Jimmy and Me.
I don’t know where to start with this. I suppose speaking of Jimmy Buffett’s passing is something like John Lennon being cut down too soon, but this may be more than that. John was part of something that did, in fact, change the course of history. John was a cog in a 4-part wheel. The Beatles’ music inspired generations, no question, but how many people around the world were influenced by Jimmy, whose music and state of mind changed entire lifestyles for people? I mean, if you put on a Beatles record, you can be entertained, but were you motivated transport your family to a new location on the map by listening? That’s what Jimmy managed to capture.
Jimmy didn’t set out to be the entertainment/marketing mogul he became. He started off broke, he stayed broke for a long time, and tried to be a country songwriter. It took a failed trip to Nashville to inspire him to move to Key West and start writing ‘different’ songs. Nashville welcomed him back when things stared popping a little bit.
Growing up in Virginia Beach, of course I knew who Jimmy Buffett was. Even if you weren’t old enough to drink, you knew the song Margaritaville. When I went to college, it seemed that every party had Songs You Know By Heart spinning. I didn’t know them by heart, but dammit, before too long I did. Jimmy was legendary at my alma mater of University of Southern Mississippi, where it was known that he attended for about 20 minutes, and smoked weed on the roof of the dorm.
I would go home for the summer and listen to a lot of Jimmy Buffett. One summer most of his crew stayed for 5 days at the hotel where I worked. Not a bad few days off on the road, I would imagine. Another bellman and I befriended the LD (lighting director) who had been with him for a pretty long time. He gave us tickets and backstage passes to a show in Charlotte. We drove down and had a blast. I also learned that sticky ‘guest passes’ doesn’t mean ‘All Access’.
Fast forward to Nashville, and I was an intern at MCA Records. MCA was the label home of Jimmy Buffett, and his indie Margaritaville Label was being distributed by MCA. I found any excuse I could to slide over to their office and deliver something or make small talk. One time I helped Mike Utley hand out office Christmas presents. That label introduced me to Todd Snider and The Iguanas, two very ‘not country’ acts.
Being the only Buffett fan in the country-heavy office in Nashville, I was the one who got the concert tickets. Literally nobody wanted them. I was able to see some great shows. I treated my family to a show at Merriweather Post Pavilion, where we had full access this time, and enjoyed all the backstage had to offer, which was a crazy great seafood spread and full party atmosphere. It was fun to connect with Jimmy’s cast and crew away from the office. Being in a relaxed, preshow vibe was amazing. Somehow this setting felt comfortable for me. Foreshadowing, maybe?
I also helped out with the marketing push for Jimmy’s ‘Fruitcakes’ record. I was allowed to sit in on the meetings at MCA for 2 days. I wasn’t given an advance copy of the record like everyone else, so I sat in the room just happy to be in the room, yet feeling a bit like the second class citizen. I don’t know why they felt a cassette in my car would disrupt the whole apple cart and send this record into oblivion. Day one was spent prepping for the next day’s meeting, shooting around last minute ideas. Jimmy and his manager were due in the next day.
When I arrived at the office, there was no place to park. I parked illegally and went in. I wasn’t going to miss this meeting. The office was on higher ‘alert’ since Jimmy was coming in. He came in and was jovial, but things got into business quickly. He wasn’t overly brash, but he knew what he wanted to do, and was open to suggestions on the approach to his record. Of course, had I heard the damn record in advance, I am quite sure I would have been able to contribute more effectively. I was whispering ideas to my mentor, who would then chime up and get approval. The classic tale of the intern not being allowed to speak was in full effect, and the BS factor of the people in their jobs was pretty telling.
I happened to glance out of the window and I watched my little blue Honda being towed down the street. I made a joke that I just watched my car being towed. Laughs. Truth.
After the meeting I went over to the Margaritaville offices. I missed my opportunity to be heard in the big room, but I was going to do something in the little one. I walked in and the receptionist was uneasy, like, uh, no, you can’t… and I sort of brushed that off and said hey to Mike Utley. I said hello to Jimmy and made a USM reference, and he laughed and understood our small connection. I had a CD with me that was using environmentally friendly packaging (up until then CDs used the cardboard boxes we then threw away), and they gave it a good look and appreciated me bringing it by. More than the other people in the board room, I understood where Jimmy was coming from. The country offices were busy with their country acts. I was going to try and actually do something here.
As for my car, well, apparently the receptionist made several announcements, but the PA doesn’t work in the board room during special meetings, so they blasted ahead with the tow. The tow company didn’t take cards. I was lucky. I waited tables the night before and had not yet been to the bank, so I had just enough cash in my pocket to get my car out of hock.
In pushing the album, Jimmy wanted to promote to minor league ballparks. As the call lists and contacts came in with these teams, I started shifting my gaze to a different horizon. I realized that after this campaign and meetings and the vibe that I certainly didn’t want to be on ‘that’ side of the desk, and I certainly didn’t want to be treated like I had been anymore. I fell in love with minor league ball. I went to tons of Sounds games. I started sending out resumes and actually got hired for 2 clubs. I was going to get my wish and move back to Virginia Beach and work for the Norfolk Tides.
My friends from college called, and the next thing I know I am back in Hattiesburg, MS playing music again. We’re playing shows all along the Gulf Coast, which was Jimmy’s stomping ground, and shows of his and sightings were always popping up. We played a couple of his songs in our early days, as most proper acoustic-based acts do.
I honestly got a little turned off by Jimmy a few years back when the money machine became more than I could afford. I wanted a T-shirt, but didn’t want to (nor could I) pay $35 for it. I couldn’t get get mad later, however, because he wasn’t hiding any of it. And good for him. Nobody makes any money in this business, and he figured out how to capitalize. His musical fortune was actually just a small part of his empire.
I read that when he got his first big check, he took half and bought a sailboat. His people thought he was nuts. He said nope. If the bottom falls out and he never made any more money, he would at least have a place to live and the ability to travel. Smart.
Not everything Jimmy did musically stuck with me. I sat with Norbert Putnam (who produced 5 of his records), and heard stories of the process, which brought things into focus. Did Jimmy want to change the world? Yes, but offstage, with conservation efforts and charity work galore, not necessarily with the songs he wrote. Yet, somehow he managed to do just that. He was a motivator.
Jimmy Buffett gently nudged everyone’s state of mind into better place, and let the ‘remote island’ in the Ethereal plane be open to interpretation to the individual. He didn’t have to hold our hand all the way to the water. He just put us in the boat or seaplane and gave us the first step, let our lungs fill with the salt air and our feet feel the grit of the white sand settle between our toes. And we didn’t have to leave the privacy or proximity of our back stoop to experience it all.
Jimmy taught me a lot of lessons about the music business. I know that he was loved by many, envied by most. He did it, whatever ‘it’ is, and hopefully his legacy will continue to inspire and elevate the planet into a better place for the next millennia.
“Jimmy, some of it’s magic, some of it’s tragic
But I had a good life all the way.” – Jimmy Buffett, He Went to Paris
Thank you, Jimmy.
