Strong Persuader

Strong Persuader is the fifth studio album by American blues singer and guitarist Robert Cray. It was recorded by Cray at the Los Angeles studios Sage & Sound and Haywood's with producers Bruce Bromberg and Dennis Walker,[1] before being released on November 17, 1986, by Mercury Records and Hightone Records.[2] Strong Persuader became his mainstream breakthrough and by 1995 it had sold over two million copies.[3] The record was later ranked #42 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 80's.[4]

Strong Persuader
Studio album by
Robert Cray
ReleasedNovember 17, 1986
StudioSage & Sound and Haywood's in Los Angeles
GenreBlues, soul
Length39:34
LabelMercury
ProducerBruce Bromberg, Dennis Walker
Robert Cray chronology
Showdown!
(1985)		 Strong Persuader
(1986)		 Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
(1988)

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Retrospective reviews
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Christgau's Record Guide: The '80sA+[6]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[7]

Strong Persuader received rave reviews from contemporary critics.[8] In a review for Rolling Stone, Jon Pareles said Cray delivered intriguing stories about sex and infidelity with disciplined singing, songwriting, and "a version of blues and soul that doesn't come from any one region, building an idiom for songs that tell with conversational directness the stories of ordinary folks".[9] Robert Christgau from The Village Voice praised Cray's sophisticated blues aesthetic and the songwriting of his supporting studio team, hailing Strong Persuader as "the best blues record in many, many years, so fervently crafted that it may even get what it deserves and become the first album to break out of the genre's sales ghetto since B.B. King was a hot item."[10]

At the end of 1986, Strong Persuader was voted the third best album of the year in the Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of American critics published by The Village Voice.[11] Christgau, the poll's supervisor, ranked it fourth on his own year-end list.[12] In a retrospective review, AllMusic critic Bill Dahl said "it was [Cray's] innovative expansion of the genre itself that makes this album a genuine 1980s classic."[5]

Track listing
  1. "Smoking Gun" (David Amy, Richard Cousins, Robert Cray) – 4:07
  2. "I Guess I Showed Her" (Dennis Walker) – 3:39
  3. "Right Next Door (Because of Me)" (Dennis Walker) – 4:19
  4. "Nothin' But a Woman" (David Amy, Cousins, Cray, Peter Boe, David Olson) – 3:58
  5. "Still Around" (Peter Boe) – 3:42
  6. "More Than I Can Stand" (Cray) – 2:57
  7. "Foul Play" (Dennis Walker) – 4:07
  8. "I Wonder" (Cray) – 3:57
  9. "Fantasized" (Dennis Walker) – 4:04
  10. "New Blood" (David Amy, Peter Boe, Cray, Ozall Washington) – 4:21

Personnel
  • Fidel Bell – mixing assistant
  • Charlie Brocco – mixing assistant
  • Peter Boe – keyboards
  • Bruce Bromberg – producer (songwriting credit: David Amy)
  • Richard Cousins – bass
  • Robert Cray – main performer, guitar, vocals
  • David Olson – drums
  • Lee Spath – percussion
  • Andrew Love – tenor saxophone
  • Wayne Jackson – trumpet, trombone

Singles
Year Release Chart positions
UK
[13]		 US
[14]		 US M.
[15]
1986 Smoking Gun — 22 2
1987 Right Next Door (Because Of Me) 50 80 27
I Guess I Showed Her — — 28

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[24] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[25] Gold 50,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[24] Platinum 100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[26] 4× Platinum 60,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[27] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References
  1. Anon. (1986). Strong Persuader (CD edition booklet). Robert Cray. Mercury. 830 568-2 M-1.
  2. Billboard Nov 15, 1986
  3. Billboard 1995
  4. Rolling Stone
  5. Bill Dahl. "Strong Persuader – Robert Cray, Robert Cray Band | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
  6. Christgau, Robert (1990). "The Robert Cray Band". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. p. 105. ISBN 067973015X.
  7. Larkin, Colin (2011). "Robert Cray". Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. p. 2006. ISBN 0857125958.
  8. Tamarkin, Jeff (December 13, 1986). "Talent In Action". Billboard. New York: 20. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  9. Pareles, Jon (January 29, 1987). "Robert Cray: Strong Persuader". Rolling Stone. New York. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  10. Christgau, Robert (December 2, 1986). "Blues Without Corn Pone". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  11. "The 1986 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. New York. March 3, 1987. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  12. Christgau, Robert (March 3, 1987). "Pazz & Jop 1986: Dean's List". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  13. UK Charts
  14. US Hot 100 US MSRT & Hot 100
  15. MSRT
  16. "Top Albums/CDs – Volume 46, No. 1, April 11, 1987". RPM magazine. Archived from the original on 8 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  17. "Dutchcharts.nl – Robert Cray – Strong Persuader" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  18. "Charts.nz – Robert Cray – Strong Persuader". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  19. "ROBERT CRAY BAND | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  20. "Strong Persuader – Billboard 200". Ultimate Music Database. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  21. "Dutch Charts – Jaaroverzichten 1987". Dutch Charts. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  22. "Top Selling Albums of 1987". The Official New Zealand Music Chart. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  23. "Robert Cray Album & Song Chart History". Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Robert Cray. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  24. "The Robert Cray Band" (PDF). Billboard Magazine. 1987-12-26. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  25. "Canadian album certifications – Robert Cray – Strong Persuader". Music Canada. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  26. "Latest Gold / Platinum Albums". RadioScope New Zealand. Archived from the original on 27 May 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2016.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
  27. "American album certifications – Robert Cray – Strong Persuader". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 30 April 2016. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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