I hate Moustaches ! ! ! He was so handsome without it ! ! !
I wanted to start a series of occasional posts about how I came to discover some different artists and this will be the first of the series. So this series will be about how I discovered some different English language artists and I tell the story by including tracks by the artists that lead me to the discovery.
The path that lead me Jim Croce began with the Japanese group Superfly.
Here thay are in action ! ! !
Superfly - Allright ! ! !
Superfly started as a group of students playing rock cover versions for fun when they were at university, but when they graduated, two of the members, singer Ochi Shiho and guitarist Koichi Tabo, went on to become professionals and signed to Warner Japan.
They released their first album in 2008 called Superfly which became a double platinum album in physical copies sold and had over 500,000 iTunes downloads. After this album Koichi Tabo left the group and Superfly became a one girl group ! ! !
Superfly have released three more albums after their début and all of them have been platinum albums. Ochi Shiho is now a really big star here of course and has even had an asteroid named after her ! ! ! (91907 Shiho was discovered at an observatory in her home prefecture and named after her as the sceintists there were all big fans ! ! ! ) She has performed in the USA, and during The Legends of Woodstock Tour, she performed as a guest for three numbers with Big Brother and the Holding Company in Bethel, New York State, which I am sure you know was the location of the original Woodstock concert.
Big Brother and The Holding Company and Superfly
Ochi Shiho
Superfly released a single called Wildflower in September 2010 which came with a free album of cover versions. This free album had Piece of My Heart by Janis Joplin, Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac and (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman by Aretha Franklin which are some of my favourite tracks.
Also on this free album was a live cover version of Bad Bad Leroy Brown by Jim Croce.
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Bad Bad Leroy Brown – Superfly Cover (live)
Immediately I liked the track and was singing along with the “bad bad Leroy Brown” parts of the chorus ! ! ! After listening to this track a few times i started to really love it, so I tried to find out more about Jim Croce and I listened to some more of his music and I bought the Photographs and Memories greatest hits album last year.
I really do like Jim Croce and somehow I seem to know he must have been a good guy, and Photographs and Memories is now one of my favourite albums and I play it a lot actually.
I really love the simple and honest and un-cynical way he delivers his songs and also I love the sense of fun he has in many of the tracks. It is really sad he is no longer in this world with us, I am sure he would have given us so many more wonderful songs.
This is my favourite of his:
I Have To Say I Love You In A Song – Jim Croce
So thank you to Superfly for introducing me to Jim Croce ! ! !
I hope you have enjoyed the post and thank you for reading it ! ! !
Jim Croce - Mario
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PS ; If I had been his girlfriend when he was alive I would have shaved his moustache when he was sleeping ! ! !
Yay Sakura ! ! Thanks for this. I was first introduced to Jim Croce by one of my sisters. We were living in a war zone at the time and she used to play his music at full volume to drown out the noise of gunfire and bombs. What could easily have turned out to have been a very traumatising experience for me as a child was successfully averted thanks to Jim’s songs and my darling sister’s wisdom. Here’s my favourite.
Oh Wow ! ! ! Your sister must be so cool ! ! !
I love this track also ! ! !
Thanks for reading ! ! !
Great idea for a post, Sakura chan! I first came across Jim Croce via the Muppets’ version of Time In A Bottle, which I loved as a child and still think is one of the most heartbreaking recordings now I’m pushing middle-aged. Would link but am sending this from my phone!
*blubs*
That is a great version ! ! !
Did you listen to the Superfly tracks ? ? ?
Thanks for reading Bish ! ! !
Just listening now, Sakura. “Allright” is a bit too full of squealing guitars for me, but “Bad Leroy Brown” is fun!
I confess to owning a Jim Croce CD …
LOL ! ! !
I did not know it was a crime ! ! !
Thanks for reading Ali ! ! !
Chameleon Circuit – Exterminate, Regenerate
Band of geeks devoted to writing tunes about our beloved time lord.
D’oh. Another multi-task fail. Apologies
LOL ! ! !
I understand how you feel ! ! ! I have been having some cut and paste disasters also ! ! !
So you don’y actually want to bear my alien love child?
My path to Jim Croce wasn’t as picturesque as yours, Sakura – around 25 years ago, I was watching one of those Casey Kasem-fronted Great Dead Legends of Rock’n'Roll-type of programmes and luxuriating in the tales of Elvis, Buddy, Jimi etc when this guy I’d never heard of came on. Next day I was chatting about the programme with my mate, Ben, who had grown up with Croce’s music because his dad was a fan – when he was next at his dad’s, he stuck Bad Bad Leroy Brown and You Don’t Mess Around With Jim on a cassette for me. Then I got a Hits album which became one of those records I can still reproduce in my mind syllable by syllable – absolutely love him, and sorry Sakura (and this could be my own upper lip speaking) but I love the ‘tache as well!
I really enjoy hearing about how people discover groups and artists, so thank you very much for sharing your story ! ! !
We will have to disagree on the moustache ! ! !
Time in a Bottle – great song by the man. His late wife Ingrid runs Croce’s restaurant in San Diego as a tribute to Jim -http://www.croces.com
I grew up with Jim Croce all over the radio so there was no real moment of discovery for me. My favorite by him is It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way, which i posted on the Christmas tunes thread. My 8th grade class had a good cry when he died. Aside from that song, i guess this one would be my favorite. Some of the other songs don’t hold up as well for me, but he was a very talented man whose life ended much too soon.