Jim Croce: The Lost Recordings

Singer and songwriter Jim Croce had been looking for a break in the music business since making his first album in 1966, and it looked like he'd finally hit the big time in 1972 when he scored a hit single with the song "You Don't Mess Around with Jim" in 1972. Croce recorded three albums and landed a few more songs in the pop charts, including "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" and "Operator (That's Not the Way It Feels)," before his rising star suddenly fell on September 20, 1973, when he died in a plane crash following a concert in Louisiana. The Lost Recordings collects 12 rare recordings from Jim Croce: seven live songs from concerts staged in 1973, as well as original home-recorded demo tapes for five tunes, including "Time in a Bottle" and "These Dreams," with Croce accompanying himself on guitar. ~ Mark Deming