That's John Kerry talking to Rolling Stone. I just don't know what to say about that juxtaposition. Many years ago--in the 1970s--I went to a concert and Jimmy Buffett was the opening act. I tried to sit it out, but I couldn't. I got up and walked out into the fluorescent-lit, concrete lobby and paced around with nothing to do. I can't remember what it was about Buffett that was so distinctly intolerable to me. The attitude? The patter? In any case, I've never listened to the man since then....
Recalled this morning, as I see the NYT obituary: "Jimmy Buffett, Roguish Bard of Island Escapism, Is Dead at 76/With songs like 'Margaritaville' and 'Fins,' he became a folk hero to fans known as Parrot Heads. He also became a millionaire hundreds of times over."
Condolences to all who loved him. When it comes to taste, there is no dispute.
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107 comments:
I can't believe there is something I agree with John Kerry about. Never saw the fascination.
Ooppps...I guess I don't agree with John Kerry about anything. Just reread what you wrote and realized you were talking about yourself...whom I DO agree with sometimes!! Too early I guess!!
I liked margavitteville but nothing else stands out. Didn't know he was a great guitar player. BUt RIP.
“De gustibus non est disputandum” is one of the two sayings - the other being “there’s no such thing as a stupid question” - that are just plain incorrect.
Yes, condolences to his friends and family, but if you like Jimmy Buffet, you are wrong and can’t be trusted in matters of music. Or in the case of Buffet, “music.”
- Rafe
So much for not speaking ill of the dead.
Unless, of course, you inflict your taste on others. Then there can most certainly be a dispute.
celebritynetworth.com estimates that Buffett was worth $1 BILLLION so apparently there is accounting for taste. Or should that be 'accounting for no taste'?
Jimmy’s friend and distant relative Warren turned 93 this week.
According to Jimmy, he was inspired to get into business because someone was ripping off his IP at a T shirt shop in Key West.
Horrible news. He was well loved here in Cincinnati.
“One Particular Harbor” is a favorite song of mine.
Will be playing his “Feeding Frenzy” 1990 live album (recorded in Atlanta and Cincinnati) today
Fins to the left, fins to the right, and you’re the only bait in town.
That he became a millionaire hundreds of times over from one song - 'Margaritaville' - is amazing. I Hope He Found His 'Lost Shaker Of Salt'
RIP - it's hard to be a musician and make yourself a triumph of lifestyle marketing. Respect.
If you've ever stepped on a pop top, you know life is better since those things stuck to the can.
I also appreciate the opportunity to peer once more into the barren mind of John Kerry, who married well.
I expected Andres Segovia or Julian Bream after "I love guitar"
I like mine with lettuce and tomato
Heinz 57 and french fried potatoes
a big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer
Good God almighty which way do I steer
For a cheeseburger in Paradise
No need to associate the man with John Kerry. No one deserves that.
Like Bruce Springsteen he made many white people very happy, so many…I liked his attitude. Sorry to hear.
Who gets the plane?
I find it humorous that a progressive who is so infatuated with Bob Dylan's whiny voice and "poetry" would have to walk out on a lefty supporter like buffet because of his attitude or patter.
Went to Lulu’s (His sister’s place in Gulf Shores) one time with a buddy. We’re talking to his buddy the bartender. He said that Jimmy was a “don’t look directly at or talk to” kinda guy. An immediate firing offense.
His show, as I remember it, had the attitude that we're all here to have a party, that's it's all automatic. Our being here represents a decision to behave as if we're already in the middle of a drunken bash.
But he was the opening act. The presumption was inapplicable... especially since the main act was something with a completely different attitude — dark and satirical or something. I'm not sure what the main act was. Did Jimmy Buffett ever open for Lou Reed? It was something that discordant.
Going to see Lou Reed and getting Jimmy Buffett - that's funny
We've taken the entire family to a Margaritaville. Expensive, but every restaurant in the area was. Food was good though. Service was great. So that's something.
