Exclusive: Christine Lakeland’s Reverent “My Baby Blues” Is a Full-Circle Tribute to Her Late Husband J.J. Cale

Christine Lakeland has released her recording of the track titled “My Baby Blues” in honor of her late husband, singer/songwriter J.J. Cale.

“My Baby Blues” was originally written by Lakeland. “After Cale and I met in 1977 this was the first song we cut in the studio,” Lakeland recalls. “He cut his version in 1980. It was an unused outtake. To find that he had overdubbed and reworked it to his liking tied a lovely bow on this project for me. It was rare and special to record this song with these longtime Tulsa friends.”

Cale’s take on the track is also available as one of the 15 outtakes featured on the album Stay Around. The tracks were produced and mixed by Cale prior to his passing, and were compiled by Lakeland alongside Cale’s friend and longtime manager Mike Kappus.

The context of the straight-lined love song becomes a heavy-hearted tribute in Lakeland’s modern context. But side-by-side, the interpretations from Cale and Lakeland converge into an illustration for a lifetime worth of collaboration and passion for their craft.

Take a look at Lakeland’s live in-studio performance of the track below, featuring the accompaniment of Don White, David Teegarden, Steve Hickerson, Walt Richmond and Gary Gilmore. You can also read our profile of the late Cale and his songwriting legacy here.