Robert Cray - Smoking Gun

This is the music video to the song "Smoking Gun" by Robert Cray. It was first released in 1986 on Cray's album "Strong Persuader". The album was Cray's fifth album and it became his breakthrough album into mainstream recognition. On it's release as a single in 1987 "Smoking Gun" reached #22 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The music video show clips of Cray performing at various shows throughout the beginning of his career. The year and place of the performance clips are displayed at the beginning of each clip which is quite nice in my opinion.
The song also appeared on Cray's 2010 release "Cookin' in Mobile" which was a live CD/DVD release.
It's a great crossover song, and Cray's solo towards the end is amazing.

Enjoy ; )

Eric Clapton - Old Love

This is a live performance by British blues and rock guitarist Eric Clapton playing the song "Old Love" live at Hyde Park in 1997.
The song is originally off Clapton's 1989 album "Journeyman". The writing credit on the song is attributed to Clapton and fellow blues musician Robert Cray. The most successful song on the album however was "Bad Love", it did well in the charts and won Clapton a Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance in 1990. Clapton has also stated that this is one of his favourite albums from his career. (Cover art in picture below).

It's a really good performance of this magnificent song.

Enjoy ; )

The White Stripes/ The Rolling Stones ft. Robert Cray - Stop Breaking Down

These are two different contemporary versions of the classic Robert Johnson song "Stop Breaking Down".
The original recording done by Johnson was recorded in 1937 and released in 1938. Johnson did two takes of the song. They are pretty similar, but the length differs with 5 seconds. This original version is a solo piece with Johnson accompanying his own vocal performance on guitar. Both takes were originally used, but on two different pressings of the single.
The top video is of the duo The White Stripes doing their version of the song. This version was initially recorded and released on the duo's 1999 debut album entitled "The White Stripes". I really like this version. Jack's slide playing really elevates this song and breathes new life into it whilst still staying true to the original. Very well done in my opinion. (The video quality isn't the best, but still enjoyable).
The video below is The Rolling Stones' version of the song. The Rolling Stones recorded a cover of the song on their 1972 "Exile on Main St." album. This performance featuring Robert Cray is from the concert DVD "The Rolling Stones: Voodoo Lounge Live". The performances on this DVD were recorded in 2004. It's a very good version. Personally I prefer The White Stripe's rendition, but this version is very good as well.
So there you have it. Enjoy Johnson's original recording along with all of the modern interpretations of his stuff.

Enjoy ; )

John Lee Hooker feat. Bonnie Raitt - I'm in the Mood

This is a clip from the music video to the John Lee Hooker and Bonnie Raitt collaboration "I'm in the Mood".
The song is from Hooker's 1989 record "The Healer" which was a somewhat successful record for him peaking on no. 62 on the Billboard 200. The album featured collaborations on almost every single track, the guest artists included: Robert Cray, Carlos Santana and band, Los Lobos and of course Bonnie Raitt.
It's a very good album that really shows all aspects of what Hooker was as an artist. It features the bigger jazzy laid back thing on the Santana collaboration and there's also three tracks where Hooker accompanies himself in the style of the 30's and 20's, very cool indeed.
The cool thing is that the video is snapped from an old MTV broadcast. Remember? MTV used to play music videos, and good videos featuring talented artists. Wow miss those days, but at least we still have access to all of that through the computer.

Enjoy ; )

Cream - Sitting on Top of the World (Robert Cray)

This is a live version of the song "Sitting on Top of the World" live at the Royal Albert Hall in 2005. It was their reunion concert.
The song has a long history of covers and various performers. It was originally written by Walter Vinson and Lonnie Chatmon. It has been covered by an area of well known blues artists such as: Robert Cray, Big Bill Broonzy, Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, Bob Dylan, Taj Mahal, Willie Nelson, Jack White and B.B. King.
The version Cream covered was the one recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1957. The Cream version was released in 1968. I think that these bluesy interpenetrations of this classic song are both great. I also really like it the way Robert Cray plays it. It's a little more laid back and a little slower, and of course his playing adds to the experience. (Cray version embeded below).

I think it's a really good performance, and I really think that Cream did an amazing job on this. Clapton's playing is superb, Ginger's drumming is fitting and not too over the top and Jack Bruce sings the song beautifully and plays the harmonica on it as well. A great performance, no two great performances!

Enjoy ; )

Robert Cray - I'll Go On

This is a live performance from blues artist Robert Cray. Robert and his band plays the song "I'll Go On" from their 1995 album "Some Rainy Morning" (the performance is from 1996).
The song is an original Cray song as he composed both the song and the lyrics. I think it's a very good performance and a very good song. Cray portrays the role of both rhythm and lead player very well, and sings to perfection as well. The band is also very good.
It's a great performance of a great song.

Enjoy ; )

Jimmie Vaughan - Tick Tock

This is a performance by Jimmie Vaughan and a bunch of other artists. It's from the Stevie Ray Vaughan memorial concert commemorating the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan on August 27th 1990.
There were many artists present at the concert, and Jimmie sort of controlled the jam on a lot of the performances, and also starts off this performance. Present were: Bonnie Raitt, Robert Cray, Buddy Guy, Dr. John, Art Neville & Double Trouble.
The song is from the album Family Style by The Vaughan Brothers. It was the last album Stevie did, and he had always wanted to do a collaborative album with his brother.
This song sticks out as different, as it is about the world joining hands in peace, and in that sense a very beautiful blues ballad. In this performance the song is sung by a choir which helps give it a certain atmosphere.

