Rest In Paradise Jimmy Buffett

[Saltx3]

For those who “just stopped by” feel free to stick around. “Buffettnews.com” (BN) isn’t going anywhere.

[TommyBahama]

Thank you Jimmy for all the music , thanks for the 90 nights of memories, thanks for the friendships I have made throughout this Parrothead Nation. And a lot of the friendships were made. lt started here on BN. Back in 2004 or 2005. Then Susan came up with a a BN party and invited a bunch of crazy BNers to her house in Tampa. That's when the friendships flourished. I treasure those friendships, and love you all ( see I can get sentimental) There are a lot of tears Yesterday and today. You may be sadly gone Jimmy. But, your music and lifestyle will live on. you were a inspiration to many , and a hero to a lot...RIP Jimmy.


Sorry for the late post , I was away, without my computer. And strangely before the news , I was with some people Friday, we were Talking about Jimmy and when ( staying optimistic) he may be back. Fast forward to a Jake Owens concert I went to that night , Jake mentioned how Jimmy was a huge inspiration to him. The place went crazy. And then the next morning happened. Hug and Love the ones your with . You never know.

[starwarzed]

I haven't been too active on this board since 2021. But, I am definately back to stay. Jimmy meant so much to me and so many others. Reading and posting on the FB group, has been such a help.

He will be missed, he was the ultimate storyteller. He inspires me to tell some stories too.

Love to you all

[Finnsaremorefun]

“What if this is the last…?”

This is a question we’ve thrown around for 17+ years, as is the case when you devote so much of your life to a 70+ year old Trop-rocker. The answer to that question was always…”Man, just one more and that’s it…” Jimmy said, “it’s the child in us we really value”, and I think that’s spot on and hits the root of “one more, please”, which we hear from kids all of the time. After seeing Jimmy in 2006 I hoped for 5 shows, which grew to hopefully 10, 15, and then the wish to get our kids to a show, the only goal left unrealized.

Like many of you, winter’s quite a struggle for me. It’s a mental challenge more than physical, and it’s been Jimmy’s books, stories, music, and anticipation of every summer tour that has helped get me through those difficult months.

Jimmy’s influence has lead my wife and I to Key West, the islands, Margaritaville resorts, restaurants, and shops all over. On our first visit to Key West in 2009 we were lucky to run into a gift shop worker with a personal connection to Jimmy. She said if I purchase a small item and shipping envelope, she’s get Jimmy to sign it and mail back up to the UP. Sure enough, months later, it arrived back signed and personalized.

Last July we were set for show #18 in the lot of Alpine Valley when word spread that weather would be cancelling the show. “Make the most of whatever comes your way…” lead to a concert replay party in the hotel that night, and the hope that it wouldn’t end like this. Still, it turned into another chapter with some of our closest friends.

These concert experiences have always been about the people. We’ve tailgated with close to 100 different friends during these 17 years worth of shows. They’re some of the best moments of my life. Jimmy’s music has extended into my classroom, as we’ve hosted Tropical Day each year I’ve taught during the first Friday in March.

Our kids have grew up on Radio Margaritaville, so “Can you put Jimmy on…?” will certainly hit different. On our way to the Big House this morning, his lyrics cut deep, and overwhelmed me often. Ironically, our youngest Landen was scheduled to be Radio Margaritaville’s Parakeet of the Week beginning this week. For that to be this week is pretty cool, in the midst of Jimmy’s passing.

Though this book is now on the shelf, the lyrics will carry me forward and I’m sure we’ll get creative in finding ways to replay some of these memories.

Thank you, Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefers

[jbfins]

Thank you to this website and everyone who built it and keeps it going.
I am grateful for this community. It is a place where I know that I am not alone in my love for JB. And that is something I will forever appreciate.

[captainalex]

Kirsten and JD have been beautiful this weekend on RM.

[SMLCHNG]

Fall of 1995. My first Jimmy Buffett concert at Fiddlers Green – Denver, CO, with good friends.

I had no idea what to expect. I was wearing a white sweatshirt with “Colorado” and mountains on the front. Based on what everyone else was wearing, I was slightly out of place. But I had the BEST time!! All I knew was the “Yellow Album”, and I loved that music. I heard songs I’d never heard before from Jimmy Buffett, and I was hooked. He, and the Coral Reefer Band, were SO entertaining, and I couldn’t wait until the next time I saw him.
I joined the Colorado Parrothead Club shortly thereafter. Made some of the best friends, that I still have today. **Renee Marquiss, and Jodi and the late Steve Roach, Tim and Heather *** Some of my best memories was participating in the Denver St. Patricks Day Parade, and almost always winning the top float trophy in the parade. Party With A Purpose, is exactly what it meant.

