J.J. Cale, laid-back singer-songwriter, dies at 74

Dan Reilly of Spin reports: "J.J. Cale, the Oklahoma-born singer-songwriter whose songs 'After Midnight' and 'Cocaine' were made into hits by Eric Clapton, died Friday, July 26 in Los Angeles after suffering a heart attack. He was 74."

John Weldon Cale grew up in Tulsa, as did Leon Russell, and they were generally considered the chief authors of "the Tulsa Sound," which Reilly describes as a "languid mixture" of "jazz, blues, folk, and boogie." It fits into the later-defined Americana niche. He adopted the name J.J. to avoid confusion with John Cale of the Velvet Underground, Reilly notes. His success was mainly as a writer, but he hit No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1972 with "Crazy Mama."