Enjoy ; )

Robert Cray - Chicken In The Kitchen

Robert Cray Band on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno from Vanguard Records on Vimeo.
This is a performance from famous singer, songwriter and blues guitarist Robert Cray. The performance is from "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" where Cray was promoting his album "Cookin' in Mobile" a live album featuring an audio CD and a performance DVD.
He performs the song "Chicken In The Kitchen" a nice up tempo bluesy tune with a nice groove and rhythm. It's a very nice performance, and Cray is, as always, playing at the top of his game. It's just a wonderful song and a great performance.

Enjoy ; )

Chuck Berry - Nadine (incl. Rory Gallagher version)

Ok, so the first clip is of Chuck Berry performing his classic hit "Nadine". The performance is from the film "Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll" which is a film from 1987 celebrating Chuck's 60th birthday by having a concert featuring different artists who feel inspired by Chuck. On this performance we also have Keith Richards, Robert Cray and Bobby Keys. It's a great performance, the song is up-tempo and it's a good rock 'n' roll song performed by a Chuck Berry in the prime of his still continuing venue playing years.

Another artist who has played this song on numerous occasions is rock and blues guitarist Rory Gallagher. This performance is from 1982. It's a little slower than Chuck's original song, and it's an extended jam on the tune running into a time of approximately 9 minutes. The great thing about this version, besides Rory's excellent playing, is the horn section, and the work they put into it. This is Rory in a bigger set-up than usual, with a horn section and the whole thing, it's great, and Rory leaves plenty of room for the horns to do their part.
A great song, in two great performances. It's such a good song.

Previous posts from the film "Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll"

Wee Wee Hours - Chuck Berry ft. Eric Clapton
Hoochie Coochie Gal - Etta James
 
Enjoy ; ) 

Eric Clapton & Robert Cray - Befor You Accuse Me

This is a performance from the American TV-show "Nightmusic", a TV-show that had live music and exposed both new and unknown talent. It had a wide variety of acts, from blues and rock acts like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, Robert Cray to classic music in the form of the Kronos Quartet.
This is a performance by Clapton also featuring Robert Cray, they both do a solo. The song was originally done by rock legend Bo Diddley, but has been covered in two different versions by Clapton. He had an acoustic version of the song on his 1992 unplugged album. He has also done electric versions both live and in the studio. It's a great performance, and both Clapton and Cray play really good on the song.

Enjoy ; )

Sugar Blue - Hoochie Coochie Man

I knew at some point I would be posting different versions of the same song. I previously posted this in a version from the rock 'n' roll film about Chuck Berry featuring Keith Richards, Robert Cray and Etta James singing the song. Click here to go to that post.

This is another version of the same song. It's by blues musician Sugar Blue. He plays the harmonica, and plays it better than anyone I've heard. He truly pushes the limitations of what that instrument is capable of. And he's so cool wearing his military belt with harmonicas in different keys. Truly a great player, just thought I'd share his talent with the world.


Enjoy ; )

Robert Cray - Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark

This is the music video for the Robert Cray song "Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark". It's a great little blues number, with an upbeat rhythm. The good thing about Cray is that he's original while still sticking to and knowing all of the old blues stuff. He composes and does his own original songs and makes his own lyrics, a relate-able blues.
Cray has played with many artists and a lot of his idols, I love the version him and Stevie Ray Vaughan did live of Cray's song "New Blood"(click link to listen). It's a great performance, and Cray's got a great voice and good guitar skills, a true double threat.

Enjoy ; )

Wee Wee Hours - Chuck Berry with Eric Clapton

This is a performance from the documentary "Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll". It's a documentary about Chuck Berry, and the influence his playing has had on more contemporary players. The film was made in celebration of Chuck's 60th birthday, and he looks better than ever in the film, energetic and young. He performs on stage with a long list of artists including; Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Etta James, Johnnie Johnson, Bobby Keys and Keith Richards to name a few.
This is a great performance, love it when Clapton goes off and does two solos in a row, as Chuck says "...Eric Clapton; man of the blues", and that's true.

Enjoy ; )

Etta James - Hoochie Coochie Gal

This video is from the Chuck Berry documentary 'Hail Hail Rock 'n' Roll'. It features a performance of the classic Willie Dixon blues tune 'Hoochie Coochie Man'. It was made famous and performed by Muddy Waters, and have been covered by numerous artists including; Eric Clapton, Steppenwolf and Buddy Guy. I love this version, because Etta really brings something to the table, she sings amazingly on it. She is truly versatile, can do both ballads, blues and rock 'n' roll.
The song also features a smokin' piano solo by Johnnie Johnson who was a regular with Chuck on the road. On guitar is Keith Richards and Robert Cray, and we get some sweet reaction shots from Chuck who is simply stunned by the performance.
Enjoy ; )