Time in a Bottle

"Time in a Bottle"
Single by Jim Croce
from the album You Don't Mess Around with Jim
B-side "Hard Time Losin' Man"
Released November 1973
Format 7" 45 RPM
Recorded 1972
Genre Folk rock
Length 2:30
Label ABC
Writer(s) Jim Croce
Producer(s) Terry Cashman
Certification Gold
Jim Croce singles chronology
"I Got a Name"
(1973)		 "Time in a Bottle"
(1973)		 "It Doesn't Have to Be That Way"
(1973)

"Time in a Bottle" is a hit single by singer-songwriter Jim Croce. Croce wrote the lyrics after his wife Ingrid told him she was pregnant with his son, Adrian, in December 1970.[1] It appeared on his 1972 ABC debut album You Don't Mess Around with Jim. ABC originally did not intend to release the song as a single; but when Croce was killed in a plane crash in September 1973, the song's lyrics, dealing with mortality and the wish to have more time, had additional resonance. The song subsequently received a large amount of airplay as an album track and demand for a single release built. When it was eventually issued as a 7", it became his second and final No. 1 hit.[2] After the single had finished its two-week run at the top in early January 1974, the album You Don't Mess Around with Jim became No. 1 for five weeks.[3] In 1977, "Time in a Bottle" was used as the title for a compilation album of Croce's love songs.

Production and arrangement

The arrangement features a harpsichord that producer Tommy West discovered had been left in the mixing studio:

"The night before we were going to mix, I was watching a horror movie on TV, and something must have lodged in my brain because when I walked into the studio the next day, I saw this harpsichord sitting in a corner and got an idea. A jingle company had used it on a session and in walked a couple of guys from SIR [Studio Instruments Rental] to haul it away. I asked them to take a lunch break and told Bruce to put a couple of mics on it. He was whining that it was out of tune, but I asked him to let me try something. I added two tracks of harpsichord, told the movers they could remove it, walked into Jerry's office and asked if I could borrow the electric bass that was sitting on his couch, played that on just the second verse and the outro, and that was that! Radio compression worked in our favor on that record. It made the harpsichord blend with the two guitars in an unusual way. But we thought this record would only be an album cut."[4]

In popular culture

Covers

"Time in a Bottle" has been covered many times since its original release:

Track listing

7" Single (ABC-11405)[10]

  1. "Time in a Bottle" – 2:24
  2. "Hard Time Losin' Man" – 2:23

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1973–1974) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 1
U.S. Billboard Easy Listening 1[11]
U.S. Cash Box Top 100 1
Australian Top 100 Singles 60[12]
Canadian RPM Top Singles 1[13]
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary 1[14]

Year-end charts

Chart (1974) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 24
U.S. Cash Box Top 100 36[15]
Canadian RPM Top Singles 39[16]

Certifications

Country Certification
United States Gold (RIAA)[17]

References

  1. ↑ Hyatt, Wesley. The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits, Billboard Books, 1999, p. 132.
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel. The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 7th edition, Billboard Books, 2000, p. 159.
  3. ↑ Whitburn, Joel. The Billboard Book of Top Pop Albums 1955-1985, Record Research Inc., 1985, p. 88, 505.
  4. ↑ Eskow, Gary. "Classic Tracks: Jim Croce's "Time in a Bottle"". Mixonline. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  5. ↑ "YouTube: Maureen McCormick - Time in a Bottle". Retrieved June 6, 2014.
  6. ↑ Nichelson, Ted (2009). Love to Love You Bradys: The Bizarre Story of the Brady Bunch Variety Hour. ECW Press. p. 287. ISBN 9781550228885.
  7. ↑ Jackson, Don (2013-01-09). "Jim Croce hits Number 1 with 'Time in a Bottle' | Don 'ActioITV's ckson on Majic 105.7". WMJI. Retrieved 2014-06-17.
  8. ↑ Board, Josh (2011-05-26). "MOVIE REVIEW: The Hangover Part II". SanDiego.com. Retrieved 2014-06-17.
  9. ↑ O'Connell, Sean (2014-05-23). "How Did They Film Quicksilver's Amazing X-Men: Days Of Future Past Scene?". Cinema Blend. Retrieved 2014-06-17.
  10. ↑ Jim Croce - Time In A Bottle / Hard Time Losin' Man
  11. ↑ Time in a Bottle
  12. ↑ Australian Top 100 Singles - Week ending 27 October 1974
  13. ↑ Top Singles - Volume 20, No. 23, January 19 1974
  14. ↑ Adult Contemporary - Volume 20, No. 23, January 19 1974
  15. ↑ The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1974
  16. ↑ The RPM Year-End Charts: 1974
  17. ↑ Gold and Platinum

External links

Preceded by
"The Most Beautiful Girl" by Charlie Rich		 US Billboard Hot 100 number-one single
December 29, 1973 		Succeeded by
"The Joker" by Steve Miller Band
Preceded by
"Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" by Helen Reddy		 US Billboard Easy Listening number-one single
December 29, 1973 		Succeeded by
"The Way We Were" by Barbra Streisand
Preceded by
"The Most Beautiful Girl" by Charlie Rich		 Canadian RPM 100 number-one single
January 12, 1974 		Succeeded by
"Seasons in the Sun" by Terry Jacks
Preceded by
"Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" by Helen Reddy		 US Cash Box number one single
January 12, 1974 		Succeeded by
"The Joker" by Steve Miller Band
Preceded by
"Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" by Helen Reddy		 Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary number-one single
January 19, 1974 		Succeeded by
"Seasons in the Sun" by Terry Jacks