"... would have to walk out..."
No, it was irritating because I couldn't leave. I was there for the main act and this was an opening act.
And I don't see why it's not obvious to you that someone who loves Bob Dylan would hate to sit through a Jimmy Buffett show. It's a matter of taste.
"walk out on a lefty supporter"
What the hell does "lefty supporter" have to do with anything?
It wasn't about the music or his politics
My fave, A Pirate Looks at 40.
“Yes, I am a pirate,
two hundred years too late
The cannons don't thunder,
there's nothin' to plunder
I'm an over-forty victim of fate
Arriving too late, arriving too late.”
As a teenager in the mid ‘90s, I was very against Jimmy Buffet. He just seemed so much the antithesis of my musical aesthetic at the time, i.e. alternative, alt rock, hip hop. There were a few my age, influenced by their parents presumably, that swore by Jimmy Buffet though.
The summer before we went our separate ways for college in 1997, my friend group decided one big summer concert would be the proper send off. Somehow we settled on a Jimmy Buffet show. I was skeptical but wasn’t going to be the party pooper, so I went.
I loved it. The show was amazing. I finally got it. Didn’t make me start listening to his music on my own time, but I understood it at least.
(Looking back, I now realize how basic/cliche my ‘90s musical tastes were. The music I liked as a teenager in the ‘90s is not my favorite music now.)
I loved Jimmy Buffet. John Kerry's reaction just proves what a snob he is. His only talent is flying around the world in his wife's private jet. Unfortunately, he keeps coming back. While he's abroad, he never misses a trick to sell out America. A born traitor.
And I don't see why it's not obvious to you that someone who loves Bob Dylan would hate to sit through a Jimmy Buffett show. It's a matter of taste.
Was it a long opening act? Most opening acts seem to be over in like 30 minutes these days. I don't know how it was done though.
I'm with you though, like what you like. Personally I'd go for Buffet over Dylan, but then in reality I'd probably just skip the show.
I worked in and ran restaurants and bars in the first part of my working life (which is why I have no hair today) and Jimmy Buffet was always somehow part of the background music of my life for those years. His songs would pop up on the music system playing through the restaurants, or his songs would be played by the musicians playing in our lounges. His music was everywhere. And he'd show up in whatever town I was working in, playing to massive crowds, always sold out, always almost immediately.
I never got the Parrot head thing. Never got people my age today buying properties in Margaritaville Communities, the same way they used to buy tickets to his concerts- Selling out immediately. Or the resorts using his Margaritaville name. But, his music was fun, light, harmless. In the right mood, in the right place- like when you're drunk, full of sun and beer on the beach in Florida, that music (or reggae) sounds just about right.
Either way, he was a talented and smart man. Built an empire out of nothing. I respect what he did, and that people loved him. I cringe at the idea of John Kerry wearing a parrot head, but then, we do have this: John Kerry. The Man who would be Climate King.
Looks like Buffett opened for Zappa in 1975.
Here’s a review from a Zappa-Buffett tour.
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/amusing-frank-zappa-jimmy-buffett-concert-review-from-1975.2387606/
Buffett almost died 29 years ago when hie crashed his Grumman Widgeon amphibious airplane while attempting to take off from the waters around Nantucket. The sucky thing about being crashing your airplane while taking off from water is that one can survive the crash but drown from being trapped in the wreckage. But he made it out and swam to safety and lived to reach his threescore plus ten, and a few more.
Two years later Jamaican Police mistook his plane for a drug smuggling operation and opened fire on it. IIRC U2 singer Bono and Bono’s wife and kids were passengers.
Margaretaville was a great song, the first couple of hundred times you heard it... It still bears listening to from time to time, when it shows up unexpectedly, which puts it head and shoulders above 99% of the stuff that gets put out. He wrote a few excellent songs. If I had a cult of people who called themselves "parrot heads" who worshiped me, I might get a little testy about it too.
