JJ Cale

J. J. Cale, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2013)

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Born: December 5, 1938
Died: July 26, 2013
Zodiac sign: Sagittarius
Birth year: 1938

About JJ Cale

John Weldon "JJ" Cale (December 5, 1938 – July 26, 2013) was an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Though he avoided the limelight, his influence as a musical artist has been acknowledged by figures such as Neil Young, Mark Knopfler, Waylon Jennings, and Eric Clapton, who described him as one of the most important artists in rock history. He is one of the originators of the Tulsa sound, a loose genre drawing on blues, rockabilly, country, and jazz. According to AllMusic, he was known for his "laconic delivery and shuffling boogie rhythm," as well as for his "laid-back rootsy style". He rarely diverted from this style throughout his career. In 2008, Cale and Clapton received a Grammy Award for their album The Road to Escondido.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

In 2008, Cale and Clapton received.

The world when JJ Cale was born

JJ Cale was born in 1938. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1938

#1 song"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" – Ella Fitzgerald
Top movieThe Adventures of Robin Hood
Best-selling bookRebecca – Daphne du Maurier

Headlines and milestones

Major sports momentJoe Louis knocks out Max Schmeling in round 1
Top headlineWar of the Worlds broadcast causes nationwide panic
Technology milestoneNuclear fission discovered
Defining fadSuperman debuts in Action Comics #1
Notable inventionInstant coffee (Nescafé)
World population2.30 billion

United States snapshot

U.S. leaderFranklin D. Roosevelt
Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
U.S. population129.8M

1938 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in JJ Cale's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure	1938	2026
Gas	$0.20	$3.45/gal
Average home	$5,100	$435,000
Average income	$2,800	$67,500
Minimum wage	$0.25	$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket	$0.25	$11.95
Postage stamp	$0.03	$0.73
Population	129.8M	341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.