Bobby Bland: Deep Cuts

When Bobby “Blue” Bland made his name as a blues icon in the ‘50 and ‘60s, it was just the beginning—he made plenty of vital music in the ensuing decades. On 1985's “Straight from the Shoulder,” he warns against “off the wall jivin'” over a convincingly propulsive and funky groove. “Memphis Monday Morning,” from 1998, is a tears-in-your-beer ballad that epitomizes blues catharsis.