This...
https://giphy.com/clips/drunk-stupid-fat-iuv0ZKiv7RGpI2q7bI
Jimmy proves 'em wrong$$$$
He was a mediocre singer/songwriter who turned his "talents" into a multi million dollar empire.........gotta admire that. He also made a lot of people happy.
I didn't care for his music, but I really liked the American Success Story, a laid-back Hawaiian shirt-wearing beach / boat bum who landed on a wildly successful formula seemingly by accident, and didn't appear to let it affect him very much. Every American worth his salt likes a story like that one, fate playing nice tricks for a change. What did Hunter Thompson call it, 'grinning hippie capitalism'? Very apropos, here.
By the way, nobody gives a sh*t what that prick John Kerry thinks.
By the way, nobody gives a sh*t what that prick John Kerry thinks.
I am a fan. I will miss him.
Few people know that in addition to his music he wrote 2 terrific books
"where is Joe merchant" and "tales from margaritaville"
Been a long time since I've read them but I read both several times. May be time to read them again
John Henry
If someone were listing great Jimmy guitarists, how the hell does Buffett come up? Hendrix and Page would be the first instant choices. Even those of you who like Buffett wouldn't put him with the guitar gods, right?
I love Althouse’s opening sentence. The stupid shit Kerry still says shocks me (again this very week). But on substance, my what a dumb pairing. Other than both performers being known for having a guitar in hand while on stage and phonetically similar names there’s no sensible reason to group them. If you love guitar playing there are hundreds of musicians who would come to mind and one might tire of listing them and need to stop for sleep or a meal before getting to Buffet’s zip code. To personally identify with Althouse’s anecdote I’ve only walked out on two entertainers even though I respected both, Cheap Trick (horrible sound quality that overfilled the venue) and Dick Dale (same reason, even tinier venue) though I would have walked out on Springsteen for talking too much but toughed it out so my wife could get the full Boss experience.
Thoroughly enjoyed Cheap Trick later at a properly engineered show.
I'll admit I really was a Buffett fan but that was mostly because of a girl. My favorite: "Trying to Reason with the Hurricane season." In the end, I grew up and he died a businessman not a musician. Still I am grateful for a lot of fun times. RIP
Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick!!!
"Your new home in PARADISE"
"YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN JIMMY BUFFETT WILL SHOW UP!"
"HOME SWEET HOME GIVEAWAY"
Where's David Foster Wallace when you need him?
Oh, . . . that's right.
And in all fairness, you never really do know when Jimmy Buffett will show up but right about now all signs point to never.
Dang - I was hoping John Botox stretch knife Kerry - Climate hypocrite and wealthy middle-class killer - was dead.
Jimmy Buffett was a Jerry Jeff Walker protégée in the early 70’s. I went to see the latter in Madison in 1974. Leo Kottke was supposed to open for Walker, but A relatively unknown Tom Waits played instead. I remember having a similar disdain for Jimmy Buffett as Althouse a bit later on.
By the way I’m not dissing Buffet the entertainer and businessman. Just his placement on Kerry’s list. Also like our host I loitered in a quieter spot until Dick Dale was done so I could see Steve Miller again.
I was growing up on Siesta Key in Florida and the music fit us all perfectly. We felt like JB was one of us. I saw him for the first time a couple of years later in college. I grew up on this stuff, the early albums are tatooed on my brain. Chanson por Les Petits Enfants was like a lullaby when I was 10.
Buffet may have been selling a leisure life style but he has always been one of the hardest working acts in the music business. As someone who once lived in South Florida and loves the island lifestyle be that Key West or BWI or Martha's Vineyard or the San Juan Islands — I respect that it often takes a lot of work to live the island life, harder to get to, more expensive for gas and groceries, but well worth it.
