+ scroll down for Cocaine by Eric Clapton – studio and live versions
Australian singles charts:
Cocaine entered the Kent Music Report on 20 March 1978 and peaked at #10.
Album:
The song is on Troubadour which entered the Kent Music Report album charts on 11 October 1976 and peaked at #36.
Songwriter:
JJ Cale
Producer:
Audie Ashworth
Record label of Australian release:
Shelter
BONUS CLIPS BELOW – studio and live versions by Eric Clapton
Songfacts:
Cocaine was written and originally recorded by the Oklahoma blues guitarist JJ Cale.
Eric Clapton gave Cale a huge boost when he recorded Cale’s song After Midnight in 1970 and released it as his first solo single. This helped earn Cale a record deal and enough money to make music on his terms, which he did.
Cale recorded Cocaine on his fourth album, Troubadour, released in 1976.
When Clapton was looking for songs for his Slowhand album, he once again looked to Cale, and chose Cocaine, which became the first song on the set.
The lyrics are about drug addiction, something that Clapton knew quite well.
Read more: www.songfacts.com/facts/eric-clapton/cocaine
BONUS CLIPS
Eric Clapton released a version of Cocaine on his album Slowhand which entered the Kent Music Report album charts on 21 November 1977 and peaked at #46.
Eric Clapton Cocaine – from Eric Clapton: Live at the Royal Albert Hall concert film:
Cocaine by JJ Cale is also on our Spotify playlists Bang a Gong – the 70s and Bang a Gong – rockin’ the 60s & 70s
After you’ve listened to these songs, click HERE to pick another one!
New to Bang a Gong? Click HERE to learn more about us.