New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu



 

State Theatre New Jersey presents Croce Plays Croce: The Jim Croce Birthday Bash

originally published: 12/11/2024


(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- State Theatre New Jersey presents Croce Plays Croce—The Jim Croce Birthday Bash on Saturday, January 11, 2025 at 8:00pm.  A.J. Croce performs Croce Plays Croce, a special night of music featuring a complete set of classics by his late father Jim Croce, some of his tunes, and songs that influenced him and his father.

This special event features such timeless songs as “Operator”, “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim,” “Time in a Bottle” (a song written for A.J.), “Rapid Roy (The Stock Car Boy),” and “Lovers Cross,” to name a few. Classic covers may include songs by Lieber and Stoller, Bessie Smith, and other folk and roots artists.

After 50 years and more than 50 million records sold, Jim Croce’s legacy as an iconic singer/songwriter is firmly cemented. A.J. Croce, a Billboard charting singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, brings his Dad’s classic songs to the stage. After 10 studio albums and 30 years of touring the world establishing his own career, in the early 2000’s, A.J. taught himself guitar and several of his father’s classics. The fan response from dropping in a song or two like “Operator” in his own show was astounding and deeply emotional. He then debuted with a concert that celebrated the legacy of his father’s songs, stories, and music, as well as his own. The show featured two generations of Croce music and many songs by other artists which connect father and son as performers. In 2022, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Jim’s breakthrough album, You Don’t Mess Around With Jim, A.J. honored the memory of his father with a fall tour featuring a seven-piece ensemble and a multimedia production.

Over the past three decades, A.J. Croce has established his reputation as a piano player and vocal stylist who pulls from a host of musical traditions and anti-heroes—part New Orleans, part juke joint, part soul. From his 10 studio albums, it’s clear that he holds an abiding love for all types of musical genres: blues, soul, pop, jazz, and rock n’ roll. A virtuosic piano player, Croce toured with B.B. King and Ray Charles before he was 21. Since then, he has performed with a wide range of musicians, from Willie Nelson to the Neville Brothers, to Béla Fleck and Ry Cooder. Croce has also co-written songs with formidable artists such as Leon Russell, Dan Penn, Robert Earl Keen, and multi-Grammy®-winner Gary Nicholson. His albums have all charted on an impressive array of charts: Top 40, Blues, Americana, Jazz, College, and Radio 1. The Nashville-based singer/songwriter has landed 22 singles on a variety of 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.

Tickets range from $29-$99 and are available for purchase online or by calling State Theatre Guest Services at 732-246-SHOW (7469). State Theatre Guest Services, located at 15 Livingston Ave, New Brunswick NJ, is open by phone and email only, Tuesday through Friday from 11:00am to 5:00pm. For in-person purchases, Guest Services is open Tuesday through Friday from 12:00pm to 4:30pm. Additional ticket and transaction fees may apply.




Please support the advertisers at New Jersey Stage!
Want info on how to advertise? Click here



After major renovations, State Theatre New Jersey celebrated its 100th Anniversary in December 2021 in a fully renovated theater. Originally built as a silent film and vaudeville palace, State Theatre’s historic significance was honored by PBS by featuring it in its documentary series, Treasures of New Jersey, in the fall of 2018. “Treasures of New Jersey: State Theatre New Jersey” can be streamed online.

Today, State Theatre is the largest performing arts center in Central New Jersey and has welcomed more than six million people through its doors since reopening as a nonprofit performing arts center in 1988. State Theatre New Jersey is a cornerstone of the cultural vitality of Middlesex County and averages a total economic impact on New Brunswick and the surrounding area of more than $18 million a year. The mainstage programs have featured high-caliber artists such as Diana Ross, Tom Jones, Kevin Hart, Ringo Starr, Melissa Etheridge, John Leguizamo, Harry Connick, Jr., Diana Krall, and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Program offerings include Broadway, orchestra, family, dance, comedy, rock/pop, jazz, Performances for Schools, and Sensory-Friendly Performances.

State Theatre New Jersey’s programs are made possible by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. 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.




Please support the advertisers at New Jersey Stage!
Want info on how to advertise? Click here



 

EVENT PREVIEWS

An

An Interview with Dan Kurtz of The New Deal

Formed in 1999, Toronto, Canada based trio The New Deal, is a pioneer in jam-based electronic music. The group was founded by remaining members Dan Kurtz (bass) and Jamie Shields (keys), along with Darren Shearer (drums) who left tND in 2011. Since its inception, tND has remained committed to its improvisational roots and has served as a model for other jamtronica bands bridging the gap between multiple music genres as well as the border between Canada and the United States.



Rick

Rick Springfield, John Waite, Wang Chung, and Paul Young to bring the "I Want My 80s Tour" to NJPAC

(NEWARK, NJ) -- Get ready to revive the spirit of the 1980s! Iconic rock star and eternal heartthrob Rick Springfield, a true emblem of the '80s music scene, is set to take the stage on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC). Showtime is 7:00pm.



Young

Young the Giant to Play Tropicana Atlantic City

(ATLANTIC CITY, NJ) -- Critically-acclaimed, multi-platinum selling band Young the Giant announces the In The Open 2025 Acoustic Tour. An intimate concert experience performed in beautiful spaces and venues around the country, the band will be supported by Cassandra Coleman (debut album produced by Jack Antonoff out June 6 via Warner) throughout. Locally, the tour comes to Tropicana Atlantic City on Saturday, July 12, 2025.



West

West Windsor Arts presents Summer Music and More: Channel Collective

(PRINCETON JUNCTION, NJ) -- West Windsor Arts presents Channel Collective on Saturday, July 12, 2025 from 5:00pm to 7:30pm. Dan Kassel and Friends, featuring Gregg Merkle, will open the night. This is the first of three in their free summer concert series sponsored by Site Centers. Admission is free.



Asbury

Asbury Lanes presents There, There - A Tribute to Radiohead

(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Asbury Lanes presents There, There on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at 8:00pm. They are the premier Radiohead tribute act, playing songs from throughout the band's iconic multi-decade catalogue.



FEATURED EVENTS

ART | COMEDY | DANCE | FILM | MUSIC | THEATRE | COMMUNITY

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


Candlelight

Candlelight Concert: Tribute to Queen and The Beatles

Friday, July 11, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Monmouth University - Pollak Theatre
400 Cedar Avenue, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
category: music


 

Damn

Damn The Torpedoes - The Music of Tom Petty

Friday, July 11, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music


 

There,

There, There (A Tribute to Radiohead)

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 8:00pm
Asbury Lanes
209 4th Avenue, Asbury Park, NJ 07712
category: music


 

Band

Band Infusion Musical Night by GG

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 7:00pm
New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC)
11 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
category: music


 

Annual

Annual Jazz, Health and Food Truck Festival 2025

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 11:00am
Monte Irvin Orange Park
S center and South Harrison Street, Orange, NJ 07050
category: music


 



Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info