I decided to apply for this gig largely because I didn't know anything about Robert Cray beyond the name. I knew he was a good guitarist, but I couldn't have told you a single song by him. Given that I get to see gigs for free, it seems like a sensible idea to be a bit more adventurous than I might be with my own money.
Robert Cray first came to mainstream attention with his 1986 album Strong Persuader. He was feted by stars such as Eric Clapton and, for a while, his star shone brightly but after a couple more bluesy-soul albums, he largely disappeared from sight in the UK.
Despite a low public profile of late, his gig at De Montfort Hall was well attended by a largely appreciative audience to whom Cray revealed he had got married in Leicester 20 years ago. His voice was smooth and expressive, his guitar phrasing quite sublime and his four-piece band were tight and economical as they laid down some smooth mid-tempo tracks.
A common criticism is that Cray is too pop for blues fans but too bluesy for pop fans. It's clear that his music is as much rooted in the Stax sound and even bands such as Jethro Tull and Fleetwood Mac, whose songs he covered in his first band, just not enough. There was even an audience heckle demanding some proper blues. Cray refused to rise to it, and just said there'd be some bluesier stuff later.
A more valid criticism was that his set list lacked sufficient dynamics – too many of his tracks are cut from the same cloth. Even songs he declared were funky weren't really that different from the rest of the set and in an 80-minute show that was unfortunate. Where was the light and shade? The blues stuff he said was coming later was never really bluesy. You could hear the man could put some great licks together, but he never really cut loose. Even live, it was like there was a coffee table album production gloss over everything. I had to agree with the heckler. I hadn't even known he'd covered stuff like Tull or Hendrix let alone expected it, but it would have been welcome.
The show was a fine display of consummate musicianship, particularly between Cray's lyrical guitar playing and Jim Pugh's fine piano and organ work and I genuinely quite enjoyed it despite not really being my thing. Lyrically, it seemed pretty banal stuff. You didn't get any sense that it was autobiographical or even particularly meaningful. Chicken In The Kitchen was not a great existential essay, let us say, but then it wasn't really the point of music like this, and I'm just being a churl.
Robert Cray first came to mainstream attention with his 1986 album Strong Persuader. He was feted by stars such as Eric Clapton and, for a while, his star shone brightly but after a couple more bluesy-soul albums, he largely disappeared from sight in the UK.
Despite a low public profile of late, his gig at De Montfort Hall was well attended by a largely appreciative audience to whom Cray revealed he had got married in Leicester 20 years ago. His voice was smooth and expressive, his guitar phrasing quite sublime and his four-piece band were tight and economical as they laid down some smooth mid-tempo tracks.
A common criticism is that Cray is too pop for blues fans but too bluesy for pop fans. It's clear that his music is as much rooted in the Stax sound and even bands such as Jethro Tull and Fleetwood Mac, whose songs he covered in his first band, just not enough. There was even an audience heckle demanding some proper blues. Cray refused to rise to it, and just said there'd be some bluesier stuff later.
A more valid criticism was that his set list lacked sufficient dynamics – too many of his tracks are cut from the same cloth. Even songs he declared were funky weren't really that different from the rest of the set and in an 80-minute show that was unfortunate. Where was the light and shade? The blues stuff he said was coming later was never really bluesy. You could hear the man could put some great licks together, but he never really cut loose. Even live, it was like there was a coffee table album production gloss over everything. I had to agree with the heckler. I hadn't even known he'd covered stuff like Tull or Hendrix let alone expected it, but it would have been welcome.
The show was a fine display of consummate musicianship, particularly between Cray's lyrical guitar playing and Jim Pugh's fine piano and organ work and I genuinely quite enjoyed it despite not really being my thing. Lyrically, it seemed pretty banal stuff. You didn't get any sense that it was autobiographical or even particularly meaningful. Chicken In The Kitchen was not a great existential essay, let us say, but then it wasn't really the point of music like this, and I'm just being a churl.
Robert Cray and his band were clearly excellent musicians but by god did the sameyness detract.
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