I read the NYT obit. He seems to have led both a useful and enviable life. There's not much overlap between those two states, particularly in the field of pop music.....He had a lot of dimensions. He wrote best-sellers on the fiction and non-fiction lists, wrote one mega-hit and lots of listenable songs, had a stable domestic life, had a shrewd business sense, and gave his customers good value for their money. He found the handle on a lot of unwieldy packages and carried them gracefully. He didn't outlive Keith Richards though.
Loved Jimmy Buffett. Some really good songs, always worth a sing-a-long on the radio. Nothing spectacular about Jimmy, but his concerts were something special. Going to the lake and playing Jimmy all day today I think. Maybe find a margarita to drink.
Althouse hasn’t said yet whether it was Zappa and the Mothers that she went to see when she encountered Buffett.
“He didn't outlive Keith Richards though.”
Lol. Better a lifestyle/longevity yardstick than a former Yardbird.
Wait a minute.
Was John Kerry equating Jimmy Buffet's guitar playing to Jimi Hendrix?
I know that Kerry is a supercilious fool, but that is just crazy.
He was a middling singer/songwriter/guitar player who got famous selling a fictional portrait of Gulf Coast/Caribbean lifestyle to a bunch of Midwesterners who'd never seen the Ocean. He was also a notoriously loud mouthed leftie, so the thought of him dying owning theme restaurants and retirement community franchises is just too delicious. I'm sure his family will miss him. I won't.
I saw the Buffet band perform at a surprise corporate gig about 15 years ago. Not a fan, so I thought they would just go through the motions at that type of event. Boy, was I wrong. Even though they've done those songs thousands of times, they played like 20 year olds trying to get a record contract. Brought people from the audience up on stage to sing back-up and dance. Fantastic show.
“Come Monday” was my favorite of Buffet’s music… “Margaritaville” a close second, but I never got into the rest of his catalog. My wife and I saw him in the 80’s with my sister and bro-in-law (BIG fans)… that was a show that I couldn’t wait to see end.
I did appreciate one Buffet associated incident where Little Feat was to open for Buffet in ‘88 (only reason we bought tickets) in Sacramento and another act played instead. We didn’t hang around for Buffet. I complained to the promoter (Bill Graham Productions) and my written lamentations prompted them to give us free tickets (and a table at the front of the stage) to Little Feat at the Fillmore in San Francisco a few weeks later.
One good song, pirate looks at 40.
Buffett was an excellent entertainer and I will miss him.
While I enjoy his irreverent songs like “Margaritaville” and “Cheeseburger in Paradise”, my favorite Jimmy Buffett song is “Come Monday”, which is his first hit. His Country music roots are very evident in this autobiographical song. This is one of my favorite love songs from the 1970’s. This song mentions him coming home to see his love after his Labor Day weekend show…unfortunately, that won’t be happening this Labor Day weekend or ever again for Jimmy. RIP you old pirate…may you find a great cheeseburger in the eternal paradise!
Scotty
Thank you for posting that just before my morning run. I spent almost 2 hours on the road with Margaritaville on a continuous loop in my head. The "booze in the blender" line was featuring disproportionately and I HATE that damn song.
I always liked his music and was a pretty big fan until I realized what an asshole he is. I worked with a younger guy who was college friends with the son of one of the long time Coral Reefer band members. He got backstage passes to a show with the band member's son. Both were told DO NOT approach or attempt to talk to Jimmy. That kind of ruined it for me.
Man sing about men in flip flops. What's not to love?
I’d rather listen to Buffet than pretty much anything nominated for a Grammy in the past 20 years. RIP.
I worked at a concert venue, saw countless shows but remember almost no opening acts. Sheryl Crow for JT, Juice Newton for Charlie Daniels. J Geils for Aerosmith. Before anyone knew who he was or that he’s kind of a dick Bobby McFerrin opened for Robin Williams and nobody wanted Williams to come out. We were having too much fun…
Lou Reed has had some weird opening acts. I saw him in Dublin when the opening act was Boyzone. The place was full of teen girls, dirty old Irish rockers, and middle age dads. It looked like a weird pedophile convention. Though I just remembered that Boyzone collaborated with Lou Reed on the BBC music video of Perfect Day (along with a LOT of other artists).
