THE label change to Sanctuary seems to have suited the now veteran blues, rock and southern soul guitarist. Cray sounds loose and confident as he and his band, notably long-time keyboard player and collaborator Jim Pugh, play a varied, intelligent set of ten songs.

As ever, Cray comes wrapped in contradictions: he's the blues singer who isn't strictly speaking a bluesman at all; and he's a black guitarist who has always been backed by a white band (a little like our own Joan Armatrading). Cray rises above all this, ignoring or perhaps even cheerfully embracing the contradictions - and good on him for that. First up is a Cray original, Survivor, a mix of Delta blues and funk, threaded through with philosophical lyrics weary at the world and its political ways. This is followed by the delightful Up In The Sky, by Pugh, and then a typical piece of wounded swagger on Back Door Slam, recalling the 1986 breakthrough album, Strong Persuader.

Updated: 11:07 Thursday, July 31, 2003