Jim Croce
BORN: January 10, 1943, Philadelphia, PA
DIED: September 20, 1973, Natchitoches, LA
In the music industry, arguably the worst tragedy that can befall an artist
is to die in their prime, when he or she is just beginning to break through
to the mainstream and reach people on a national level. One such artist was
Jim Croce, a songwriter with a knack for both upbeat, catchy singles and
empathetic, melancholy ballads. Though Croce only recorded a few studio albums
before an untimely plane crash, he continues to be remembered posthumously.
Croce appealed to fans as a common man, and it was not a gimmick -- he was
a father and husband who went through a series of blue-collar jobs. And whether
he used dry wit, gentle emotions, or sorrow, Croce sang with a rare form
of honesty and power. Few artists have ever been able to pull off such down-to-earth
storytelling as convincingly as Croce.
James Croce was born in Philadelphia, PA, on January 10, 1943. Raised on
ragtime and country, Croce played the accordion as a child and would eventually
teach himself the guitar. It wasn't until his freshman year of college that
he began to take music seriously, forming several bands over the next few
years. After graduation, he continued to play various gigs at local bars
and parties, working as both a teacher and construction worker to support
himself and his wife, Ingrid. In 1969, the Croces and an old friend from
college, Tommy West, moved to New York and record an album. When the Jim
and Ingrid record failed to sell, they moved to a farm in Lyndell, PA, where
Jim juggled several jobs, including singing for radio commercials. Eventually
he was noticed and signed by the ABC/Dunhill label and released his second
album, Life and Times, in 1973. The record spawned three hits: "You Don't
Mess Around With Jim," "Operator (That's Not the Way It Feels)," and "Bad,
Bad Leroy Brown." The latter would become Croce's breakthrough hit, shooting
all the way to number one on the Billboard charts.
After four years of grueling tour schedules, Croce grew homesick. Wishing
to spend more time with Ingrid and his infant son Adrian James, he planned
to take a break after the Life and Times tour was completed. Unfortunately,
the tour would never finish; just two months after "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown"
topped the charts, Croce's plane crashed in Natchitoches, LA. Croce and the
four other passengers (including band member Maury Muehleisen) were killed
instantly.
Ironically, Jim Croce's career peaked after his death. In 1974, the album
I Got a Name surfaced, containing the hit "Time in a Bottle," which would
become his second number one single. Shortly afterwards, "I'll Have to Say
I Love You in a Song" reached the Top Ten. Several albums were released posthumously,
most notably the greatest hits collection, Photographs and Memories, which
became a best-seller. Several other compilations have since been issued,
such as the 1992 release The 50th Anniversary Collection and the 2000 compilation
Time in a Bottle: The Definitive Collection. Listening to the songs Croce
recorded, one cannot help but wonder how far his extraordinary talents could
have taken him if he would have perhaps lived a few years longer. Unfortunately,
such a question may only be looked at rhetorically, but Jim Croce continues
to live on in the impressive catalog of songs he left behind. ~ Barry Weber,
All Music Guide