I have included Robert Cray on these pages because more than any contemporary artist, he has captured the essence of blues within a modern framework. Some would call it slick, but I hear real (if sometimes understated) emotion and honesty in his songs; he writes small, realistic vignettes of love and infidelity and delivers them convincingly without histrionics. His early records (Bad Influence, False Accusations, Strong Persuader) are particularly strong, but I come in praise of Heavy Picks: The Robert Cray Collection, a first-rate retrospective.