Category: Reviews & Set Lists

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band continued their Son Of A Son Of A Sailor Tour last night at the Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls OH.

The set list from the show is now available. There was one change to the set list the addition of the song “School Boy Heart”.

From The Plain Dealer: “Jimmy Buffett hosts the season-opening party at sold-out Blossom Music Center”

Sailor and licensed pilot Jimmy Buffett clearly prefers the open ocean, vast beaches or empty skies … and the fans who had to navigate horrendous traffic for his Son of a Son of a Sailor tour stop at Blossom Music Center Sunday night probably can understand why.

A few changes in latitude and altitude could help with the frayed attitudes caused by battling surprising road closures – why was Northampton Road, the access to the Valley Gate entry, shuttered with no notice? – and lengthy lines to oversold parking lots that moved so slowly that snails were saying, “Eat my dust!”

At least the music made it worthwhile. For two solid hours, Buffett and the crackerjack Coral Reefer Band, aided by 10-time Country Music Association musician of the year Mac MacAnally, kept 20,000 sets of fins moving left and right in the sold-out venue.

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band continued the 2018 Son Of A Son Of A Sailor Tour last night at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines IA.

During the Bing and Bong show Buffett announced he will be performing at Alpine Valley and Detroit in 2019.

The set list from the show is now available. There was one change to the set list from the first show, the addition of the song “Knees Of My Heart”.

From the Des Moines Register: “Jimmy Buffett sails into Des Moines for a fun night with frenzied fans”

Thousands of Iowans went sailing Tuesday night in downtown Des Moines. Well, sort-of.

They wore parrot hats and donned flip-flops. They downed margaritas and bottles of Landshark. They danced and tossed beach balls, singing songs of cheeseburgers and volcanoes.

And it was all in the name of easy-goin’ songwriting staple Jimmy Buffett.

“Hello, Des Moines,” Buffett said, introducing the show to his Iowa faithful. “Tuesday night is Saturday night as far as we’re concerned.”

Buffett and his band sailed for the first time since 2012 into Wells Fargo Arena, bringing along a crowd of 11,900 Parrotheads. The show marked the second of Buffett’s “Son of a Son of a Sailor” 40th anniversary tour, which launched Saturday in Kansas City.

The 71-year-old southerner offered what a fan wants in an arena-sized star. He’s engaging, telling stories of his biggest 1970s and ’80s hits. He’s energetic, punting beach balls into the audience.

A splash of Show Ponies: About halfway into the set, Buffett introduced his band’s alter-ego: Daphne Blue and the Show Ponies. Bluegrass Buffett followed, banjo and all.

The four-song Show Ponies medley treated Parrotheads to a break from his traditional (and self-described) “three-chord songs.”

“Deep in the heart of the Coral Reefer Band,” he said. “… there’s bluegrass genes.”

From KansasCity.com: “Maiden voyage of sailor-themed Jimmy Buffett tour is a pleasure cruise in Kansas City”

Jimmy Buffett’s nautical-themed concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City took about 15,000 giddy passengers on a two-hour pleasure cruise on Saturday.

During the opening night of his “Son of a Son of a Sailor” tour, Buffett, 71, proudly proclaimed that “it’s actually true — I am the son of a son of a sailor.”

The added assurance wasn’t necessary. The storied singer-songwriter is beloved for his shaggy-dog stories, such as the woozy 1977 smash-hit “Margaritaville.”

His devotees are less like fans than members of a colorful cult of gregarious fun-lovers. Many enthusiasts in Saturday’s audience wore wacky costumes or Hawaiian shirts with leis.

Those fans are eager to buy whatever their hero is selling, a trait that has made Buffett a branding juggernaut and a serial entrepreneur.

One of his latest ventures is a pair of retirement communities named Latitude Margaritaville. During the mandatory rendition of “Margaritaville,” video footage promoting his current Broadway musical “Escape to Margaritaville” was displayed on an enormous screen behind the stage.

Most of the images that flashed behind the barefoot Buffett and his 11-piece Coral Reefer Band depicted tropical paradises, boat schematics and references to the revelry that causes his concerts to resemble Fat Tuesday, Halloween and New Year’s Eve celebrations rolled up together into wild beach-themed parties.

