On the eve of JJ Cale’s first posthumous album, his widow and former bandmate, Christine Lakeland, gave us a tour of his guitar collection. This is the truth behind the legend’s one-off models, his refusal to release a signature guitar – and the gig that meant he never trusted a tech again…
Close your eyes and he could still be with us. That inimitable creaky door of a voice. That unforgettable bob-and-weave guitar work. For JJ Cale’s widow and former bandmate, Christine Lakeland, it was an emotional wrench to embark on Stay Around, the new posthumous album whose 15 songs were foraged from the demos left behind by the late legend upon his 2013 death. “But when I found the title track,” she recalls, “it floored me. I thought this music should be heard, y’know?”
For Cale fans, this material is an unexpected pleasure: a few last shards of genius to hold close. Thankfully, for Lakeland, there are other mementos to keep her late husband’s memory alive. Sprawled across the couple’s South California home – and in storage nearby – lies Cale’s 50-strong guitar collection, and it’s one of the most eye-opening A-list hauls around: mostly dirt-cheap, heavily modified and as unique as the man himself. “You know how some people collect automobiles?” Lakeland muses. “Well, John’s thing was guitars. He had a lot of them…”
How did it feel to put together Stay Around?
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July 2019 من Guitarist.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July 2019 من Guitarist.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
BASIC INSTINCTS
The sophisticated range of Swedish-designed guitars made by .strandberg* has lured thousands of players over to the headless side. But the company's new stripped-back Boden Essential model is its strongest play yet for the hearts and minds of mainstream players
Second String
As PRS's more affordable USA-made S2 line moves into its second decade, the series gets a revamp with - at last - USA-made pickups and electronics. What took so long?
PABLO VAN DE POEL
When a band from The Netherlands describes themselves as 'raw, psychedelic Southern rock', it may take a little cognitive processing to work out what that might mean. One listen to DeWolff, however, and you will be duly transported to the 60s for some fuzzed-out rock 'n' roll
THE BERNIE MARSDEN COLLECTION
With a fabulous collection of the late Bernie Marsden's guitars, amps and other highly collectable music gear going under the auctioneer's hammer on 11 June, we were thrilled to have the chance of a sneak preview
LENNY KRAVITZ
Some 35 years since the release of his debut LP, for his 12th record, Blue Electric Light, Lenny Kravitz is back again with equal doses of vigour and vibes, using vintage guitars and the purest valve amps
GEORGE VJESTICA
You may not know him at first glance, but the work of Stoke-on-Trent native George Vjestica has probably impacted some of your favourite albums and movies
DICKEY BETTS
Emerging from the shadow of Duane to write signature hit Ramblin' Man, the Allman Brothers guitarist was a hard-living pioneer of Southern rock
NICK GUPPY
It is with great sadness that we report the passing of our highly valued amplifier guru, who died suddenly in April
Lucky Break
Alex Bishop blends old wood with new in an attempt to fix a severely damaged guitar headstock
Tones Behind The Tracks
Cedric Burnside learnt at the knee of his fabled grandfather, but his latest album is a hill country blues masterclass on his own terms
