Jones, Jonathan <DJONES@TEAMUMC.COM> (11.06.2002)

I saw JJ in 1978 (give or take a year,my memory is a bit fuzzy due to chemical interference of my synapses) in Tempe,AZ.I remember being very excited to finally get to see the man making this wonderful music.I think I had only seen one snapshot of him on an album that still left me wondering what he looked like.The band came out and started playing,the unmistakeable sounds of his modified Harmony guitar were there.I could hear his resonant,almost whispering voice, but I could not figure out which of the musicians on stage was JJ.There were times when I could hear his voice but all mouths were closed onstage.I was getting a bit frustrated almost to the point of suspecting a hoax or ripoff.But the music was so great,I really didn't care.I went to the sidebar for another drink when I spotted him------behind the drummer with his chair leaned back against the wall,hat pulled down over his eyes,playing that old guitar and making it sing.

I immediately realized that for him to be out front would have been totally out of character.I returned to my seat,enjoyed the rest of the concert,realizing that I was among a numbered few at that time that had heard him live.And that one should go to hear a JJ Cale concert,not to see one.

Jacob Wareham <fldm@iup.edu> (22.12.2005)

Since I'm a man who likes his artists' resonance scores nice 'n' high, I decided to get Naturally, and J.J. cut me real deep with 'Strangers' and 'River'. The way he puts his whispery breath into his singing is so nice, and the guitarisms that stand out are perfect for remembering the songs. However, I always find myself wanting another minute or so, maybe just 30 seconds, out of some of these tracks, especially 'After Midnight'. They come and go too dang quick!

Timo Santajärvi <timo.kristian@gmail.com> (29.08.2006)

I have been J. J. Cale fan since 15 years old.. Not that i had had the life experience that interpeting some of these songs require; i just LOVED the sound of 'em!

Album Really is one of my favourite J. J. Cale albums; the shady bluesy sound of the record is just something i really like. My favourite songs of the album are Lies (of couse!), Everything will be allright, Changes and Goin down. Other songs are fine too, these just stand up from this album. I feel like Jacob of Natrually, some of these songs could have been a bit longer. Im not going to analyze every song here but you are most welcome to do so by listening this album. J. J. Cales music does not open in first time you listen it, so give it some time my friend; you wont be disappointed.

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hound <hound@ihug.co.nz> (13.04.2003)

this cd is certainly not a shitter as expressed it is one of my favourites well all of his cds are my favourites i think he is brilliant his music is so listenable even if it is slightly repetitive thats why I listen to him

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Pete Schlenker <peat5@go.com> (04.08.2002)

Let me start this reply off by saying that I am more impressed with the live sound of JJ Cale than I am with the studio recorded stuff. After I bought Live I purchased Anyway The Wind Blows, and for the most part, enjoyed the live version more than I did the studio versions of the songs. Anyway, my comments, per se, of the review of Live go as follows. 1) I agree that having the songs fade in and out seem a bit odd for a live album, but on the other hand, since these are recorded at different times and different places, the sound quality differs from each one. It's as if JJ sat in his studio and went "hrm, I like this recording of 'After Midnight' but I don't like how my bass player butchered 'Call Me the Breeze' here, aw, hell, I'll just paste my favorites together and call it good". It's not a traditional live album in that sense (most of the time they seem to mix "crowd noise" so that you can't tell that it's a different show, which I loathe) but it does seem to capture the live performances. And as I stated before, I love the "live" sound. It's very laid back, not a whole lot of studio stuff going on, and I think that, as a whole, the band adds it's own flavor to the music. And I'm a sucker for live music. But maybe since this album introduced me to JJ Cale, I see it a bit misty eyed.

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