The only issue I ever agreed with Rosalyn Carter about was this: Jimmy Buffett was great to listen to.
I saw Buffett open for the Eagles in summer 1977 in a 20,000 seat arena; this was as “Margaritaville” was on its way back down the charts after being a huge hit. Totally forgettable, and his harmonica player was so high in the mix that I went out into the lobby area of the stadium to escape the piercing racket.
The Eagles were great though; this was the Hotel California tour, the first with Joe Walsh in the band, and it was a terrific show.
I didn't care for the guy or his schtick, and I avoid Parrotheads when I see them.
Possibly related: since Buffet released “Margaritaville” the margarita has become the most popular mixed drink in America and is offered in such wide variety there is one for every taste by now. Rupert Holmes had a similar yet smaller and shorter lived effect with his one hit “Piña Colada” and perhaps it is no coincidence both are Spanish terms and the most populous minority in the country is Hispanic.
Don't remember anything about JB. Will have to get a couple of CDs from the library.
I'll never forget slow dancing to this song, at closing time, last song of the night, performed by a country band at the Blue Moon Bar in NW Montana sometime back in the 80's. Very cute little, blonde girl, friend of a friend. It wasn't going anywhere because she was a lesbian and I knew that, but we both enjoyed the dance very much. Don't think I ever saw her again.
Buffett was not so much about the music as it was the lifestyle and attitude. (Kinda of like Small Town…attitude). I love his song “Creola”, particularly the lyrics “forget about the mumbo jumbo, hello to the world of gumbo.”
Lifestyle and attitude.
There appears to be an inverse relationship between the tightness of one's sphincter and appreciation of Jimmy B.
Some people claim that there's a woman to blame.
But I know, it's my own damn fault.
Like AA, I was never a fan of the goofy persona he became. But I am not a 'joiner' by nature, and buying into all of the goofiness is kind of like joining a cult. Not for me.
But the man was an absolute marketing genius, and I'd be surprised if he wasn't worth hundreds of millions of dollars because of it. On top of that, his wife was gorgeous.
I prefer "Come Monday" Jimmy Buffet. It's a sweet song and tells you that the man could write a serious song.
I am not a general fan of Buffett's either, but "Margaritaville" is an absolutely classic song. The progression through the lyrics always rang authentic to me.
'No, it was irritating because I couldn't leave. I was there for the main act and this was an opening act.'
Show up late, like at the movies when you don't want to watch the previews.
Btw, the man could have been the inspiration for the whole Tommmy Bahama craze...I'd believe it.
He was the sound of our extended family summer holidays, and our family vacations. There are no others like him.
Fitting he died on Labor Day weekend, as the summer is also coming to an end.
Rest in peace Jimmy. I never found the toe ring I lost when you came to Key West in the mid-‘70s. Those were the days my friend.
My son and DIL met at a Jimmy Buffet concert about 25 years ago. They have attended every one in CA ever since. They lov ed him. I liked his music. No surprise Althouse walked out.
I also appreciate the opportunity to peer once more into the barren mind of John Kerry, who married well.
Has anybody seen Teresa in years ? I visualize her as something like Sunny von Bulow in suspended animation.
In an interview with American Songwriter magazine, Bob Dylan listed Jimmy Buffett as one of his favorite songwriters. For those who think he’s just about tacky Margaritaville stuff, dig deeper. He wrote some beautiful music.
When it comes to his music, the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. When it comes to his business, it’s hard to argue with success.
