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We were signed to Capitol Records in January 1969 and Nick Venet, along with Cashman, Pistilli
and West produced our first album, Ingrid and Jim Croce. The excitement was short lived and Jim
became disillusioned with the music business. His frustration only increased when the record
received little promotion. "We did an album and I couldnÕt understand why it became a trade secret. They ground it up and made Grand Funk records out of it," Jim would say, with small malice and a big grin. "It sold six copies in PXs in Thailand. We were playing these small colleges, a thousand miles apart, working them for a week, have one day off, and driving a thousand miles to the next one, sometimes a 24-hour drive, getting there exhausted just in time to play." But, off the road it was worse. We were flat broke and cooped up in a tiny apartment in the Bronx, waiting for something to happen. It was in New York, between college tours, that we met John Stockfish, Gordon LightfootÕs bass player. He needed a place to stay and Jim invited him to move in with us for a while. John brought his bass and his wife and stayed for six months. These were cramped and tense times, but John helped us refine our act and recorded with us. After the failure of the album, a year on the college circuit, and playing jingles in the studio, Jim apologetically told his buddy Tommy West that he had given it his best shot, but he had to get out of New York. In October 1970, we escaped to the country and the small town of Lyndell, Pennsylvania. During this year of rural retreat, we met a fine guitarist, Maury Muehlseisen. Maury had recently made an album for Cashman and West on Capitol called "Gingerbread." During JimÕs "lying low" period, he backed up Maury at his local concerts. But, when MauryÕs album failed, the young prodigy moved in with us in Lyndell and JimÕs music began to take on new dimensions. MauryÕs classical strengths embellished JimÕs traditional melodies and the two enjoyed a close personal and musical friendship. When Jim found out I was pregnant, he put his feelings about Tommy and business aside: "Bad experiences are valuable. I call it character development. I decided I was going to put every energy I had into getting back into music. I felt very strong about the things I was writing." In February 1971, ten days after Jim found out he was going to be a father, he sent Tommy a tape of the songs heÕd just written. Among them was "Operator (ThatÕs Not the Way It Feels)," "Walking Back to Georgia," "You DonÕt Mess Around With Jim," and "Time in a Bottle." On September 28, 1971, Jim watched Adrian James Croce being born. After a couple of weeks with his son, Jim was on his way back to New York to record his solo debut, You DonÕt Mess Around With Jim, at the Record Plant. Soon after its release in May 1972, the album yielded JimÕs first top ten hit. "You DonÕt Mess Around With Jim." Over the next 18 months, he was to record two more studio albums, scoring a total of four pop hits before his last, ill-fated plane ride on September 1973. One of the countryÕs most promising new stars was tragically silenced, but his voice continued to dominate the airwaves, as he logged six more hits on the pop charts in the three years following his passing. He lived to see his #1 single with "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" in April of 1973. Two months after his death, "Time in a Bottle" hit #1. And today, his memory lives on in these songs. More: From Hootenanny Introductions... Disillusioned After Our First Album... Jim Croce - The 50th Anniversary Collection |
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