J.J. Cale
Musician · 1938–2013 · Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Best known for
Songwriter
J.J. Cale was an Oklahoma-born guitarist, singer, and songwriter who, working out of Tulsa from the 1960s onward, developed the laconic guitar-and-vocal sound that became known as the Tulsa Sound and wrote two of the touchstone songs of 1970s blues-rock — “After Midnight” (an Eric Clapton hit, 1970) and “Cocaine” (Clapton, 1977).
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- Born John Weldon Cale on December 5, 1938, in Oklahoma City; grew up in Tulsa.
- Picked up the stage name “J.J. Cale” from Los Angeles club owner Elmer Valentine, who wanted to avoid confusion with John Cale of the Velvet Underground.
- Wrote “After Midnight”; Eric Clapton’s 1970 recording reached the U.S. Top 20 and brought Cale’s songwriting royalties.
- Wrote “Cocaine” in 1976; Eric Clapton’s 1977 cover became one of the most-played songs of the late 1970s.
- Recorded fourteen studio albums of his own, mixing blues, country, jazz, and folk in the Tulsa style.
- Won a Grammy in 2008 for the duet album The Road to Escondido with Eric Clapton.
- Died of a heart attack in La Jolla, California on July 26, 2013, at age 74.