I find it hard to believe that Just A Gigolo Jean Fraud Kerry knew or knows the difference between Jimmy Hendrix and Jimmy Buffett. My mental image of Kerry remains the photo of him holding a shotgun on a supposed goose hunt somewhere in the Midwest. Jean Fraud was trying to portray the common man image and had no doubt gone into the sporting goods store asking for, "one of them there huntin' licenses". Sorry you flipping French Fraud--it didn't wash.
I've got 4 JB albums, including what I think is his first: White Sportcoat and a Pink Crustacean. Very talented songwriter. Happy, fun pop music. Haven't listened to JB song in over 40 years.
'I worked at a concert venue, saw countless shows but remember almost no opening acts. Sheryl Crow for JT, Juice Newton for Charlie Daniels. J Geils for Aerosmith.'
Juice Newton, certified goddess...
This is terrible news. The only album I owned was You Had To Be There, and I probably attended a half a dozen shows. If I'm being honest, his schtick is one of the reasons I ended up in Naples. I'll be at my neighborhood dive bar, the Liki Tiki BBQ tonight at 5, listening to my favorite local talent cover a good many of his songs.
Buffet also did a great job adapting Herman Wouk's novel "Don't Stop the Carnival" into a musical.
I never saw it staged but do have the soundtrack.
Here's a link to a playlist
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0052D1E4B0314A84&si=SSGDETyo2jNRvxvM
Nice videos, though of island life and carnivals and not the play.
Note: I do NOT have a cousin in Miami but I do know a lot of half-baked fruitcakes. I may even be one myself.
Bye Jimmy.
John Henry
I visualize her as something like Sunny von Bulow in suspended animation.
OT but I had recently read something about dershowitz and the Von Bulow appeal. It recommended the movie Reversal of Fortune about the appeal.
I watched it Thursday night. Excellent
John Henry
Blogger Leeatmg said...
In an interview with American Songwriter magazine, Bob Dylan listed Jimmy Buffett as one of his favorite songwriters. For those who think he’s just about tacky Margaritaville stuff, dig deeper. He wrote some beautiful music.
The LA Times had the same info in their long article about his death. I don't like Dylan.
Apparently he died from "skin cancer" which wass probably melanoma.
I loved his early stuff, about the time "Margaritaville" hit the airwaves. He and his band played at Carowinds theme park, and you could get to see him if you bought a ticket to the park. Sort of like in "Spinal Tap" only without the puppet show.
His best era for me was between the "Changes in Attitudes" and "Somewhere Over China" albums. A good mix of hit songs and wistful ballads. ("Cheeseburger in Paradise" is a great example of a pop song. Story-driven, funny word choices, and not one wasted word.)
After that, it was hit or miss, and mostly misses. He was reworking the same themes and motiefs, and his success kept him from having the interesting experiences that he could use in his music.
Irony note: He died from skin cancer. But he had his three score and ten plus six, and he loved what he was doing.
Jimmy’s music has been the soundtrack to a lot of good times in my life. He made a lot of people happy and made a good living doing it. A life well-lived.
He had an appeal to a certain type, maybe call them romantic cynics. Who are determined to have fun regardless. Often (or usually) involving alcohol.
I am one of those types.
Had a perfectly wonderful Summer in 1987, living on an island in the NW for a couple of months, learning field archaeology, drinking gallons of Cajun vodka martinis, having a delightful time with a nice young blonde, and having Buffett playing all the time.
I felt rather sad when Sinead O'Connor passed, but not so with Jimmy. She was troubled; he lived his life to the fullest. "And still 24 hours, maybe 60 good years, it's really not that long a stay."
Thanks for all the great music, Jim.
Too bad it wasn't Lurch...
I understand your point but don't share it about JB. For me it's Jimi Hendrix, I feel truly blessed that I never had to endure one of his live performances. One of the reasons I can't keep SiriusXM Classic Vinyl on continuous play is that he come up way too often.
“ Looks like Buffett opened for Zappa in 1975.”
Thanks. But that wasn’t it. I only saw Zappa in 1969.
