In my opinion, Jim Croce is one of the most underrated singer-songwriters of the ’70s. His songs have an easy, story-telling narrative framed by intricate guitarwork that can easily stand beside Gordon Lightfoot and James Taylor. Much of Croce’s obscurity likely stems from his untimely death before which he only released a couple of albums. However, what songs we do have from him are pretty great, ranging from heartfelt to hilarious and remaining timeless to this day.

I know, I know, Photographs and Memories is a greatest hits album, but it just has everything and really captures who Croce was as a songwriter. There’s the big hits, “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown,” “Time in a Bottle,” and “I Got a Name,” but there’s also the deeper cuts like “New York’s Not My Home,” “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song,” and “These Dreams.” For me, “Operator (That’s Not the Way It Feels)” will always be my favorite. I grew up hanging out at my parents’ business, and they always had the Jim Croce Pandora station on. I think this was the first song I heard from him, and it inspired a love of Classic Rock in me that I still carry today.