The Robert Cray Band - Strong Persuader (1986/2015) [Hi-Res]

Strong Persuader“ was a milestone both for Robert Cray and blues in the '80s. It earned Cray, a veteran of the Pacific Northwest blues scene, both his first solo Grammy and Top 30 hit ('Smoking Gun') along with a lift out of the blues ghetto which he'd been excelling in during recent years. As for the blues themselves, Cray infused fresh blood into a genre that had been limping along in that particular decade. With a smooth singing style to go with an equally recognizable guitar tone, Cray developed a sound that owed as much to soul stylist O.V. Wright as it did to Texas guitarist Albert Collins (with whom Cray had won a Grammy along with Johnny Copeland the prior year). The use of the Memphis Horns strengthened the soul connection on songs such as the punchy 'Nothing But A Woman' and the chugging effervescence of 'Guess I Showed Her.' Of course, Cray's heart lay in the blues and when he wasn't lamenting the woes of infidelity in 'Right Next Door (Because Of Me)' and a bad break-up in 'Still Around,' his guitar playing smoldered throughout the forlorn 'New Blood.'