"To Tulsa and Back" On Tour with J.J. Cale This is an excellent documentary, performance, tour, and concert dvd of J.J.Cale. J.J.Cale is an American music legend, who has remained out of the spotlight, but has influenced many more popular musical legends including: Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, and Lynyrd Skynyrd to name a few. As this dvd reveals, J.J.Cale is a "cool dude" who writes cool songs. His band is real "cool" also. You get a good documentary of his life, his music, his band, and some great performance and concert footage. The dvd contains interviews and commentaries by J.J.Cale, his band members, his sister, and friends including Eric Clapton. The total running time is approximately 170 minutes. It is very interesting and not boring at all.
He has written hits like "After Midnight" and "Cocaine" both recorded by Eric Clapton, and the classic "They Call Me the Breeze" recorded by Lynyrd Skynyrd, and "Same old Blues" recorded by Lynyrd Skynyrd
The dvd is divided into 10 chapters. It contains bonus material as follows: 1. New Tracks. 2. Acostic Performances. 3. Concerts. 4. Interviews. 5. Credits.
J.J. Cale is about 65 years old at the time of this dvd. J.J. Cale is from Tulsa, Oklahoma. This dvd contains concert footage of J.J. and his band performing at the legendary "Cains Ballroom" in downtown Tulsa. This was built in 1924 when Tulsa was a "boom Oil town". This venue is notorius for being the place where Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys spent alot of their time performing.
There is footage of J.J. and his band performing some of his "cool songs", like "Mama don't allow no guitar playing around here". The dvd starts with this song as his band enters the stage one by one. "Mama don't allow no girl guitar players around here, then his good-looking girl guitar player enters stage playing guitar, "No bass guitar playing allowed" then his bass guitar player enters. "No piano player allowed, then the piano player enters, then drums, and etc. It's a "cool" introduction. His band consists of him and 5 other members.
There is also excellent footage of him and his band performaning with Eric Clapton at one of Eric Clapton's Guitar festivals in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, TX. There is more concert footage of him and his band performing at various venues including some in Colorado. Also, at times he has guest musicians perform with his band, including a "Cajun" Fiddle player from Louisiana.
You get performances of "After Midnight", "Cocaine", "Gasoline", "Bus Rider", "Lowdown" (Lowdown dirty shame), "Mamma don't allow no guitar playing around here", "They call me the Breeze", "Crazy Mamma" and others. The performances are great.
The dvd shows life on the road,in the tour bus, and checking in and out of hotels. J.J.even carries his own luggage. He doesn't act like a star. He even lives in moble home parks. He seems to be a rather simple man. The documentary portion covers that he moved form Tulsa to Los Angeles in the 60's, he enjoyed being a "hippie". He was drafted and went into the Air Force, where he learned technology which he used to become a recording engineer.
If you like watching a documentary biography of a "cool" American music legend, and watching J.J. and his "cool" band perform some "cool" songs, you'll enjoy this one. In that context, I highly recommend it.
Magnificant This DVD is well worth the $$$. His band is actually pretty poor, especially the keyboard player and Christine Lakeland, but it really doesn't matter. You get a wonderful view of JJs life and times and what it's been like for him. You get a lot of his songs and 4 played in front of Midwestern audiances and several acoustic performances while he stands on a street corner in Tulsa. If you really admire JJ, it's worth the price. It's in 5.1 surround sound which is how I listen to it, and it ROCKS.
Pleasant Watch Interesting to watch a previously secluded artist at close quarter. JJ Cale was always a mystery and an anti-hero and lots of us didn't even know what he looked like in real life. Not any more, as this DVD takes us inside inside his bus, backstage and up close having conversations about his musical beginings, his childhood etc. A good view for any JJ Cale fan.
Best way to learn more about this legendary songwriter/musician There is not much to be added to the other excellent reviews other than to explain four stars vs. five stars. This is a great documentary; a must for fans or even those merely curious to learn more. Having been born ten years to the day after J.J., I have a special affinity for the man and his music. This could just as easily be rated five stars, but I tend to reserve those for full blown performance videos. The rating is as much a statement that the production value of the disc is not quite state of the art as anything else. The performance of the band and interesting nature of the interviews are first rate. One of the other reviewers got it right by stating this is the way to do a documentary, however.
Everything a Music Docu. Should Be Up-close, candid, thorough, sympathetic without being flattering, substantial and insightful, down-to-earth, beautifully shot and cleverly edited, this music documentary does JJ justice -- it's the best I've seen in its genre.
The portrayal of JJ is unaffected and bristling with honesty and humor at every turn. Half way through, one cannot help but be swept by the laconic charm of the man, the band's one-day-at-a-time philosophy, and the perpetually perplexed interviewees (Clapton is effusive about the beguiling simplicity of JJ's ways and work). And then there's the music: stripped down, on stage, at home, in the studio, acoustic, electric, on street corners -- you name it. JJ was sixty five years old during the shooting and he's still looking for the next song! The man is driven; the music won't let go of him. How lucky can one man get?
The production itself is first rate. The photography is expertly done, the sound is crisp, the sequencing avoids the obvious, and the overall effect is both intelligent and genuinely moving.
There you go. It seems I can't say enough good things about this dvd. Oh well.
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