His songs have been performed by a number of other musicians including "After Midnight" and "Cocaine" by Eric Clapton,"Cajun Moon" by Randy Crawford, "Clyde" and "Louisiana Women" by Waylon Jennings, "Magnolia" by Jai, "Bringing It Back" by Kansas, "Call Me the Breeze" and "I Got the Same Old Blues" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, "I'd Like to Love You, Baby" by Tom Petty, "Travelin' Light" and "Ride Me High" by Widespread Panic, "Tijuana" by Harry Manx, "Sensitive Kind" by Carlos Santana, "Cajun Moon" by Herbie Mann with Cissy Houston, and "Same Old Blues" by Captain Beefheart.
Cale was born on December 5, 1938, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He was raised in Tulsa and graduated from Tulsa Central High School in 1956. Along with a number of other young Tulsa musicians, Cale moved to Los Angeles in the early 1960s, where he first worked as a studio engineer.
The Leathercoated Minds was a 1966-67 psychedelic studio-based band masterminded largely by Snuff Garrett and J J Cale. The band produced one album, A Trip down the Sunset Strip, co-produced by Cale and Garrett
Finding little success as a recording artist, he later returned to Tulsa and was considering giving up the music business until Clapton recorded "After Midnight" in 1970. His first album, Naturally, established his style, described by Los Angeles Times writer Richard Cromelin as a "unique hybrid of blues, folk and jazz, marked by relaxed grooves and Cale's fluid guitar and laconic vocals. His early use of drum machines and his unconventional mixes lend a distinctive and timeless quality to his work and set him apart from the pack of Americana roots-music purists."
Some sources incorrectly give his real name as "Jean-Jacques Cale". In the 2006 documentary, To Tulsa and Back: On Tour with J.J. Cale, Cale talks about Elmer Valentine, co-owner of the Sunset Strip nightclub Whisky à GoGo, who employed him in the mid-1960s, being the one that came up with the "JJ" moniker to avoid confusion with the Velvet Underground's John Cale. Rocky Frisco tells the same version of the story mentioning the other John Cale but without further detail.
His biggest U.S. hit single, Crazy Mama, peaked at #22 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1972. During the 2006 documentary film To Tulsa and Back Cale recounts the story of being offered the opportunity to appear on Dick Clark's American Bandstand to promote the song, which would have moved the song higher on the charts. Cale declined when told he could not bring his band to the taping and would be required to lip-sync the words to the song.
Cale died on Friday, July 26, 2013, at Scripps Hospital in La Jolla, California, after suffering a heart attack.
Going Down
J.J. Cale Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Going down, down, down, down, down
I'm going down
Going down, down, down, down, down
Got my big feet,
Hanging on to the ground
Don't let me down,
Close that boxcar down
Close that boxcar down
I'm going back
to the border
Baby, where I'm better known
You know you haven't done nothing,
Drove a good man away from home
You better go to right, to the Lord
And confess, it's a sin
You know you ain't got no mercy,
Baby, you ain't got no friend
So, I'm going down
Going down, down, down, down, down
I'm going down
Going down, down, down, down, down
Got my big feet,
Hanging on to the ground
Don't let me down,
Close that boxcar down
Don't let me down,
Close that boxcar down
J.J. Cale's Going Down is a song about someone who is going down and nothing can stop them. The lyrics capture a sense of risky behavior and the need to make choices that will eventually lead to consequences. Although the lyrics do not delve into what is making the singer go down, it appears that they are running away from something or someone. The line "Got my big feet, hanging on to the ground" may suggest that the singer is trying to stay grounded while everything else is spinning out of control.
The chorus of "Going Down" emphasizes the inevitable nature of the situation. The repetition of the phrase "going down" creates a sense of urgency and sets the tone for the entire song. The singer's plea to "close that boxcar down" suggests that they are looking for a way to stop or slow down their descent but it may be too late.
Line by Line Meaning
Yeah, I'm going down
I am experiencing a deep decline or deteriorating situation.
Going down, down, down, down, down
My situation is progressively getting worse and worse.
I'm going down
I am descending to a lower level or status.
Going down, down, down, down, down
My descent is continuous and rapid.
Got my big feet,
I have robust, strong feet.
Hanging on to the ground
My feet are firmly planted and grounded.
Don't let me down,
Do not disappoint me or fail to fulfill your promises.
Close that boxcar down
Bring closure to this chapter or experience.
Don't let me down,
Do not let me fall or fail.
Close that boxcar down
Bring this particular journey or experience to an end.
I'm going back
I am retreating or returning to a previous state or place.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: GRAHAM JAMES HOOD, PAUL RICHARD DOHERTY, RODNEY JOHN RADALJ, SPENCER PATRICK JONES, WILLIAM JOHN POMMER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Paul Springett
Yeah, I'm going down...
Going down, down, down, down, down
I'm going down....
Going down, down, down, down, down
Got my big feet in the window
And my head hanging on the ground
Don't let me down,
close that boxcar down
Don't let me down,
close that boxcar down
Well, I'm goin' back to Chattanooga
And sleep on sister Irene's floor
K C
What a great song!! How did he get that great shuffle and piercing guitar licks so right so often!! Unique sound.
weltweit-in-berlin Roswitha Schäfer-Neubauer
Couldn't live without the sound and the rhythm and the philosophy of JJCALE...my love..!
chris stackhouse
I still cant believe JJ has left us, this is one of my favourite vinyl albums of his.......
ontariobuds
Are you Saul?
Slipping Jimmy
Reading your comment back I haven't quite replied properly, but you get my drift I'm sure!
Slipping Jimmy
chris stackhouse to be fair, not just his. This is better than most albums out there. In my humble opinion of course!
Robert Shaefer
The Best Original version! Many good ones but this is STILL the best.
Sander Frijters
one of the best ... after 1 min 20... ritme / body takes over :-)
Vera Lucia Pinto Rios
Maravilhoso ❤
DEBBIE L
saw him twice,,, not enough, I was listening to jj cale while all my friends were listening to peter frampton, not 2 say hes not a good musician, but I preferred my old hippie group,,,lol,,,,,,,,i fell in love with JJ CALE!,,,,,,,R.I.P. HEAVEN MUST ROCK!