3 Artists Who Had Big Hits After They Passed Away

For most artists, they have their biggest hits while they are still alive. But then there are some whose music is so good that they continue to have successful singles, even after they passed away, including these three artists.

Jim Croce

Jim Croce passed away on September 20, 1973, when he was just 30 years old, in a plane crash. When Croce died, he already had four hit singles, including “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown”, which hit No. 1 in 1973. But Croce’s success continued for a while after his untimely death.

“I Got A Name”, a Top 5 single, came out one day after Croce was killed. That song was followed by “Time In A Bottle”, which also reached the top of the charts.

Surprisingly, Croce had three more big hits following “Time In A Bottle”. “I’ll Have To Say I Love You In A Song”, out in 1974, became his final No. 1 single. He also had a Top 20 hit with “Workin’ At The Car Wash Blues”, also out in 1974. In 1975, “Chain Gang Medley” hit the Top 25.  That song became his final radio single.

Keith Whitley

Only 34 when he passed away on May 9, 1989, Keith Whitley died of acute alcohol poisoning. Already a country music superstar, Whitley previously had hits like “Don’t Close Your Eyes”, “When You Say Nothing At All”, and “I’m No Stranger To The Rain”.

In June of 1989, “I Wonder Do You Think Of Me” became Whitley’s first posthumous single. That song, along with his next single, “It Ain’t Nothin’”, both hit No. 1. 

In 1990, Whitley’s “I’m Over You” hit the Top 5. He also had two duets that became hit singles. After “I’m Over You”, “’Til A Tear Becomes A Rose”, Whitley’s duet with his widow, Lorrie Morgan, also became a Top 15 hit. His “Brotherly Love” duet with Earl Thomas Conley, out in 1990, became Whitley’s last Top 5 single. After “Brotherly Love”, “Somebody’s Doin’ Me Right” was Whitley’s last charting single at radio.

Janis Joplin

The tragedy of Janis Joplin’s death is that she never got to see her massive success. Joplin was only 27 years old when she died on October 4, 1970, of a drug overdose.

As the lead singer of Big Brother And The Holding Company, Joplin had one Top 20 single, with “Piece Of My Heart”, out in 1968. She released three singles as a solo artist, beginning with 1969’s “Kozmic Blues”. But it wasn’t until 1971 that Joplin had her only No. 1 single, but that single was a big one.

On January 12, 1971, Joplin’s “Me And Bobby McGee” was posthumously released. Written by Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster, “Me And Bobby McGee” became a two-week No. 1 hit for Joplin. 

“Me And Bobby McGee” is the only hit single from Pearl, a record that also came out in early 1971. Both the record and the song gave Joplin her only two Grammy nominations.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images