Over the years I went to 20 different Buffett concerts, all over the country. Always had the best time. The Best music. The best friends. "And I will not Fribble Out".. I miss you Greg.

In 2001 I joined a BuffettNews as SMLCHNG, (Before that was COBO, Church Of Buffett Orthodox). We would chat. We would discuss. We would laugh and cry.. I became known as “Queen”, as I had a zillion posts since I joined, and then became a moderator. Yeah, there was no pay involved.

Over the years, I met over 100 of these people in person. After many changes in my life, I met an online person whose name was “Elrod”, or “E” as many people called him, in person at a Dallas concert. We had a great time! We met other BN’ers: Terry, Connie, Christina, Linda, Zero, AL. We laughed over a glass of limes and flowers from the ladies room. (Yeah, you had to be there).

Fast forward to 2006 when we went to a party at some BN’er friends home in Plant City, FL. (Again, never met Susan (ToplessRidgeFL) and Dave, and several other people, before). They had a wonderful musician performing, “Sunny Jim” White. Unbeknownst to me, Elrod had planned on proposing. After my swim suit changes (it was hot) I got in the pool, and E still surprised me with “Will you marry me”?? Uh, YES!!! We were married 6-23-07 with MANY of our PH Phriends in attendance, and there were NO foo foo wedding attire allowed. And yes, a tailgate broke out.

In October 2016 Jimmy performed at Red Rocks, Colorado. It was an amazing tailgate, meeting phriends we’ve known online for years, and some finally meeting in person. Paige, Sheree, Garry, Larry, Lee, Chad, Terri, Vicki.. The show? The BEST.

Yep, this has been a long recap. But a MUCH needed one for me. Perhaps, in the next few days, I can stop crying at every song I hear, and how it relates to losing my Mom on August 6th , and Jimmy on September 1st.

SO MANY quotes from Jimmy’s songs have been posted today. Your music was profound. And I thank you for what you, and your music, have given my life.

"Shells sink, dreams float, life's good on our boat".

Oh, and it's Buffett. TWO, T'S.

[SeattleParrotHead]

[MigrationMan]

Kirsten and JD have been beautiful this weekend on RM.

THIS is so true.

[MammaBear]

It's good to come back home among old friends when we all need to shed some tears and get some hugs....

[parrothappy]

My wife and I were in southwest Wisconsin with family this weekend and I decided that as we drove home to the southwestern Chicago suburbs where we live that we would stop at Alpine Valley to pay our respects to Jimmy. Hanging on the closed gate to the main parking lot were flip flops, beach balls, a shaker of salt, an empty Land Shark cardboard six pack with a simple "Thanks, Jimmy" scrawled on it, a Jimmy cd and other meaningful tokens of appreciation and love for the man.

During the 15 or 20 minutes we were there, at least a half dozen other Parrotheads showed up and quietly paid their respects. Most gathered for at least a few minutes to share their favorite Buffett/Alpine stories. Fox 6 TV from Milwaukee sent a reporter with a camera to Alpine and she interviewed some of the fans and remarked about Jimmy's history of 27 shows at the theater. After a few photos, my wife and I drove down to the resort/golf course at the bottom of the valley and had a margarita in honor of Jimmy.

Growing up in the Chicago area, Alpine was synonymous with summer outdoor music in general and Jimmy, in particular. While there was/is no shortage of venues in the Chicago/Milwaukee area, Jimmy at Alpine was always the best. He played Summerfest, Northerly Island in Chicago right after they put in the new stage and the mud was ankle deep on the lawn and smelled like cow manure, the now long-gone Poplar Creek where I saw him for the first time in 1982, Toyota Park (now SeatGeek Stadium), Wrigley Field and the World Theater in Tinley Park where he played many times in the early 2000-2010s. While some fans hated Alpine for the parking lot congestion after the show, the tailgating was the very best. And as we all know, the tailgating was as large a part of the "celebration" as was the actual concert. Perched on the north side of an east-west running valley, the huge mature oak trees and the triple gull-wing, wooden roof made the place a paradise in my mind.

