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Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Bar and Grill in Chicago (at Navy Pier) is scheduled to open in Mid June 2011.

From Digital Journal: “Landshark Beer Garden to Open on Navy Pier”

SHARKS ON LAND: Soon, very soon, at Chicago’s Navy Pier, we will see sharks swimming on the land. With no apologies to Jimmy Buffett on that one, because his own Margaritaville, which was scheduled to open Memorial Weekend, will now have its fins ready by mid June. Yes, on Navy Pier.
However, a taste of what is to come can be sampled when Navy Pier opens up their newly named Landshark Beer Garden. Many are already familiar with the place where bands play, refreshments and food are served, but now it has a new name. Landshark, of course, is Buffett’s beer.

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band continued the “Welcome to Fin Land” tour last night at Farm Bureau Live in Virginia Beach VA.

The set list from the show is now available along with comments from those who listed to the show on Radio Margaritaville.com.

This leg of the tour ends on Saturday with a show at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN.

The Daily Press has a review of the show: “Fans welcome Jimmy Buffett back to Virginia Beach with grass skirts and gusto”

It had been almost 11 years since Buffett last made a stop at the amphitheater, now named Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach. On Thursday, fans were eager to release some pent-up party spirit.

Soon after stepping on stage, Buffett acknowledged that he’d been away too long. “I apologize for the 11-year absence,” he said. “That [expletive] GPS just wasn’t working. But we’re good now.”

From an interview with Jimmy Buffett in USA Today: “Jimmy Buffett unearths new (old) songs”

In addition to a new online Margaritaville virtual world that he revealed to USA TODAY earlier this week, Buffett is preparing a collection of unreleased early work and has written some new songs.

The “Buried Treasure” project includes at least 20 original songs and perhaps some cover material Buffett recorded in Nashville between 1969 and 1973 with original producer Travis Turk. “Two years ago they were going to sell the studio we were working at and owners said go through this and see if there’s anything you can use. He found 74 original songs I forgot I had written,” Buffett says. “It’s really, right back to the beginning stuff. … I’m going back and listening to myself during these times and it’s sparking stories. I don’t remember writing a lot of these songs but once I hear them stuff starts coming back. So I’m doing a narration through this material that we found. I’m going to do that as a project. They were tape recordings they were about to throw out. Some is cover stuff, but the original stuff there’s probably about 20 songs that I had forgotten I had written. … It’s something people might want to add to their collection.”

On another front, Parrotheads in the Washington, D.C.-area upset about new no-tailgating rules at Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, Va., (where Jimmy is set to play on Aug. 27 as part of his summer Welcome to Fin Land tour), now have Buffett on their side.

Anyone who knows about Buffett and the Parrothead culture knows that tailgating is at least half of the fun. When told there wasn’t going to be partying in the parking lot, the singer said, “Who’s stupid idea was that? … I’m glad to hear that. I’ll get right on that. I believe I can take care of that. It must be some city thing, but it’s not me.”

From the Las Vegas Review Journal “Margaritaville-themed gaming area planned for Flamingo”

Caesars Entertainment Corp. is betting a Margaritaville-themed gaming area in the Flamingo will expand the resort’s popularity among Jimmy Buffett fans as both the singer and the hotel turn 65 this year.

The new gaming area will be adjacent to the Margaritaville restaurant in the former Steakhouse 46 location. Plans call for a 15,000-square-foot addition to the Flamingo’s casino with 22 table games and 220 slot machines.

“The Margaritaville brand eludes nothing but fun … that’s what gambling is about,” said Rick Mazer, regional president for five Caesars Entertainment properties in Las Vegas.

The $10 million addition is scheduled to open in October. Mazer said the companies have been partners since 2004 in the Margaritaville restaurant — a partnership he called “extremely successful” for both companies.

The master plan for the Margaritaville casino also includes the 5 O’Clock Somewhere Bar — named for a 2003 Buffett song “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere” — with direct access to the Strip.

Meanwhile, construction has begun again on the delayed Margaritaville Casino in Biloxi, Miss. In 2007, Buffett and Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., now Caesars, announced plans to build a $700 million casino. “We’ve definitely broken ground in Biloxi,” he said. “We expect the project to be completed next spring.”

Some screen shots of the new Margaritaville Online game are available from THQ.

The Hollywood Reporter has an article: “Jimmy Buffet to Launch 3D ‘Margaritaville’ Game on Facebook”

Hollywood producer Frank Marshall is responsible for bringing Margaritaville to gamers, according to Danny Bilson, THQ’s executive vice president of core games. While THQ was developing games based on M. Night Shyamalin’s The Last Airbender, Marshall, who is close with Buffett, explained the vision of what has become Margaritaville Online to the game publisher.

“Frank Marshall is essentially one of the producers on the game,” said Bilson. “He and Jimmy work very closely with us on every element in the game. Everything in the game is based on ideas from the songs and books.”