Buffett cited Mark Twain as an inspiration before performing the agonizing “A Pirate Looks at Forty.” Perhaps sensing that the atmosphere became uncharacteristically grim after singing the lyric “I feel like I’ve drowned,” Buffett ad-libbed “but I won’t wear a frown.”

Caroline Jones, a country-oriented artist who demonstrated formidable blues chops in a brief opening set, added additional depth to the forlorn ballad “Coast of Marseilles” in an enchanting duet.

The refreshed set list touched on all but two songs from the 1978 album “Son of a Son of a Sailor.” Only “Cowboy in the Jungle” fell flat.

An unusual array of cover songs ranged from inspired (the Beach Boys’ “Sail On, Sailor”) to dull (Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl”).

Buffett, a trustworthy navigator, mostly circumvented choppy waters. The maiden voyage of his “Son of a Son of a Sailor” tour made for a memorable excursion.

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band kicked off the 2018 Son Of A Son Of A Sailor Tour last night at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO.

The set list from the show is now available. The show included 7 songs from the album “Son on a Son of a Sailor” which was released 40 years ago. Songs from the album included the title cut, “Fool Button”, “Livingston Saturday Night”, “Cheeseburger in Paradise”, “Cowboy in the Jungle”, “Coast Of Marseilles”, and “Mañana”.

Some of the other highlights from the show included “Tampico Trauma” and “Sail On Sailor” (last played Aug 19, 2003). There was an instrumental break with featuring Robert Greenidge on steel drums and Peter Mayer on guitar performing “King Of Somewhere Hot”. Buffett and the Coral Reefers included a Bluegrass Medley with the songs “Grapefruit Juicyfruit”, “Manana”, “Fool Button”, and “Piece Of Work”.

Jimmy Buffett and his Acoustic Airmen performed yesterday at the New Orleans Jazz Fest. The set list from the show is now available.

From The Times-Picayune: “Jimmy Buffett churns out a crowd pleaser at Jazz Fest, backed up by a ukulele virtuoso”

New Orleans Jazz Fest producer Quint Davis introduced Jimmy Buffett’s close-out set on the Acura stage on Sunday (April 29) by saying, “This guy makes the world a little happier.”

For the next hour and a half, Buffett proved his point. Beach balls flew through the air, polka dotting the blue sky with primary colors. Hawaiian shirts clung to sweaty bodies. Parrothead hats bobbed to the beat. Vintage Buffett — and everyone, including the barefoot guy on stage, was eating it up.

For his 12th time at Jazz Fest (not counting his many guest appearances over the years), Buffett performed with the Acoustic Airmen, an all-start group of players that included Country Music Association Musician of the Year Mac McAnally along with Robert Greenidge, Eric Darken, Nadirah Shakoor and Tina Gullickson. Louisiana’s own Sonny Landreth joined on slide guitar, and Jake Shimabukuro stole the show on ukulele.

At one point, Buffett put down his guitar and walked aside, abdicating the stage to Shimabukuro and Greenidge as they performed “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” on ukulele and steel drums.

Much has been written recently about Buffett not living the “Jimmy Buffett lifestyle.” That was, in fact, the recent headline of an insightful New York Times profile. The world’s most famous beach bum runs a multi-media empire, with his sand-in-the-toes mantra as its bedrock. He even has an acclaimed new Broadway musical, “Escape to Margaritaville.”

Jimmy Buffett and his Acoustic Airmen performed last night at the Saenger Theater in Hattiesburg, MS. The set list from the show is now available. Some of the highlights from the show included “The Great Filling Station Holdup”, “Pascagoula Run”, “Peanut Butter Conspiracy”, “Life Is Just A Tire Swing”, and “Biloxi”.

Jimmy Buffett’s was inducted into the The University of Southern Mississippi Hall of Fame. Appearing on stage with Buffett are USM President Rodney Bennett and Bret Favre.

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band opened for The Eagles last night at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami FL.

The set list from the show is now available. Some of the highlights included “Everybody’s Got A Cousin In Miami” (last played 04/09/2015 in West Palm Beach, FL) and “Chanson Pour Les Petits Enfants” dedicated to Gina Rose, one of the victims of the Parkland shooting.

The Eagles performed 27 songs with band members Don Henley, Joe Walsh, Timothy B. Schmit, joined by Vince Gill and Deacon Frey filling in for his late father Eagles co-founder Glenn Frey. See the set list for the songs that were performed.