It’s fair to sayRobert Cray is unhappy with the President. He sings pointedly, angrily, insistently; lacing the chorus of “ThisMan” with a bell-clear refrain: get himout. Under this rallying cry runs asmoldering organ and thick bass- an otherwise intoxicating groove fueling hispatriotic fight- showing that over four decades into his career, Robert Cray isstill punching as hard as ever.
The song is likesomething Marvin Gaye would have been doing 50 years ago and one of four Crayoriginals tucked into a dozen cuts on That’sWhat I Heard. Infused with nods toinfluences ranging from Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland and Sam Cooke to Curtis Mayfield andSha-Rae, this latest album is slightly reminiscent of Cray’s first studio LP 40years ago- Who’s Been Talking- thatcombined his own songwriting efforts with covers of blues legends such asWillie Dixon and Howlin’ Wolf. It’ssomewhat amazing, really, that as Cray has developed his artistic talents he’sremained virtually ageless in performance- playing guitar and, in particular,singing at such an exceptional level that his 20th studio set canfeel like a follow-up to his debut. Whether punctuating the pocket with stabbing guitar on “Anything YouWant,” strolling into Memphis gospel with Sunday conviction on “BuryingGround,” or matching his six-string jangle with sterling vocal vibrato on themid-tempo blues balladry of Bland’s “You’re the One,” Cray is emotionally andmusically present, pushing each cut to its convincing best.
He channelsMayfield’s upper register on the throwback soul of “You’ll Want Me Back,” thenrevs up the boogie, curling a Hendrix-like riff into “Hot.” And welcomes singer Steve Perry on the slower“Promises You Can’t Keep,” co-written by the album’s producer, drummer SteveJordan. The second half of the album isslightly less diverse than its first, mostly deploying slower ballads aroundthe strutting “Little Less Lonely” (penned by Cray’s first and current bassist,Richard Cousins) or between ravers “My Babe Likes to Boogaloo” and the closing,fuzz-toned “Do It;” that latter featuring an appearance from Sha-Rae guitaristRay Parker, Jr. It’s on that loose,jamming finale that Cray sings what could easily be his mantra: Ready to sockit to you.
