THE BARGAIN BUY: JJ Cale: The Very Best of JJ Cale

 |   |  1 min read

THE BARGAIN BUY: JJ Cale: The Very Best of JJ Cale

Detailed though it was about many aspects of Eric Clapton's personal life and musical influences, the recent doco A Life in 12 Bars did have some key omissions, not the least the influence of reggae and JJ Cale on him.

Cale, who died in 2013 aged 74, was also a major influence on Mark Knopfler.

But he was such a pivotal figure in Clapton's musical life (Clapton covered the low-key Cocaine, I'll Make Love to You Anytime and After Midnight in the Seventies when he was looking for an escape from the guitar hero status) that they recorded together on the album The Road to Escondido in 2006.

And after his death, Clapton organised the tribute album The Breeze; An Appreciation of JJ Cale (2014) with guests Knopfler, Tom Petty, Wille Nelson, Derek Trucks and others.

This 20 song collection captures Cale's laid back, less-is-more, rural cool in songs like the beautiful Magnolia, the easy roll of After Midnight, the soulful swampy sound of Cajun Moon and Crazy Mama, and more.

People use the word mellow to describe anything which doesn't shout at you, but the late JJ Cale epitomised the word.

We mention this compilation because it is just one in the two-for-$20 deals at JB Hi-Fi stores here.

JB_logoNot just a Bargain Buy but an essential album in any collection.

And you might like to check out this later Cale album which at first blush sounds very much in his formula but over time reveals itself.

Elsewhere wrote this earlier appreciation of the man who made mellow music for sitting on the back porch, or for a slow drive to nowhere in particular

Share It

Your Comments

post a comment

More from this section   The Bargain Buy articles index

THE BARGAIN BUY: Florence and the Machine; How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful

THE BARGAIN BUY: Florence and the Machine; How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful

There's an enormous amount of wrought emotion on this album which sounds like a collection of sometimes obsessively self-centred songs about heartbreak ,but Florence has the lungs, powerful vibrato... > Read more

THE BARGAIN BUY: The Best of the Kinks 1964-1971

THE BARGAIN BUY: The Best of the Kinks 1964-1971

Of course, no one in their right mind would pretend that the formative seven years of the Kinks would believe that this 17-song collection could somehow be "The Best of The Kinks". In... > Read more

Elsewhere at Elsewhere

Hayden Chisholm, Jonathan Crayford: Release And Return (Rattle/digital outlets)

Hayden Chisholm, Jonathan Crayford: Release And Return (Rattle/digital outlets)

In this country's numerically small but busy jazz community, this album was almost inevitable: two mid-career performers sensitively enjoying each other's company. Both players have appeared... > Read more

THE INVISIBLE MAN: This is how we disappear

THE INVISIBLE MAN: This is how we disappear

It was the damndest thing: I was a senior feature writer at the New Zealand Herald for 17 years (1987-2004) and was constantly busy. At least I thought I was. I started writing... > Read more