Jim Croce: Time in a bottle

When my niece Jessica was born in 1986, my sister-in-law Candius used to sing to her to help her go to sleep. They would come to the farm regularly so Jessica could spend time with her grandparents and her uncle.

One Saturday morning, Jessica was crying and her mother started to sing to her.

“If I could save time in a bottle, the first thing that I’d like to do…”

That song rang a bell.

Before that, I had heard it in a commercial for a greatest hits record.

It was “The Very Best of Jim Croce”. Candius told me she sang a few of his songs to Jessica, either to calm her down or help her sleep.

Sadly, Jim Croce died 51 years ago today in a plane crash at the age of 30. When I saw that, I was reminded of my first exposure to Croce and how, over the years, I have come to know his music well.

History
Jim Croce was born in Philaelphia, grew up in a town west of the city where he went to high school, and enrolled at Villanova University. Wikipedia reveals it was there he became a leader of the Villanova Singers, formed bands, and performed at frat parties, coffee houses, and universities around Philadelphia.

He released his first album in 1966, financed by a $500 wedding gift from his parents. They told him he had to use the money to record an album. Their hope was the failure would compel Croce to use his education to get a “real job”.

Unfortunately, for Mama and Papa Croce, their plan failed. Their son sold all 500 copies that were made of his album.

Croce initially performed cover songs with his wife Ingrid, but soon they started writing their own. In 1968, they recorded their first album, “Jim & Ingrid Croce”. They would return to Pennsylvania. Jim took a job playing for $25, worked odd jobs, and continued writing songs.

They eventually returned to Philadelphia and Jim took a job at a radio station. In 1970, he met some people who helped him record his songs. Ingrid got pregnant in 1970 and Jim resolved to make music his profession. He sent a tape of his songs to a friend and producer in New York, hoping to get a record deal. In 1972, he did, signing a three-record contract with ABC Records.

He released two albums – “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” and “Life and Times” – and his songs began to get air play. He also toured and appeared on television to promote these records.

Croce just finished recording his third album, “I Got a Name”. About a week later, he was killed in an airplane crash on September 20, 1973. The next day the single “I Got a Name” was released.

He was just 30 years old.

The music
My first exposure to his music was a commercial promoting the record “The Very Best of Jim Croce”. I was immediately taken by the names of some of the songs such as “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim”; “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown”; “Roller Derby Queen”; and “Workin’ at the Car Wash Blues”. There were also ballads such as “Time in a Bottle”; “Operator”; “I Got a Name”; and “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song”.

As famous as these songs are, Jim Croce released a total of 12 singles in total between 1972 and 1976.

His first single was “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” in 1972 It peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100, and number four in Canada. “Operator (That’s Not the Way it Feels)” went to number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 11 in Canada.

“Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” became Croce’s first number one song in 1973 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in Canada.

The rest of the singles were released after Croce’s death. “I Got a Name” peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number eight in Canada. “Time in a Bottle” became Croce’s second number one single on the Billboard Hot 100 and in Canada; and “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song” peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and number four in Canada.

“Workin’ at the Car Wash Blues” peaked at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 18 in Canada. “Chain Gang Melody” was his last charting single, going to number 63 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 29 in Canada.

His last single, released in 1976, was “Mississippi Lady”, but it did not chart.

Musical memories
Over the years, Jim Croce’s music appeared in various places for me.

I was watching an episode of the police show “Hunter” in the 1984 to 1986 period, and there was this criminal wreaking havoc. As he stopped to commit each violent act, a little more of “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim” played.

A few years later, in 1994, I had season tickets to the Edmonton Eskimos. At the time they had a defensive lineman, who I loved, named Leroy Blugh. Sure enough, when he recorded a tackle or a quarterback sack, the stadium announcedr would say, “Tackle by Bad, Bad Leroy Blugh”. You had to see that coming.

Parting thoughts
In 1973, I was just three years old when Jim Croce died. It would be another decade before I came into contact with his music through that commercial for “The Very Best of Jim Croce”. The songs instantly stuck with me, especially “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim” and “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown”. They seemed to be telling stories about people.

I read that when Croce was working odd jobs, he came across a lot of people and experiences that he ended up writing songs about.

As interesting as those songs were, his ballads just melt my heart.

That’s why it makes sense my sister-in-law sang those sweet songs to her baby girl to help her sleep.

That’s the power of Jim Croce.