Alpine has struggled in the past decade with being such a large facility and fewer and fewer acts that can fill a venue that large. The economics of expensive concert tickets have conspired to reduce the overall attendance and number of shows and limiting the usefulness of this lovely theater. I always figured that as long Jimmy was touring, we'd get at least one great show a year at the venue. Now there is one less act that can fill the seats and hillside. I hope this gem doesn't disappear anytime soon.

The rescheduled show from August 2022 was his last one there and after he rather abruptly ended touring after that for the year, I wondered if we would see him there again. We have our answer now and I cherish all of his shows that I attended but this final one will always be very special. Summers will never be the same, ever. Thank you for sharing your words, love and heart with millions of admiring fans. You brought so much happiness to a sometimes ugly and painful world.

[MDShark70]

I wanted to post what I shared with my friends after this terrible news. It was written more for my friends who were casual (if that) Buffett fans but still knew how much it all meant to me and sent their condolences. Being Parrotheads most of you are already aware of the Jimmy facts that I shared but I wanted them to know how much more he was than just a trop rocker.

What Jimmy Meant to Me:

I pen these thoughts off the Coast of Carolina from my home in the lowcountry. Jimmy Buffett was a big part of my life for portions of 4 decades. I was fortunate (or crazy) enough to be able to attend 108 shows. I was 20 years old the first time I went, back when Merriweather Post Pavilion was THE place to be. Even then I saw how much he loved performing. He smiled constantly. He loved us and we loved him right back. That never changed through all those shows. I've seen hundreds of "big name" acts over the years working as a stagehand. At some point almost everybody goes through the motions. Jimmy never did. He just loved to perform. I’ve always thought that was part of the magic; seeing how much fun he was having let us all have that much more fun.

So many people reached out to me over this very hard weekend. Many of them non-Parrotheads who knew I'd be hurting. I appreciated that so much. See, it was never about the drinking like so many people casually dismiss Buffett. He was the hardest working "beachbum" you've ever seen. Did you know he was one of only a handful of authors who had #1 bestsellers on the New York Times Bestseller List? In both fiction AND non-fiction? That short list includes Hemingway, Steinbeck and Wallace. He never dreamed he'd still be making music all these years so he started marketing and branding a lifestyle. That was just a bonus because fortunately for us he continued to make music and people continued to listen. If you look and listen to the body of work you see songs and lyrics from a man who was deeply contemplative, creative, well read, mischievous and probably most importantly, joyful. For many years I've been able to relate lyrics from his huge catalog of songs to some event or point in my life. He knew how to cut through the *****. When Bob Dylan says you're one of his favorite songwriters you must be doing something right. The tributes that poured in over the weekend from people across all genres of entertainment were amazing. Jimmy knew everybody and everybody wanted to know him! He recorded with Sinatra back in the day and most recently with Paul McCartney and everybody in-between.

I've made friends and met people from all over the world because of Jimmy Buffett. Many of whom I heard from the last few days. We are all part of that family and we're hurting. Texting with my dear friends in Maine and my best friend in Maryland who are mourning like me. Friends I made many years ago in Pittsburgh at a show now have a retirement home on Hilton Head and we all attended a Buffett tribute show Sunday evening. There were a lot of tears in the crowd and on stage that night.

I’ve also found the love of my life with whom I was able to share my appreciation of Jimmy. These lyrics speak to that:
“From the bottom of my heart
Off the coast of Carolina
After one or two false starts
I believe we found our stride”

About 15 years ago Jimmy recorded a little song called Here We Are. It was an ode to the Parrotheads. Not an especially deep song but it captured perfectly what it was all about on show day. On show days if you knew somebody was going and you weren't you'd wish them a "Happy Buffett Day". We worked hard and wanted a few hours to let loose and celebrate life with friends old and new. He called it a "family reunion costume barbeque". I think that's about right. He wrote "in spite of all the work we do it's the child in us we really value".

I always hoped that I'd have a daughter so I could dance to Little Miss Magic with her at her wedding but that didn't work out. I do love the lyrics though and you fathers reading this could do worse than choosing that song when that special day arrives.
"I catch a little more dialogue comin' my way,
I see those big brown eyes just start to lookin' astray,
Your mother's still the only other woman for me,
Little Miss Magic, what you gonna be?"

