is less a singer than a performer who works from that conceptual base, not in the way does, knowingly carrying a tradition forward, half teacher and wise elder, but more as a populist, the of , say, or a less recalcitrant . To criticize him for not being or sort of misses the point of what is shooting for, and like discovered, bringing a modern - to a wide audience sure beats playing authentic for purists. Either path is as fake or as real as the other in a post-postmodern age where the creaks along as a single DNA strand in a world of , , and . All of which makes the a strange career path to use to get straight out of Compton, yet that's exactly what has done, rising out of one of toughest urban landscapes in the world by covering songs on his National steel guitar. So enough about whether he's a real bluesman or not, because in the end he has to put supper on the table, and he does it by crafting a warm, wry, -informed version of that wrestles with contemporary problems like how to pay the mortgage, the high price of coffee, or how to afford a vacation in France. the lead track on , pretty much states the case with the lines "Wake up Mama/Don't you fret/I found two cheap tickets/On the Internet," which sings in a honey-tinged voice over a patented and tasteful shuffle. Later, in he sings, "Better have good money/If you're looking for a house/In California," and again, he uses a shuffle to hang the news on, looking no further into the past than necessary to put the song across. is a solid guitar player, and is a master of the easy, nuanced vocal, and he makes like on this album, commenting on the little problems and travails of contemporary life with a winning grin and an assured stance that you can't help but like. Is this a great album? No, just a good one, all of a piece with his earlier work, and his debut release, simply called , is still probably your best bet for a first purchase. That's the album the critics like best because it stays closest to the definition of the , and it is a good album, but didn't trade Compton for the Delta just to stay there. He's looking for a house in California and a plane ticket to France. Aren't we all? That's the , folks. ~ Steve Leggett