Fresh off his “Croce Plays Croce 50th Anniversary Tour,” BMG recording artist/singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist A.J. Croce dropped his most recent track, titled “Complications of Love,” in November 2024. The song, written by A.J. Croce and Gary Nicholson; and produced by Shooter Jennings, is available HERE; watch the video HERE.
Says A.J.: “I was asked to describe my song ‘Complications of Love,’ and all I could think at first was, ‘doesn’t the title say it all?’ That said, it’s a little Tango and a little Django. The composition was inspired by the romantic music of the Mediterranean (Spain, France, Greece) and Argentina.”
A piano virtuoso who started playing as a small child and toured with B.B. King at just 18-years-old, the Nashville-based singer/songwriter has since collaborated and performed with legends and luminaries across a wide expanse of genres (Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, Leon Russell, Ry Cooder, Allen Toussaint, Neville Brothers, Bela Fleck, and Ry Cooder, to name a few), all while building up an acclaimed catalog that blurs the boundaries between blues, soul, rock & roll, Americana, and much more. A.J. has also co-written songs with formidable tunesmiths like Leon Russell, Dan Penn, Robert Earl Keen, and multi-Grammy®-winner Gary Nicholson. From childhood, piano became a lifeline for Croce, who suffered a total loss of eyesight from ages four to 10 and turned to blind pianists like Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder for much-needed comfort and inspiration.
Throughout an extraordinary career that’s found him working with some of the most esteemed producers in music history—including Jack Clement (Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley), Tony Berg (Fiona Apple, Bob Dylan), and Greg Cohen (Tom Waits, John Zorn). A.J.’s 10 albums have all charted on: Top 40, blues, Americana, jazz, college, and Radio 1, and he has landed 22 singles on various Top 20 charts. His songwriting and style have evolved from jazz and blues on his debut and sophomore albums, to the roots-rock of the more recent collaborative recordings like “Cantos” with Ben Harper, “Twelve Tales” with Allen Toussaint, and “Just Like Medicine” with Vince Gill. More recently, A.J.’s widely acclaimed “Croce Plays Croce 50th Anniversary Tour” honored the memory of his late, legendary father, singer-songwriter, Jim Croce, as A.J. performed Jim’s songs as well as his own catalog to packed houses nationwide.
Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund. For information on events, go to MiddlesexCountyCulture.com
