20th Century Masters - The DVD Collection: The Best of Robert Cray

AMG Review of 20th Century Masters - The DVD Collection: The Best of Robert Cray

William Ruhlmann
All Music Guide

This compilation of Robert Cray music videos derives from the period 1986-1990, when Cray was being given major-label promotion by Mercury Records that included, of course, promotional clips intended for MTV and other television outlets. Three of the videos -- "Smoking Gun," "Right Next Door (Because of Me)," and "Nothin' But a Woman" -- visualize songs from Cray's 1986 Strong Persuader album; two -- "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" and "Acting This Way" -- are associated with 1988's Don't Be Afraid of the Dark; and "Forecast (Calls for Pain)" is drawn from 1990's Midnight Stroll. It is a pleasure to report, 15 to 19 years after the fact, that -- unlike many other videos of the 1980s and early '90s -- these do nothing to embarrass the artist. This is because gimmicks are kept to a minimum, while there is plenty of footage of Cray performing with his band. The guitarist must have had to avoid video directors only too anxious to dramatize the lyrics to "Right Next Door (Because of Me)," but if so, he succeeded; the clip just shows him in a room with his guitar and amplifier or fronting his group, and it's all the better for that. Models with '80s haircuts and clothing do inhabit "Nothin' But a Woman" and "Forecast (Calls for Pain)," but they don't take over the videos, which still focus on the Robert Cray Band. The closest thing to a concept video is the one for "Acting This Way," which intercuts comic book visuals with a live performance, but even that manages not to be too intrusive. These clips don't do anything to improve on the excellent songs and tight performances of some of Cray's best-known recordings -- but they also do no harm, and they make it look like a Cray concert would be well worth a look.