To Tulsa and Back: On Tour with J.J. Cale

The word “elusive” has been used so often to describe Oklahoma singer-songwriter-guitarist J.J. Cale that it might as well be his first name. But as Cale himself points out, if he was all that hard to pin down, he wouldn't have cooperated with German filmmaker Jorg Bundschuh on this lengthy and generally entertaining documentary. While Cale had a minor hit with "Crazy Mama," he is best known for songs covered by others ("Cocaine" and "After Midnight" by Eric Clapton; "Call Me the Breeze" by Lynyrd Skynyrd). But as we see from numerous performance clips from his tour in the summer of 2004, Cale's own style is winning and distinctive, and an obvious influence on several better-known musicians, including Clapton and especially Mark Knopfler. Combining country, blues, and jazz elements, Cale's sound is the epitome of laidback; indeed, the artist acknowledges the impact of Billie Holiday, who was well known for singing just behind the beat. Cale and his band have been together forever, and they concoct some ineffably cool, swampy grooves here. Yes, the sixty-something Cale (whose actual name is John Cale—it was changed so as not to be confused with the Velvet Underground cofounder) has remained well out of the spotlight for all these years, but that's mostly by choice: Cale isn't wild about hard work and does things strictly his way, once turning down a slot on American Bandstand because he didn't want to lip-sync. Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, DVD extras include over an hour's worth of bonus concert performances, acoustic jams, and extended interviews. Recommended. Aud: P. (S. Graham)