You know this man's music, you've heard his songs played many times, perhaps not knowing that he was the writer.
And that, he says was his goal - to be the writer, not the star.
An Okie from Oklahoma City J.J. Cale's music was wonderful and bluesy. redolent of honky-tonks, bar bands good times, fun and more than a dash of darkness.
Sometimes a writer passes on and they are remembered for that one good thing they penned. Well, from J.J. Cale's hands we have many fine gems crafted, made perfectly the day he put down lyric and melody. Made immortal by many other rock and blues luminaries.
Truly a Troubadour, Cale's best known piece is probably "Cocaine" - which shows off his dark side. Subtle lyrics, sinuous guitars - and Clapton's version (studio or live) brings full polish to Cale's rough diamond.
Earlier, around 1970, Clapton had make one of Cale's first songs "After Midnight" a staple of FM-Radio playlists. Cale didn't realize that Clapton had covered his '66 B-side until Slowhand's version hit the charts.
Here is the typically laconic Cale giving us a beautiful rendition of After Midnight which he later brought back on the '71 album "Naturally" -
I'd think the Clapton cover held a special place in Cale's mind, for he was then flat busted broke. The money he received as a result of Clapton's cover was literally a life saver - and it proved to be the catalyst that pushed him into a solo career. It presaged a new morning in J.J. Cale's career - After Midnight indeed.
So many other premier rock, blues and country players then started mining Cale's songbook that it becomes hard to list them all. But I'll give pride of last listed Cale cover to "They Call Me The Breeze" and then let others shoot the breeze about the late, great J.J. Cale.
Here's Lynyrd Synyrd with their high-octane rendition:
And then J.J. Cale from a live concert at Carnegie Hall, laid back and almost ironic. The video includes some nice commentary from the man himself.
RIP - 74 years young.
Additions:
Some of the praise he earned from is peers over the years:
Neil Young - Of all the players I ever heard, it has to be Hendrix and J. J. Cale who are the best guitar players.
Eric Clapton, from a Vanity Fair interview -
Q: Which living person do you most admire?
A: J. J. Cale
An obituary, bio
at Rolling Stone magazine's web site:
Singer and songwriter JJ Cale, whose work became hits for a wide range of other artists including Eric Clapton and Lynyrd Skynyrd, died on Friday at the age of 74. According to the musician's website, he died at Scripps Hospital in La Jolla, California after suffering a heart attack.
Known for a relaxed blues style mixed with folk and jazz, Cale got his start playing in honky-tonks in Tulsa, Oklahoma, before joining the Grand Ole Opry road company. In 1964, he moved to Los Angeles, where he worked as a recording engineer for Leon Russell and Snuff Garrett. He recorded his first single for Liberty Records in 1965, with "After Midnight" as the B-side.