Jimmy Buffett.Photo:Michael Laughlin/South Florida Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty
Michael Laughlin/South Florida Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty
After years of taking fans to “Margaritaville,“Jimmy Buffettdied on Friday at age 76.
The singer-songwriter releasedmore than 50 albums— including live albums and movie soundtracks — in a career that spanned over five decades. He was due to release a new album,Equal Strain on All Parts,later this year.
Buffett washospitalized for an undisclosed illnessin May — and shared an update that he was heading “home” the following day.
“Thank you for the outpouring of support and well wishes,” hewrote on Facebook. “I head home tomorrow for a while, and then will go for a fishing trip with old friends, along with paddling and sailing and get myself back in good shape.”
Jimmy Buffett circa 1983.MCA Records/Getty
MCA Records/Getty
Here are five of Buffett’s best songs throughout his career.
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“Treat Her Like a Lady”
“Treat Her Like a Lady” isn’t necessarily one of Buffett’s more renowned songs — it’s more of a deep cut. But the track from his 1979 albumVolcanois a stunning number about the importance of treating the sea with respect: “Some of us sailors call her home / She’s big and she’s strong and she’s mighty / Some of us sailors call her our own / Guess that’s the reason why I treat her like a lady.”
“Cheeseburger in Paradise”
From Buffet’s 1978 albumSon of a Son of a Sailor, “Cheeseburger in Paradise” chronicles a man’s journey to combat his curb carnivorous habits in favor of a healthier lifestyle. “Cheeseburger in paradise / Medium rare with Muenster’d be nice,” the musician imagines on the track.
Over the years the country-rock song has remained a hallmark of Buffett’s work, with much speculation over where he originally wrote it. But he set the record straight inan interview withThe New York Timesin 2018. “There are many stories out there about ‘Cheeseburger.’ A lot of people want it to be written in their bars, but I know exactly where I wrote it. I wrote it in Tortola back in 1972, when I sailed there for the first time on a little 33-foot boat,” he told the publication.
Jimmy Buffett.John Shearer/WireImage
John Shearer/WireImage
“Margaritaville”
A song so famous Buffett turned it into a chain restaurant, the carefree “Margaritaville” is the singer’s biggest hit. Released on his 1977 albumChanges in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes, the tropical classic was written about “wasting away” in a vacation town — for Buffett that’s Key West. “Nibblin' on sponge cake, watchin' the sun bake / All of those tourists covered with oil / Strummin' my six-string on my front porch swing / Smell those shrimp, they’re beginnin' to boil,” the musician sings in the opening of the track.
“Come Monday”
“A Pirate Looks at Forty”
A song about Buffett longing for a life of piracy and the love of the sea, the 1974 track “A Pirate Looks at Forty” is one of the singer-songwriter’s most popular tracks. “Watched the men who rode you switch from sails to steam / And in your belly, you hold the treasures few have ever seen / Most of ‘em dream, most of ‘em dream,” he muses on the reggae-tinged number.
source: people.com
