Rating: 5/5
Review:
A fine live album from the Great Man
If you're looking at this page you're probably a J.J. Cale fan like me. It's 40 years since a friend first waved Naturally at me and then put on Side 2. I hated the cover and thought I'd hate the music...but 30 seconds into Crazy Mama I was hooked, by the end of After Midnight I was a fan and after River Runs Deep I was a lifetime addict. I think a lot of people considering this will be in a similar position and - come on, admit it! - you know you're going to buy this anyway. A look at the track list, perhaps, but who needs a review? But for what it's worth:
This is a recording (put out in the wake of his very sad death in July 2013) of the Great Man playing live with "friends" including Christine Lakeland, his partner and later his wife. It was originally broadcast live from a café in Minnesota in 1988 and there are three extra live tracks added from 1975. There's a little chat but mainly just really good performances of great songs. They are almost all rather more punchy and higher-energy than the wonderfully laid-back originals and some (like Cocaine and After Midnight) are significantly different from the album versions. It's a fine reminder of what a very good guitarist JJ really was underneath the apparently effortless Cool, and the songs remain truly great. The recording quality is pretty good for a live set (although the 1975 tracks do sound a bit thin) and it's a very enjoyable album.
I love the originals so dearly that I'm not sure whether I'll play this as often as the studio albums, but it's a fine record of JJ playing live and I've got to have it in my collection. If you're new to J.J. Cale I wouldn't start with this (personally I'd recommend Naturally, Okie or Shades) but no-one will be disappointed here - it's a fine live album by one of the true greats of Rock & Roll. Warmly recommended.
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