It was the anticipation each year of tour dates being announced; seeing which shows you might be able to make and who could go with you or meet up with you. Reminiscing about all the fun we had at previous shows when we gathered in the dreary winter months and what we were looking forward to when the King of Summer came to town once again. In the old days it was the pain of waiting in line at the record store to buy tickets when they went on sale. Later it was the damn bots and scalpers. Yet we suffered through it all for a chance to see "the man". It was the preparation of how you might outdo what you did last year at your tailgate. What decorations do we need? Who was going to make jello shots and what flavors? Can we make a realistic looking fin for the top of the car? Is there a way we can figure out how to make a portable bar that looks like it's from the islands? What can we do in the parking lot that will get us shown on the big screen during Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes? (I made it in 2010!) If you never put your fins up and swayed in unison with 20,000 other people on the lawn you missed one of life's great experiences.

The memories and friends are almost immeasurable. The roadtrips with my best friend to see Jimmy will be some of my fondest memories until the day I “just sail away”. I will remember the goodness and joy that emanated from all of the shows, the music, the other events that we all attended. The community was real and the love and goodness palatable. I'm so thankful that I was a part of it for so long. Being able to be there to see and hear Jimmy at his final show in Key West was a joy and a blessing that I’ll always treasure. Enjoy that One Particular Harbour Jimmy. It truly was a Lovely Cruise.

I could go on and on but I'll stop. I do encourage you to put on some of the albums maybe you've never heard of and just listen. There's a lot of good stuff there. I'll finish by leaving a few lyrics that seem appropriate at this time and finally a link to a new song that is coming out on Jimmy's last album later this fall. Radio Margaritaville got permission to play it before its release so it's just a YouTube recording but it's definitely a final message from Jimmy to everyone telling us everything will be ok. It's called Bubbles Up.

I Wave Bye Bye
I wave bye bye, I pray Godspeed
I wish you lovely weather, more luck than you need
You'll only sail in circles, so there's no need to cry
Oh, I see you again one day and then I'll wave bye bye

The Captain and the Kid
We both were growin' older then
Wiser with our years
That's when I came to understand
The course his heart still steered

He died about a month ago
While winter filled the air
And though I cried, I was so proud
To love a man so rare

He's somewhere on the ocean now
A place he outta be
With one hand on the starboard rail
He's wavin' back at me


Bubbles Up:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do4xSp3TEhg

[atmarler26]

I just wish he could have gotten that Charleston show in this year before he eventually passed away. That would have meant so much to me if his last official full length concert had been on Daniel Island.

Thank you Jimmy for helping to deliver two World Series for the Red Sox, for the unforgettable experience at the one concert I actually physically attended (Great Woods in 2012- Lounging at the Lagoon), and the countless other memories from all the other shows I've downloaded here on BN.

[mjcatl2]

I don't know what to say that hasn't already been said. So much of what he recorded is special to me, as I know it is to everyone here. I feel like listening to his upcoming album will be therapeutic, fun, sad, and everything else... but glad he got to do it and that we get one last collection of his songs.

[rz33]

30 Thirty years ago today, was my first Jimmy Buffett concert experience, he took part in the Walden Woods show at the old Foxboro Stadium, a brief appearance as he had just finished up shows at Great Woods.

Got me hooked and I lived for the shows in Mansfield as there was nothing like it.

I've been hooked on this site since I can remember and I hope it continues with us die-hard fans who have always appreciated it.

Shock and disbelief has turned into sadness but ultimately I saw maybe 35 shows-downloaded countless concerts and just loved the music and those great memories will not leave me.

Glad i was there last August at Great Woods and I am looking forward to new album getting released.

[Bucarader]

“What if this is the last…?”

This is a question we’ve thrown around for 17+ years, as is the case when you devote so much of your life to a 70+ year old Trop-rocker. The answer to that question was always…”Man, just one more and that’s it…” Jimmy said, “it’s the child in us we really value”, and I think that’s spot on and hits the root of “one more, please”, which we hear from kids all of the time. After seeing Jimmy in 2006 I hoped for 5 shows, which grew to hopefully 10, 15, and then the wish to get our kids to a show, the only goal left unrealized.

Like many of you, winter’s quite a struggle for me. It’s a mental challenge more than physical, and it’s been Jimmy’s books, stories, music, and anticipation of every summer tour that has helped get me through those difficult months.