If I had to guess, I would guess Lou Reed.
I never got the John Kerry Wyclef Jean connection. There was the concert but I still cringe from the "What's on your I-pod" interview still haunts me to this day.
Pencil Thin Mustache is a wonderful little song.
The guy was a storyteller.
RIP
Can’t wait till Dylan finally kicks the bucket.
One of my siblings bought a Jimmy Buffet book for our Mom as a gift. Mom read everything. And talked about it.
Mom got about 1/2 way through and apparently there were missing pages and pages from a different book in the middle.
My Mom wrote a letter to the publisher. A little while later she got a phone call from Jimmy Buffet himself, thanking her for bringing the problem to his attention, and apologizing.
I wish I had been able to listen in on that one.
Here's DA Coe's 2011 parody of Jimmy Buffett
https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=QnTO7rTf2cM
I probably wouldn't sit an listen to a full Buffet album these days but in the mid to late 90's there was no more enjoyable concert, for the whole family really, than when he came to town. People dressed up, drank fruity cocktails, and had a great time singing and dancing--primarily people who were just a little too old to be acting the way they were but didn't mind embarrassing themselves along with everyone else.
The lawn seats at what was then called Lakewood Arena outside Atlanta were the place to be--Buffett came every summer and it was always a blast.
I haven't ever been to a Margaritaville but I have plenty of fond memories with his songs. Hard to not like someone who gives you that!
rrsafety said...My fave, A Pirate Looks at 40.
Come Monday is good, too, and I like If The Phone Doesn't Ring It's Me.
His silly ones are good if you run into them infrequently; as a kid I loved Pencil-Thin Moustache despite not getting most of the references. The Weather Is Here I Wish You Were Beautiful and Boat Drinks are both fun songs.
The guy had a lot of listenable music!
When it comes to matters of taste, we must pay attention to our betters. They are, after all, the arbiters of all that is good and right in the word, so their opinions are much, much more important than our own.
Or, you know... not.
John Kerry's the sort of elitist that would gladly step on the peasants to keep from soiling his shoes.
Don't know what else I can add that others haven't - the man lived a good life.
Some of it tragic, some of it magic - but he had a good life doing what he wanted to do, hurting no one and entertaining millions.
We won't see his type again...
"One of two songs Bob Dylan cited as proof of why Buffett was one of his favorite songwriters, “Death of an Unpopular Poet” contains some ties to “He Went to Paris.” Where the subject of “He Went to Paris” was a survivor, the poet here died before he could be celebrated. Buffett’s song chronicles the poet’s afterlife, once he had a verse published in “the Times,” leading everybody to scurry to find the genius, only to find that he left everything to his old hound. As bemused as it is bittersweet, it’s unmistakably Buffett in how it celebrates life lived on the margins."
--From the LA Times "The 12 essential Jimmy Buffett songs"
It's a matter of taste.
Buffet was a fantastic story teller and song writer / arranger - just like Jerry Jeff Walker (who drove Jimmy down to Key West). Set aside the "popular / rowdy" songs and listen to the rest of the body of his work - so much introspection, stories and poetry. Can't forget the Bear encounter song. My favorite album is Bannana Wind - the perfect set of calypso inspired songs to mellow out with anywhere - beaches to ski slopes, including the story of the airplane incident in Jamaica.
My "Jimmy Buffet" is Jim Croce.
Yes, I imagine Jimmy Buffett didn't appeal to an effete snob like Althouse.
Dylan played A Pirate Looks at 40 in concerts
In his partial biography A Pirate Looks At Fifty, Buffett mentioned meeting Bob Dylan in St. Bart's, where both were hanging out on their yachts, and they socialized together on that occasion. As has been said, Dylan was a Buffett fan and even played Buffett songs at his concerts.
Jimmy was a hard-working, competent singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was best singing ballads, such as When the Coast Is Clear or Coast of Marseilles.
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