Consumer Guide Album

J.J. Cale: Naturally [Shelter, 1971]
After years of combatting pretentiousness we discover that unpretentiousness can be just as bad. These murmured blues meditations are so easy on the spirit that even though they have their charms they invite the mistrust of moralizers like myself--there's just too much talent here to justify such slight results. Or maybe there isn't enough talent to justify such minimal effort--only if all the songs were as absolutely beguiling as the side-openers, "Call Me the Breeze" and "Crazy Mama," would the lassitude affected by all hands be as comfortable for us as I'm sure it was for them. Push a little, fellas, it'll feel so good. B