Jimmy’s influence has lead my wife and I to Key West, the islands, Margaritaville resorts, restaurants, and shops all over. On our first visit to Key West in 2009 we were lucky to run into a gift shop worker with a personal connection to Jimmy. She said if I purchase a small item and shipping envelope, she’s get Jimmy to sign it and mail back up to the UP. Sure enough, months later, it arrived back signed and personalized.

Last July we were set for show #18 in the lot of Alpine Valley when word spread that weather would be cancelling the show. “Make the most of whatever comes your way…” lead to a concert replay party in the hotel that night, and the hope that it wouldn’t end like this. Still, it turned into another chapter with some of our closest friends.

These concert experiences have always been about the people. We’ve tailgated with close to 100 different friends during these 17 years worth of shows. They’re some of the best moments of my life. Jimmy’s music has extended into my classroom, as we’ve hosted Tropical Day each year I’ve taught during the first Friday in March.

Our kids have grew up on Radio Margaritaville, so “Can you put Jimmy on…?” will certainly hit different. On our way to the Big House this morning, his lyrics cut deep, and overwhelmed me often. Ironically, our youngest Landen was scheduled to be Radio Margaritaville’s Parakeet of the Week beginning this week. For that to be this week is pretty cool, in the midst of Jimmy’s passing.

Though this book is now on the shelf, the lyrics will carry me forward and I’m sure we’ll get creative in finding ways to replay some of these memories.

Thank you, Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefers

That is so awesome. We have music and memories to last for our lifetimes!

[LaTda!]

What can be said that hasn't hmm that's hard.
1st off I'm here after a long hiatus that brought me to BW from BN from CoBo, then to living on a sailboat for 4 years while separated. Mrs LaTda & I have long since reconciled. The whole time a huge parrot head, like y'all =)
I moved back to land in 2009 after a 6 month round trip via sailboat to the keys, where I lived in Boot Key harbor.
That was the only time I've been to the keys.
FB really cut down on any forums I was active in.
But this need to be with phamily as we all celebrate and mourn Bubba brought me back to pay my respects to Jimmy and all my phriends I've met along all of our perspective parrot head lives. LYMI
LaTda

[SMLCHNG]

But this need to be with phamily as we all celebrate and mourn Bubba brought me back to pay my respects to Jimmy and all my phriends I've met along all of our perspective parrot head lives. LYMI
LaTda

LYMI too, Mikeeee!!!

[Bicycle Bill]

The one and only time I saw Jimmy live was at Alpine Valley in 2009 Ithe Summerzcool Tour), when the weather conspired against us.   The colder-than-normal temps for the end of August, the wind from the northwest, the overcast sky, and the drizzle (which eventually turned into snow flurries!) that began about the same time as Jimmy and the Reefers took the stage — and made Jimmy come back out on-stage wearing a hoodie after the intermission — well, I felt like I'd been cheated out of the full experience, and hoped that sometime I'd be able to return on a perfect afternoon/evening.

Now I know that it will never happen.  One more item that will have to go unchecked on my bucket list.

Sail on, Jimmy.  I certainly hope God and the rest of the heavenly host enjoyed their Labor Day Weekend show.

-"BB"-

[Summerlover]

I haven't been on here for years, brought back great memories reading some of the post.
It's a slow recovery, it's been a week now but myself along with so many know a piece of us left with Jimmy. We will all miss him til our last day and hopefully we will all be together again someday.

We have met so many though the years and I am thankful for BN's. Because of this site, we went met up with others and saw Jimmy & CR celebrate Le Select's 60the Anniversary in St Barth front and center. It was amazing. We had since traveled with this same tribe to other destinations and have remained friends. Then fast forward 10 years, the 70th celebration of Le Select. It was kept quiet that JB would play till that afternoon at the bar but the word got in he was going to play, we rushed down to Le Select to see the man with his guitar. We will treasure that forever just as we have treasured all our concerts and fun.

We've seen JB in the hottest of days, rain and even some snow flurries (Alpine). LOL, the flurries was a tough day tailgating and then the evening was cold, rain then flurries.

Hang in there all and thanks to Jimmy for the music and the window of world he provided to all of us. I loved how he shared it with video's etc.
I always remember him showing us his new boat on the big screen at a concert and saying, "I'm spending y'all's money on this new boat and laughing", we all laughed and were all good with it.

How lucky are all of us to have ridden on this big wave all these years?

Peace all, RIP Jimmy Buffett