From USA Today: “Jimmy Buffett’s ‘Margaritaville’ sails to Facebook, iPad”

The musician is collaborating with game developer THQ on a free-to-play online social game, due this year on Facebook and Apple iPad, stocked with attractions custom-built for Buffett’s Parrothead following.

If FarmVille can attract more than 45 million virtual online farmers, Jimmy Buffett is betting he can serve up more than a few frozen concoctions in his Margaritaville Online.

“You can build a boat (and) you can build a bar. You gotta evade the pirates. You can have adventures,” Buffett says. “You can go to Margaritaville.”

Like other online games, Margaritaville Online will let players earn virtual currency to buy in-game booty and spend real money to customize their game more quickly. Buffett hopes to incorporate a feature that lets players parlay virtual goods into rewards at Margaritaville restaurants. “If you buy virtual cheeseburgers and margaritas to send to friends, that should earn you a real burger or beer at a restaurant,” he says.

Online social games became “the next new, new thing,” Buffett says, but he waited “for the right time to come along and somebody who knows about (Margaritaville) and is a fan and who gets it. That is exactly what happened.”

Characters and destinations in Buffett’s game are based on his life, songs and books. There’s a Captain Tony’s Boats and Planes outpost, based on the late former Key West mayor — chronicled in the song Last Mango in Paris— as well as Joe Merchant’s Trading Post, a nod to his 1992 book Where is Joe Merchant? “They were fans, and what they put into it was exactly what you would think,” Buffett says.

Now on tour, Buffett remains involved in the development. “They come up with storyboards and lines, and I see the process. Then, I do what I do: Buffettizing. When I got the first ones and saw the characters drawn, I got to go to Margaritaville.”

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band continued the “Welcome to Fin Land” tour last night at the Pizza Hut Park in Frisco TX (near Dallas).

The set list from the show is now available along with comments from those who listed to the show on Radio Margaritaville.com. Buffett performed a rare song for the final encore: “Livingston’s Gone To Texas“. The last know performance of the song was in October 1974 at the Record Plant in Sausalito, CA.

The tour continues on Tuesday May 24th with a show at the Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood in Atlanta, GA.

The Welcome to Fin Land Tour resumes tonight at the Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, TX. WFAA has an article and video: “Jimmy Buffett fans pack park for Saturday’s concert”

Listen to the show on Radio Margaritaville / SIRIUS XM and help us out with the Set List.

From the SunNews.com: “SkyWheel, LandShark eatery debut today in Myrtle Beach”

Downtown Myrtle Beach’s amusement district will reach new heights today with the debut of the SkyWheel. The nearly 200-foot-tall Ferris wheel will open about 10:30 a.m., after a 10 a.m. ribbon cutting ceremony. Jimmy Buffett’s LandShark Bar & Grill also will open at the same time.

From WMBF news : “Preparations being made for SkyWheel opening“

An article at InsideNova.com mentions the new policy to crack down on tailgating: “No more tailgating at Jiffy Lube Live“. According to the policy there will be no tailgating at the show on August 27th at Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, VA.

Spokespeople for Jiffy Lube and its owner Live Nation didn’t return phones and emails late this week. But Prince William County police confirm that the Bristow concert venue is cracking down on partying in the parking lot. No pop-up tents, no portable grills and absolutely no alcohol.

There has always been a rule against drinking in the parking lot. But now the outdoor amphitheater is adopting a “no tolerance” policy when it comes to drinking and tailgating.

Fans, particularly “Parrotheads” who flock to Jimmy Buffett shows, have flooded Jiffy Lube Live’s Facebook page with complaints. They’ve even started a Facebook page of their own called “Boycott Jiffy Lube Live Tailgating Policy.”

From Margaritaville.com: LandShark Bar & Grill and LandShark SurfShack retail shop to open in Myrtle Beach next week! Friday, May 20th will be opening day for LandShark Bar & Grill and SkyWheel Myrtle Beach! A ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for 10am, and will be open to the public. Be sure to “Like” LandShark Bar & Grill on facebook to get more information, and stay up to date on all their latest news and updates from where the land, sky and sea meet!

The Peter Mayer Group, featuring R. Scott Bryan, Chris Walters and Maggie Estes, will be performing at the brand new Nashville Margaritaville . May 27th, Peter will be joined by a host of special guests, including Nadirah Shakoor, Robert Greenidge, Jim Mayer, Michael Utley and Doyle Grisham. It will be happening the night before the Jimmy Buffett concert at Bridgestone Arena.

Advance ticket purchase is recommended, as this show is expected to sell out. Tickets are $20, plus $1 handling fee, and are now available online at: littleflockmusic.com or by calling 877-LIT-FLOK – 877 (548-3565).

Join us for our Official Pre-Concert Street Party on May 28th!
Before the Jimmy Buffett concert at Bridgestone Arena on Saturday, May 28th, Margaritaville Nashville will be hosting a free Official Street Party downtown on Broadway, between 3rd and 4th Avenue! Proceeds will benefit HandsOn Nashville.