According to this
Wiki entry for Utley, it was Jerry Jeff Walker that recruited Utley to play on Buffett's major label debut,
A White Sportcoat and A Pink Crustacean in '73.
As a chronic reader of liner notes, I noticed Utley's name listed in the credits for Jim Dickinson's
Dixie Fried (released 1972) when I stumbled upon a copy in the mid to late 80's and quickly snatched it up. Dickinson is probably best known for producing artists such as Big Star, the Replacements, Jason and the Scorchers, etc. His sons Cody and Luther also play in the North Mississippi Allstars. Due to Dickinson and Utley's connections to Muscle Shoals in Alabama, I always figured that's where Buffett made the connection. This is what Wiki has to say about the
Dickinson/Utley connection (Kris and Rita are also mentioned):
In the late 1960s, Dickinson joined with fellow Memphis musicians Charlie Freeman (guitar), Michael Utley (keyboards), Tommy McClure (bass) and Sammy Creason (drums); this group became known as the Dixie Flyers and backed a variety of performers, including Hank Ballard, James Carr, Albert Collins, and The Tempters. In 1970, the group began to back Atlantic Records' venerable stable of soul acts at the behest of producer Jerry Wexler (who was introduced to the group by Booth) following the acrimonious dissolution of his relationship with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. Based out of Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida, they recorded Aretha Franklin's 1970 hit "Spirit in the Dark"; over the next year, the Flyers also contributed to recordings by Carmen McRae, Delaney & Bonnie, Jerry Jeff Walker, Dee Dee Warwick, Ronnie Hawkins, Sam & Dave, Dion, Brook Benton, Lulu, Sam the Sham, and Esther Phillips. Unable to acclimate to Miami and the variegated production styles of Wexler, Tom Dowd, and Arif Mardin, Dickinson heeded the advice of erstwhile Muscle Shoals guitarist Duane Allman and left the group to pursue a solo career in 1971; the remaining Flyers backed Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge for several years before ultimately disbanding in the mid 1970s.
In 1972, Dickinson released his first solo album (Dixie Fried) on Atlantic, which featured songs by Bob Dylan, Furry Lewis, and a title song by Carl Perkins.
