather, it is about charting a new course for the blues that promises to keep the genre accessible to millions.