One of the most promising singer/songwriters of the early '70s, Jim Croce was also among the most versatile, painting wry character sketches of tough men, writing unsentimental tales of blue-collar life, and crafting sensitive love songs. Having already enjoyed a No. 1 single ("Bad, Bad Leroy Brown") and a string of hit albums, Croce died at the age of 30 in a small-plane crash. After his death, a reissued song from his debut LP, "Time in a Bottle," became only the third posthumous No. 1 single, following Otis Redding and Janis Joplin. It quickly became Croce's signature tune.