One of rock music's original rock n' rollers, JJ Cale, died today at age 74. You may not have heard of him, but you have probably heard some of his songs, and no doubt heard his influence on some of the major rock artists in history...
RIP JJ Cale...
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Grammy-winning musician JJ Cale, whose best known songs became hits for Eric Clapton with "After Midnight" and Lynyrd Skynyrd with "Call Me the Breeze," has died. He was 74.
The performer and producer's manager Mike Kappus has told The Associated Press that the architect of the Tulsa Sound died Friday night of a heart attack at Scripps Hospital in La Jolla, Calif.
Born John Weldon Cale in Oklahoma City, he cut a wide path through 1970s rock 'n' roll, influencing some of the most famous musicians at the time with songs that were laid back and mellow, yet imbued with a driving groove.
Neil Young, Mark Knopfler and Bryan Ferry are among his many fans in the music world.
A former member of the Grand Ole Opry touring company, Cale never rose to the level of success of his admirers, but his fingerprints could be heard all over the genre in the 1970s, and his music remains influential.
His album with Eric Clapton "The Road to Escondido" won a Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 2007.
In 2006, Cale told the AP in an interview "I'd probably be selling shoes today if it wasn't for Eric."
Clapton also recorded Cale's "Cocaine," ''Travelin' Light" and "I'll Make Love To You Anytime."
Artists including Santana, The Allman Brothers and Johnny Cash have all covered Cale's songs.
On his website, Cale was asked if it bothers him that "contemporaries and critics list him amongst legends, and fans might love his songs yet not even know his name?"
"No, it doesn't bother me," he said with a laugh. "What's really nice is when you get a check in the mail."
The performer and producer's manager Mike Kappus has told The Associated Press that the architect of the Tulsa Sound died Friday night of a heart attack at Scripps Hospital in La Jolla, Calif.
Born John Weldon Cale in Oklahoma City, he cut a wide path through 1970s rock 'n' roll, influencing some of the most famous musicians at the time with songs that were laid back and mellow, yet imbued with a driving groove.
Neil Young, Mark Knopfler and Bryan Ferry are among his many fans in the music world.
A former member of the Grand Ole Opry touring company, Cale never rose to the level of success of his admirers, but his fingerprints could be heard all over the genre in the 1970s, and his music remains influential.
His album with Eric Clapton "The Road to Escondido" won a Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 2007.
In 2006, Cale told the AP in an interview "I'd probably be selling shoes today if it wasn't for Eric."
Clapton also recorded Cale's "Cocaine," ''Travelin' Light" and "I'll Make Love To You Anytime."
Artists including Santana, The Allman Brothers and Johnny Cash have all covered Cale's songs.
On his website, Cale was asked if it bothers him that "contemporaries and critics list him amongst legends, and fans might love his songs yet not even know his name?"
"No, it doesn't bother me," he said with a laugh. "What's really nice is when you get a check in the mail."
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.
Eric Clapton later scored his first solo hit with that song, and he went on to cover Cale's "Cocaine." Lynyrd Skynyrd found similar success with Cale's "Call Me the Breeze." Cale won a Grammy for his 2006 collaboration with Eric Clapton, The Road to Escondido.
Over a career that spans more than a dozen albums of his own, beginning with Naturally in 1972, Cale cultivated a quiet anonymity, doing few interviews, rarely performing live, and keeping his picture off his album covers in the first decade and a half of his career.
"I'm a background person," Cale told the Chicago Sun Times in 1990. "I'm not a household name. People have heard my music, but all my famous songs were made famous by somebody else. . . . But that was my goal."
In spite of the low profile, Cale continued to exert an influence on subsequent generations of musicians. "The effortlessness, that restraint and underplaying, under-singing ? it was just very powerful," Beck told the Los Angeles Times in 2009. "The power of doing less and holding back in a song, I've taken a lot of influence from that."
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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.
Eric Clapton later scored his first solo hit with that song, and he went on to cover Cale's "Cocaine." Lynyrd Skynyrd found similar success with Cale's "Call Me the Breeze." Cale won a Grammy for his 2006 collaboration with Eric Clapton, The Road to Escondido.
Over a career that spans more than a dozen albums of his own, beginning with Naturally in 1972, Cale cultivated a quiet anonymity, doing few interviews, rarely performing live, and keeping his picture off his album covers in the first decade and a half of his career.
"I'm a background person," Cale told the Chicago Sun Times in 1990. "I'm not a household name. People have heard my music, but all my famous songs were made famous by somebody else. . . . But that was my goal."
In spite of the low profile, Cale continued to exert an influence on subsequent generations of musicians. "The effortlessness, that restraint and underplaying, under-singing ? it was just very powerful," Beck told the Los Angeles Times in 2009. "The power of doing less and holding back in a song, I've taken a lot of influence from that."
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/ne...#ixzz2aGeXGbqi
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
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