TAKE TWO: JIM CROCE

Jim Croce was a talented singer and songwriter whose career had begun to take off with a number of popular hit songs before his voice was prematurely silenced due to a tragic plane crash in 1973.

He was born in South Philly, PA. to Italian immigrants from Southern Italy. Croce had not seriously considered a career in music until he attended college at Villanova University where he got involved with the men's chorus and became a student disc jockey. He traveled with the school band singing around Africa and Europe with the young man becoming hooked on performing.

Croce met and fell in love with Ingrid Jacobson, a fellow musician in 1963 and they married three years later. Using the $500 cash wedding gift from his parents, Croce recorded and self-released his debut album, "Facets" in 1966. They were hoping that this would prove to him that he should give up this dream of a music career and settle down. However, Croce sold every album of the five hundred copies pressed and even made a profit.

Croce began performing with his wife and they would sing covers from popular musicians before doing original material they wrote. The couple were signed to Capitol Records and recorded a self titled album in 1968. They were encouraged to give New York a try by one of the producers of their album and moved to the city. Jim and Ingrid traveled around the state to promote their record but became disillusioned with the business and the city.

They moved back to Philadelphia and tried to settle down. Croce took a series of odd jobs but after discovering they were expecting their first child, he became determined to have a career as a musician. With their son, Adrian James born in 1971 and Ingrid becoming a stay-at-home mom, Croce went back on the road to perform and sent demos to a producer friend in New York. This helped lead him to being signed to a three-album deal with ABC Records in 1972.

He released the first two albums; "You Don't Mess Around with Jim" in 1972 and "Life and Times" the following year. These albums yielded the top-twenty US Billboard Hot 100 singles, "You Don't Mess Around with Jim", "Operator (That's Not the Way It Feels)" and "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" which went to number one on the chart and got Croce nominated for two Grammy awards for Best Pop Male Vocalist and Record of the Year. He toured extensively across the globe and appeared on several television programs. But he grew very homesick and planed to slow down after the release of his next album, "I Got a Name".

On September 20, 1973, the singer had boarded a charted flight with his band at the airport in Natchitoches, LA. to continue the tour to promote the "Life and Times" album. During take-off, the plane clipped a tree at the end of the runway and it crashed, killing all on board. Jim Croce was only thirty years old. The posthumous release, "I Got a Name" would feature three hit singles, "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues", "I'll Have to Say I Love You in a Song" and the title track.

I don't think the music of Jim Croce is receiving nearly enough attention today and this, in my very small way, is an attempt to place a spotlight back on this gifted musician and honor his legacy. Here are two of my favorite songs from this legendary performer:

BONNIE POINTER (1950 - 2020)

Bonnie Pointer, one of the original members of the musical family group, The Pointer Sisters before venturing out as a solo artist, has passed away today at the age of sixty-nine. No cause of death has currently been disclosed.

Bonnie was one of six children born to the Reverend Elton and Sarah Pointer with sisters, Ruth, Anita and June and brothers, Fritz and Aaron in Oakland, CA. They were warned that r&b and rock music were the sounds of the devil and while the girls sang in church, they would secretly listen to pop music whenever they could. After graduating from high school, Bonnie and June (who passed away in 2006 after years of struggles with drug abuse) formed a professional musical act. Anita and Ruth would join later and become the Pointer Sisters. They would record background vocals and tour with several performers before the sisters were signed to Atlantic Records in 1971.

With their first single "Yes We Can Can" in 1973, The Pointer Sisters went on to great success with several songs reaching the pop, r&b and even the country charts with "Fairytale", written by Bonnie and Anita Pointer, which won the sisters a Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group and later was covered by Elvis Presley.

In 1977, Bonnie left the group for a solo career. She was signed to Motown Records and recorded two albums which were largely disco versions of classic songs from the label. Two of Pointer's biggest hits were "Heaven Must Have Sent You", which reached No. 11 on Billboard Hot 100 chart and "Free Me from My Freedom" in 1978. She would occasionally reunite with her sisters in the 1990's and continued to perform as a solo performer with appearances in Las Vegas.

NUMBER ONE FLASHBACK

Forty years ago, disco ruled the airwaves and during this week Lipps, Inc.'s "Funkytown" was on top of the pop charts. This single, which reached number one in an impressive twenty-eight different countries, held this spot for four weeks in the US and remains one of the songs that best represents this dance craze.

This band was created by Steven Greenberg who was a Minnesota musician who wanted to jump on the disco bandwagon. He managed to get the attention of Casablanca Records with his song, "Rock It" which had been a local hit. Greenberg was signed to the label, the song was released nationally and reached the top twenty on the US Disco chart which prompted Casablanca to allow him to make an album. He assembled several session musicians and vocalist, Cynthia Johnson to make up Lipps, Inc.

