South Philly's Jim Croce messed around with fame

On Sept. 13, 1973, Jim Croce put the finishing touches on three songs to complete his third solo album. Seven days later he was dead, bringing to a tragic end a career that had skyrocketed him to fame in just two fast-paced years.

For Burlington County music fans, Croce had numerous connections to the area. He was born in South Philadelphia, attended Villanova University, was stationed as a soldier at Fort Dix, and performed locally, including Burlington County College. His steady accompanist, gifted guitarist Maury Muehleisen, was born and raised in Trenton. Springsteen fans, take note.

Croce was born 75 years ago on Jan. 10, 1943, and was performing by age 4. While a freshman at Villanova, he met Tommy Picardo (later Tommy West), who would be instrumental in advancing his career. He met his future wife, Ingrid, in 1962 when she auditioned for a hootenanny at a Philadelphia radio station; Croce was a judge. They hit it off and started a duet. They played at well-known area clubs such as the Second Fret and the Main Point, performing folk covers, while Ingrid also went to college and Jim worked odd jobs. When the couple married in 1966, Croce used $500 given as a wedding gift to finance his first recording, "Facets," printing up 500 copies privately that he sold at shows.

But his first real big break came in 1968, when West, who had just started a production company, offered to get him gigs in New York City. The couple, now married, were the first act West signed, and they quickly nabbed a recording contract from Capitol Records. Their self-titled debut made little impression, and they toiled for a year gigging on the college circuit.

A despondent Croce threw in the towel and moved to the Pennsylvania countryside in October 1970. Shortly thereafter, his wife was pregnant with their only child, but the seeds of promise were being planted. Croce spent that time focusing on his songwriting, with impressive results, and he had met Muehleisen. They put together a demo tape for West that contained such songs as "You Don't Mess Around With Jim," "Operator (That's Not the Way It Feels)" and "Time in a Bottle," which all appeared on Croce's first solo album and which all became Billboard Top 20 hits. West ended up producing and playing on nearly all of Croce's material.

In late September 1971, after his son was born, Croce returned to New York City to jump-start his faltering career. It jump-started very quickly and never slowed down.

The first single was the title track, "You Don't Mess Around With Jim," which peaked at No. 8. Seven months later, with a gold record under his belt, Croce was back in the studio working on his follow-up, "Life and Times." More hits and another gold record ensued. "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" was the first of two No. 1s.

Croce and Muehleisen embarked on a worldwide tour that included numerous television appearances, among them "American Bandstand" and "The Tonight Show." Croce wowed his audiences with terrific melodies, friendly banter, and an irresistible mix of uptempo barroom tales about truck drivers, roller derby queens and tough guys along with heartfelt ballads and love songs. What could go wrong? 

Plenty, it seems.

Croce might have achieved considerable acclaim, but his bank account did not reflect it. He toured continually to pay back his recording advances, and life on the road kept him away from his money-strapped wife and infant son. 

After he spent time in the recording studio during the summer of 1973, Croce vowed to scale back. But he never got the chance. With yet another hit, "I Got a Name," climbing the charts, Croce, Muehleisen and four others were killed when their airplane crashed in Natchitoches, Louisiana, after he had finished a show and was darting to Texas for another. He was 30.

Croce's third and final album, "I Got a Name," was released posthumously that December. It effortlessly reached No. 2 and also went gold. Two more singles cracked the Top 10 within the year, and more were released through 1976. Numerous compilations have been issued since. 

Croce's son wasn't quite 2 years old when the plane crash occurred, but the music genes clearly were strong. A.J. Croce, now 46, is a talented pianist and guitarist who has released 10 albums since 1993.

And to bring the local connection full circle, hunt down Cherry Hill native Toby Lightman's gorgeous rendition of "Operator."