Did you know that Jim Croce used to work in radio sales? According to his widow, Ingrid, after Jim graduated from college–the first in his family to do so– his parents wanted him to work at a “real 9 to 5 job.” Plus Ingrid was still in college trying to finish her degree and the couple needed a stable income..

So Jim did the responsible thing and put off his music career for awhile and went to work selling radio airtime on the South side of Philadelphia.

There were a lot of pool halls in the area, and Jim would call on them looking for a “buy.”

After a while, he started hanging out just to watch the pool sharks in action and met a local artist named Melvin Goldfield, who told Jim all sorts of stories about the underbelly of South Philly.

And then he met local legend and “pool shootin’ son of a gun” Big Jim Walker–and the seeds of a “Great Song” were planted.

By 1972, Jim had left the radio business and had been kicking around the music scene for awhile with little success…but FINALLY ABC/Dunhill Records signed him to a recording contract, and before long, his debut album was ready to go.

For his first single, the record company chose a song that had been percolating in Jim’s mind since those days in South Philly: “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim.”

(it’s interesting to note that jim moved the location of the pool hall in the song from South Philadelphia to New York City–probably to protect the guilty.) But anyway…

The song was an immediate hit, reaching #8 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and #9 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. In Canada, it peaked at #4 on their Top 40.

So, in effect, thanks to radio (and his incredible talent), the former radio salesperson scored a “Great Song of 1972.”

And Great Songs” by Jim Croce kept coming until (and even beyond) his untimely death

in a plane crash at the age of 30. It’s sad to think about, even today, More than 50 years later.

For the stories behind nearly 1,300 Great Songs of the ’70-s and ’80s, visit my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/MichaelCuuuk/