Albert Collins, Robert Cray & Johnny Copeland - The Dream

Bromberg & Cray, BMG Bumblebee/Songs of Windswept Pacific, BMI

These three soulmates got together for four days in the studio, determined to challenge and inspire each other to classic performances. Albert and Johnny had been close friends since the mid-1950s, when they were both leading bands in Houston. Robert had committed to becoming a bluesman after Albert performed at his high school. In the 1970s, the young Robert Cray Band backed Albert when he played in the Pacific Northwest. Showdown!, a Grammy winner and Alligator’s best-selling album, was cut without rehearsal, with the arrangements created on the spot. The Dream was written in Robert’s motel room the night before it was recorded. He had never performed it before that day!