"Funkytown", from the debut album, "Mouth To Mouth", was an instant hit and would be the group's only charting pop song in America. The only other significant hit for Lipps, Inc was a dance cover of Ace's 1975 hit, "How Long" which charted in a few countries including the US Dance. After Lipps Inc.'s third album "Designer Music", Johnson left the band and was replaced by Margie Cox and Melanie Rosales. There would be a final album, "4" in 1983 before Lipps, Inc. disbanded two years later. Let's get lost in the carefree time of dancing in a disco with "Funky Town":



The Australian rock band, Pseudo Echo did a cover of "Funkytown" in 1986. While it was intended to be more of a fun spoof, this group's version would also became a major international smash, reaching number six in America and number one in their native country, just like the original version. This would be Pseudo Echo's only significant hit and as a bonus, here is their dance-rock take of "Funkytown":

CHLOE X HALLE DO IT

Chloe x Halle, the Atlanta-born, LA raised, Bailey sisters, began their music career covering pop songs on their YouTube channel as teenagers. Their beautifully blended voices caught the attention of Beyoncé after she heard their version of her song, "Pretty Hurts" and signed the girls to her label, Parkwood Entertainment. After releasing several EPs, Chloe x Halle delivered their debut album, "The Kids Are Alright" in 2018. The record earned the sisters their first Grammy Award nominations including Best New Artist. Their follow-up album, "Ungodly Hour" is scheduled to be released this month and the first single, "Do It" is out now.  This is a great alt-r&b track and the music video for the song has inspired a viral TikTok dance challenge, helping make this the Bailey sisters' first charting song. Check it out:

RAIN ON ME

With the recent pairing of two superstar pop artists together on a song served to be the perfect distraction as we shelter-in-place, why not have another one? Lady Gaga, who had decided to delay the release of her sixth album, "Chromatica" until the fall over COVID-19 concerns but will now drop the record next week on May 29th, has partnered with Ariana Grande (fresh off her hit single with Justin Bieber) on her second single, "Rain On Me". This throbbing dance-floor jam (with production by Bloodpop and Burns) was inspired by conversations these performers had about trauma and difficult situations they had both experienced while being constantly in the public eye yet still appreciating all that they have accomplished. This empowering song will surely become a classic and the dynamic music video (directed by filmmaker, Robert Rodriguez) is wild, colorful and full of dancing bodies.

SET MY HEART ON FIRE IMMEDIATELY

Mike Hadreas, better known as the performer, Perfume Genius, has spent his career creating boldly, theatrical pop music that never shied away from intimate details involving his life as a queer artist. Last year, the thirty-eight year old singer had worked with choreographer, Kate Wallich on a dance project called "The Sun Still Burns Here" which he wrote music. This collaboration helped inspire songs for his fifth studio album, "Set My Heart On Fire Immediately" and changed his approach on how he created his songs, opening himself up with others present instead of first working on his music in an isolated way. And the songs here remain dramatic, filled with odd sounds, dark themes and aggressive energy yet also gentle and deeply emotional. Hadreas has decided to incorporate dance in to the videos for some of the songs which pay tribute to the homoerotic cinematic works by Claire Denis and Derek Jarman, particularly with the clip for "On The Floor" which the singer impressively dances with wild, sensual abandon. Here are some sights and sounds from the new album so you can completely experience the artistry of Perfume Genius:

BETTY WRIGHT (1953 - 2020)

One of the most dazzling voices in soul music, Betty Wright has sadly passed away on May 10th at the young age of sixty-six. She died in her home in Miami from complications of cancer. The singer, born Bessie Regina Norris, was also an acclaimed songwriter (winning her only Grammy out of six nomination in 1974 for Best R&B Song for co-writing, "Where Is The Love"), producer and worked with virtually everyone in all genres of music as a background vocalist. Wright would help nurture new musical talent including George and Gwen McCrae, Peter Brown and Joss Stone.

Music had always been a passion for Wright since she was a child as she became a part of her family's gospel group, Echoes of Joy. She performed and recorded with them until she was eleven years old. She then decided to move in to secular music and after being discovered at a Miami talent show, Wright signed to her first label, Deep City Records at the age of twelve in 1966. By the age of 15, she released her first solo album, "My First Time Around" and had her first top twenty r&b song and Top 40 on the pop charts with "Girls Can’t Do What the Guys Do".

In 1971, Wright would have her biggest commercial hit with "Clean Up Woman" that reached number two on the r&b chart, number six on the US pop chart and sold over a million copies. While she never had another major hit again, Wright would continue to record and tour throughout the rest of the 1970's and '80's. She started her own record label, Miss B Records in 1985 and would spend time writing and arranging music for other artists like Gloria Estefan, Tom Jones and Jennifer Lopez. Wright was asked to appear as a vocal coach on on the reality television series, "Making the Band" in 2006 and teamed-up with the Roots for her last studio album, "Betty Wright: The Movie" in 2011. Here is a small sample of music featuring the amazing voice of Betty Wright: