"Wastin' away again in Margaritaville" are iconic words in the song "Margaritaville" (from 1977), Jimmy Buffett's best known. 

Surprisingly, despite his 50-year musical career, 36 albums, thousands of concerts, and tens of millions of fans who know his songs by heart, "Margaritaville" was Buffett's only Top 10 hit.  Later on in the 2000s, he had several country chart–toppers such as "Knee Deep" (by Zac Brown) and "It's Five o'Clock Somewhere" (by Alan Jackson), but those were songs he did in collaboration with other musicians.

Lyricists, songwriters, and musicians are our modern-day poets.  They use as few words as possible, the correct number of syllables, combined in just the right manner to express emotions and feelings — from love to loneliness, from eternal hope to destruction, euphoria to sadness and every emotion in between.  Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, and Jimmy Buffett (J.B.) are some of the very best.  Earlier this year, we said farewell to Gordon.  Earlier this month, we bade bon voyage to Jimmy.  Like countless other "Parrotheads," I was sad to hear that Buffett had passed away.

Since my 1970s college days, I've loved J.B.'s music.  Sorry to say, I saw him only once in concert.  It was 1982 in Seattle — only two years after the eruption of Mount St. Helens, a major event in Washington State.  During the concert, Buffett played his "Volcano" song that includes the lyrics "I don't know where I'm gonna go when the volcano blows."  He changed some of the wording to make it sound as though he had written the song specifically for those living in the Pacific Northwest.  The crowd loved it.

For decades, Buffett has been a force on the music and cultural scene.  He embodied the lifestyle everyone sought — laid back, carefree, rum (or tequila) drink in hand, warm Caribbean waters, a private sailboat to cruise wherever the next party is or where the winds take you, no worries in the world.  Fun, sun, relax, party, and repeat.

I enjoy a wide variety of music, from classical to jazz, rock, country, bluegrass, and much more.  Turns out, I have more music by J.B. than any other single artist.  His lyrics, songs, and albums are spot on and help us understand and explain how or why we feel the way we do.  Each one of his songs tells a different story that we all can relate to, at one time in our lives or another.  Listening to his songs feels like he's "strummin' his six-string" right there on the beach around a fire pit with friends or playing at some dive joint while sipping beers and shootin' tequila shots.  He could be irreverent, goofy, nonsensical, or serious and filled with sage advice.

His songs talked of and reminded us of adventure, bikini-clad women, sun-baked tourists, food and drink, summer romances, or reminiscing with an old friend.  "Mother, mother ocean, I have heard you call.  Wanted to sail on your waters since I was three feet tall" (from "A Pirate Looks at Forty") takes us to distant shores and a yearning for travel and adventure.  "We can go hiking on Tuesday, with you I'd walk anywhere" (from "Come Monday," 1974) reminds us of our young romantic crushes.  Also from "Pirate," consider these words: "I made enough money to buy Miami but I pissed it away so fast" reminds us of our stupid, younger years.  Hopefully, we'll live long enough to get a little smarter.  I have.

Continuing with Buffett's lyrics: "I found myself on the continental divide.  Where do I go from here?  I think I'll ride into Leadville and have a few beers" (from "Incommunicado," Coconut Telegraph album).  A few years prior, I did find myself on the continental divide while on a 1979 bicycle trip and rode into Leadville, Colorado and had a few beers.  Or take the words to "Fruitcakes" — "She told me that human beings are flawed individuals.  The cosmic bakers took us out of the oven a little too early.  And that's the reason we're as crazy as we are, and I believe it."  Humorous, goofy, and true — humans are crazy.  Continuing with "Fruitcakes," "I don't want that much organization in my life.  I don't want other people thinking for me."  Bravo, Jimmy.  I agree — I don't want others thinking for me.  Stop telling me if I can or can't smoke (I've never smoked, but I don't want others telling us who should or shouldn't be allowed.); that I must wear a seatbelt (I do, but why are others telling us we must while demanding we legalize marijuana?); or that you must wear a motorcycle helmet (I wear a helmet when I bicycle, and I'd wear one on a motorcycle, but why are others telling us what to do?). 

What's ironic is that Jimmy's early lifestyle — fun in the sun — is likely what killed him.  He died from skin cancer.  Also, Buffett wasn't the person his songs portrayed him to be.  Perhaps he was at one time, but certainly not the last 45 years of his life.  He couldn't be that laid back, carefree person and manage to build a billion-dollar entertainment empire consisting of Margaritaville restaurants, hotels, retail stores, books (he was an author), a Broadway musical, retirement communities — oh, and his music.

Image: Miosotis Jade via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Getting back to his music, one of my favorite JB songs is "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes."  To me, it means that our attitude changes as we change our circumstances.  Jimmy's attitude changed as his latitude changed.  Mine changes with elevation, bicycling, and exposure to nature — the higher I climb on a mountain, the farther I cycle, or the deeper I journey into the forest, the better I feel, the farther I see, and the clearer I think.  My wife?  Her attitude changes at the beach and with her daily devotional.  For others, their attitude change might be getting out on the lake or on the river.  Like most Buffett songs, "Changes in Latitudes" has some great lyrics: "Yesterday's over my shoulder, so I can't look back for too long.  There's just too much to see waiting in front of me and I know that I just can't go wrong."  Also from "Latitudes," one of Jimmy's all-time best lines is "If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane."  Amen to that — let's all laugh a little more so we don't go insane.

Final thought from a Parrothead: I have no doubt that right now Jimmy has a drink in hand, enjoying a cheeseburger in Paradise, strummin' his six-string, on his front porch swing with shrimp just beginnin' to boil.  God's probably singing and laughing with him.  

Image: U.S. Navy,via Picryl, public domain.