Robert Cray switches producers for his second album in two years for Mascot/Provogue, but keeps the same visceral guitar presence on the advance single “You Move Me.” It’s bright, then serrated — and always right up front — throughout this loping paean to wobbly-kneed passion.
About that utterly in-the-pocket groove: In My Soul, due April 1, 2014, was overseen by Steve Jordan — a Grammy-winning do-anything drummer and producer, so it makes sense. “You Move Me” has the same kind of gutty Stax-meets-Chess undercarriage that drove stand-out previous Jordan projects like Keith Richards’ Talk is Cheap — which, ironically enough, boasted a song called “You Don’t Move Me.”
Elsewhere, the new Cray album promises another round of sweet-heated blues and soul-soaked numbers, including covers of Lou Rawls’ “Your Good Thing (Is About To End)” as well as Otis Redding’s “Nobody’s Fault But My Own,” the latter of which also features vocals from new drummer Les Falconer.
The lineup also includes keyboardist Dover Weinberg, a returning member from Cray bands of several years ago, and bassist Richard Cousins — who penned a tribute to Booker T. and the MGs called “Hip Tight Onions,” the first recorded Cray instrumental in memory.
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