That's Me in the Bar [20th Anniversary Edition]

Personnel: A.J. Croce (vocals, piano); Dean Parks (acoustic & electric guitar); Waddy Wachtel (acoustic, slide & electric guitar); Steve Bruton (guitar); John Goux (guitar, slide guitar); Sid Page, Bruce Dukov (violin); Robert Becker (viola); Suzie Katayama (cello); Dan Higgins (clarinet); David Hidalgo (accordion, aranja); Mitch Manker (trumpet); William Reichenbach (trombone); Billy Payne (piano); Rudy Copeland (Hammond B-3 organ); John Leftwich (acoustic & electric basses); Bob Glaub (bass); Jim Keltner (6-string bass, drums); Sweet Pea Atkinson, Sir Harry Bowens, Jonell Mosser (background vocals); Ry Cooder, Robben Ford.
Recorded at Conway Studios and Andora Studios, Los Angeles, California.
All songs written or co-written by A.J. Croce.
Singer/pianist A.J. Croce has a raspy voice that sounds a bit like Dr. John and a bluish style that, although jazz-tinged, also has country, blues, and R&B mixed together. On his second album, Croce performs a dozen of his songs, including "She's Waiting for Me," "Night Out on the Town," "Some People Call It Love," and "That's Me in the Bar." His lyrics express timeless sentiments and the music is reasonably catchy, even if none of the melodies are overly memorable. The release of this rather brief set helped make Croce better known and led to a fairly major career. ~ Scott Yanow