RIP Jimmy Buffett

[Vombatus]

A1?

 

[DanielSimpsonDay]

Superficially, his songs are about a carefree lifestyle we aspire to that can be attained with as little (cheeseburger & beer) or as much (islands and boats) disposable income as one has. I do not like his music but I've usually had a great experience at the tailgates being surrounded by people all letting loose and communally having a good time.*

Like @exmediahack said, it's the vibe. Many of us would like to live inside of a Jimmy Buffett song. I'm a metal/punk guy through and through and I would like to live in a Jimmy Buffett song. I would not want to live inside an Iron Maiden, Rammstein, or Carcass song. Similarly, while I love the music and message in Bad Religion and Pennywise tunes, I already live in the society they sing about and, yeah, I'd prefer to take up residence in Jimmy's zip code.

*less so in recent years with the country bro crossover

 

[BitterYoungMatador2]

It also helps that the boomers and Gen Xers who fired up blenders in parking lots 30 years ago for a concert now have the disposable income to go to a Margaritaville hotel or take a Margaritaville cruise (although I've heard this is the Big Lots of cruising).

 

[MisterCreosote]

Branding, my friend.

Yep.

 

[DanOregon]

 

[Driftwood]

Said without the least bit of derision or snark:
If I have to explain it to you, I can’t explain it to you.
(Posted sitting on the beach drinking a beer with a copy of Tales From Margaritaville in my lap).

 

[maumann]

A1?

A1A at the Herald and Sun Sentinel.

 

[Driftwood]

The copy of TFM I am reading is my reprint edition. First edition is at the house.

anyway, in the forward, Buffett talks about being in Belize. I wonder if that ties into @TigerVols story! Also he brings up Travis McGee, and that ties into conversations we had in the hurricane thread earlier this week.
Live your life folks. Every day and every person you meet is a gift.

 

[Bubbler]

Guess I’ll be the first to post this.

I gained a lot of respect for Buffett for being cool about this movie, even playing “Pina Colada Burg” once in a while live. What a great parody.

“Come Monday” is a great song among others.

RIP to the son of a son of a *****.

 

[micropolitan guy]

Not a great musician by any means, but a great storyteller and entertainer. My best friend at Three Chopt Tech turned me on to him in 75 or 76; someplace I have an A1A and Havana Daydreaming album squirreled away. Saw him in Portland in 1986 or so, it weas the final show of that tour and it was fantastic.

Livingston Saturday Night
Pencil-thin Mustache
Come Monday
Why Don't We Get Drunk
Son of a Son

We drive past Livingston almost every summer on I-90, and I always think of him.

 

[Inky_Wretch]

A host on Radio Margaritaville a bit ago said one of the things she love about Jimmy was his sense of childlike wonder and curiosity. Then she quietly said “if you haven’t heard, we lost Jimmy last night. He was surrounded by family, music and love as he passed peacefully.” I’d read the NYT obit. I’d gotten about 90 texts from family, friends and associates. But I’ll be damned if that DJ didn’t cause me to start weeping.

 

[DanOregon]

Given how Bob Weir "carried on the Dead" for a bit after Garcia's passing, I wonder if there is an artist who will try and fill Buffett's void. More than a few country artists have drafted off of him for a few years - Chesney for sure, - but I'd be fine if the Coral Reefer Band kept touring and just let the fans sing the songs. Or just play the music.

 

[Neutral Corner]

I got on board when "A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean" came out. One of the soundtracks of my life.

When I was maybe 22, my roommate and I staged a weekend run to Fort Walton beach. He had a perfectly serviceable girlfriend, but he took this slutty nurse with us. We got down there and checked into the hotel, and they kicked me out of the room. I took the trashcan, put a six pack in it, filled it with ice and went down to hang out by the pool. There were a couple of guys sitting there drinking. One was playing guitar and they were singing Buffett songs. This seemed to be a fine idea so I hung with them for a while and sang and drank.

Turns out that they were a couple of construction workers. The boss had sent them to the lumberyard with his credit card to pick up some stuff, and they went to the hotel and checked in instead. Sat there singing Buffett. It's funny how much that felt like a Buffett song.

A sailor goes to his rest. Thanks for the memories.

 

[Driftwood]

I haven’t wept because I will cry at victories more than losses, but I have had a profound sense of suckitude today. I knew this day would come as it will to us all.
One of the world’s great lights has been extinguished, but the flame will burn on.

 

[Inky_Wretch]

I saw my first Buffett show in 1985. In the late 1980s, PBS played this concert film - Live By The Bay - late on Saturday night after ACL. I wore out a VHS tape rewatching it.

 

[User 11148]

At the Margaritaville casino I've been to (in Bossier City, La.), the craps table felts have a "Come Monday" bet (rather than the usual "Come" bet).

 

[Inky_Wretch]

And, confession, if you watch that concert you may notice Jimmy has a small braid dangling behind his right ear. Years later when I grew out my hair, I got my GF at the time to put in a small braid behind my right ear.

 

[DanOregon]

He hooked me with his first double live album. The banter was better than the songs.

 

[playthrough]

The branding involves a lot of ingredients.

On a top level:
Someone above just said escapism.
Tropics
Vacation
Drinking
Cuban, Hispanic influences - music and drinks
Margaritas obviously, and he popularized them
Island influences - steel drums for example
Visuals - warm climates, shorts, Hawaiian shirts
Sailing, boating
etc. drugs?
etc.

Then add meaningful, understandable, relatable songs and stories.

The above just scratches the topic a little and are my initial thoughts. Feel free to add.

But a few years ago when Wheel of Fortune started having “Margaritaville Week”, I did ask myself, WTF? Hotels, vacation properties? These people have taken this a LONG way from smoking weed in a concert parking lot.

Definitely overcommercialized but wasn't Buffett very sharp about getting his share of all of it? Thought I read that once. Whoever all that is passed down to can waste away quite nicely.

 

[Neutral Corner]

Yeah. I was there. I saw lots of great shows in the Fox in the mid to late 70's, some of the best concerts I ever saw.

Buffett, Genesis with Peter Gabriel, The Dead, Little Feat, J. Geils, Lynyrd Skynyrd (one of the One More From the Road shows), The Stones, among others. My big regret is missing David Bowie there on the Ziggy Stardust tour.