Blues legend Robert Cray plays downtown Clearwater on Sunday

Blues guitar virtuoso Robert Cray recently cut ties with Eric Clapton, mainly due to Slowhand’s stance on vaccines and recent controversial song lyrics. Not that this show requires vaccination or negative COVID-19 tests for admission, but Cray remains a semi-annual favorite in Tampa Bay.

His latest record, That’s What I Heard, features tributes to bluesmen Bobby “Blue” Bland and Curtis Mayfield, amongst others. But in terms of his return to Clearwater, he’s likely going to skip over the covers, and stick to his own work.

Cray is 68 years old, so just for the sake of everyone’s health and safety—especially Cray’s—bring a mask.

This article appears in Jan 27 – Feb 2, 2022.