I Got A Name - JIM CROCE***

I Got A Name/Lover's Cross/Five Short Minutes/Age/Workin' At The Car Wash Blues/I'll Have To Say I Love You In A Song/Salon & Saloon/Thursday/Top Bar Hat & Grille/Recently/The Hard Way Every Time

I Got A Name was a posthumous album from singer-songwriter Jim Croce who was killed in a plane crash just as his musical career was taking off. The title track and I’ll Have To Say I Love You were US top ten hits. (US:2)

“Kicks off with the freewheeling title track which is not even written by him, but still among his greatest performances and fits perfectly in his repertoire. The other classic is of course I'll Have To Say I Love You In A Song and deservedly one of his biggest hits, a simple sentiment told in a short song, he makes it all seem very effortless.”

“Each of his albums features a fair number of comical songs about hard-luck characters, and one of the reasons I prefer I Got a Name is because its character songs are stronger.”

“Jim Croce plays straight blue-collar folk-country on this album. Perhaps that is the reason why he sounds so sincere as a singer-songwriter here.”

“Croce had sensitivity, humour, polish, and a band that just kicked. Listening now, I hear Croce's great playing, but more than that, the tight, fluid, almost funky bass, the musically played drums. This may be folk, but it is folk played by the best musicians and with the best arrangements.”

“These songs touch your soul; everyone who as been in love can feel the emotion in the lyrics and the way they were sung. It has a good mix of romantic and bluesy songs and is a worthwhile addition to any music collection.”

“From all accounts Jim was a blue collar hard drinking party guy, who like most of that particular breed found finding tender moment difficult. Lucky for us that he was able not only to reflect his life through song, but also express his emotional core.”

“From the sheer beauty of I'll Have To Say I Love You to the working-class rockin' anthem Working At The Car Wash Blues to the irony of the title song, this man was one of the greats. Anyone who grew up on 1970s rock music will love this gem of an album.”