# So, What the Hell is it with Jimmy Buffett? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 8, 2000, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678 "2000-03-08T02:20:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2000, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/21 "2000-03-09T00:56:00Z")
Some performers represent certain lifestyles, and their popularity is a reflection of how desirable that lifestyle is. Three that come to mind are Buffet, John Denver, and the Grateful Dead. Their music is not at all similar, but they all attracted huge audiences out of proportion with the quality of their music. (All of them did some good stuff, but no more so than lots of other performers who sank like a stone). Some Southern Rock bands have the same kind of following, for the same reasons. The band becomes a symbol for something bigger than the music. ---
**Author:** ![billehunt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c37758/32.png) [@billehunt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billehunt)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2000, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/22 "2000-03-09T01:26:00Z")
**Lynn Bodoni** wrote > [@](#): > > Hmmmmmm…RHPS? Forgive me; is that Rocky Horror Picture Show? If so, yes… I’ve only seen that twice, and I can’t say I’ve made the connection before, but it’s a good one. **Johhny Angel** wrote > [@](#): > > I don’t particularly care for the beach. I suppose it helps that I love the beach. ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2000, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/23 "2000-03-09T05:56:00Z")
> [@](#): > > and party on the beach like you were 20 again. Rum and reefer all around. \< **SIGH** \> * * * Cecil said it. I believe it. That settles it. ---
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2000, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/24 "2000-03-09T06:04:00Z")
Isn’t it a matter of opinion? Couldn’t you easily have substituted “Backstreet Boys” for “Jimmy Buffet”? They have a huge following, yet I think everyone on this board, with the exception of A girl, will agree with me when I say that their music sucks. So what’s the deal? Why were they all over the grammys? Why is their record multiplatinum? Who knows? VI syndrome? Probably. Flashinthepanitis? Maybe. I know that comparing JB to BB is a stretch, due to the time factor, but my point is simply this: When it’s a matter of opinion, you can ask anything and get nothing but peoples opinions in response. In the interest of pointing out other stuff that’s obvious… The Pope wears a funny hat. * * * “Winners never quit and quitters never win, but those who never win and never quit are idiots.” ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2000, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/25 "2000-03-09T15:36:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by Sam Stone: > \*\*Three that come to mind are Buffet, John Denver, and the Grateful Dead. \*\* HEY! Leave the Dead outta this! I DON’T still listen to the Dead because I long for my mis-spent youth! I don’t I don’t I DON’T! It’s the polyrhythms! And the instrumental interplay! “Well, everybody’s dancing in a ring around the sun Nobody’s finished, we ain’t even begun So take off your shoes, child And take off your hat Try on your wings And find out where it’s at” – “The Golden Road to Unlimited Devotion” Shit. Wonder if there’s any of that microdot left in the freezer. ---
**Author:** ![kellibelli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e480ec/32.png) [@kellibelli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellibelli)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2000, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/26 "2000-03-09T17:47:00Z")
He speaks to me. “Summers & winters, scattered like splinters, and four or five years slipped away.” How totally fuckin true is that? You wake up one day, and its five years later. ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2000, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/27 "2000-03-10T06:15:00Z")
Hey Ike, don’t Bogart that dot! ---
**Author:** ![Narile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@Narile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Narile)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2000, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/28 "2000-03-10T02:23:00Z")
Buffett does not just bring back images of the beach. I am also not the biggest fan of the beach, but what he does bring out are feelings of just lazing the day away. At least his more active songs do, his more poignant songs are just relaxfull… I am a bit of a parrothead, and I will state that I think _Pirate Looks at 40_ is one of the greatest songs sung. * * * \>\>Being Chaotic Evil means never having to say your sorry…unless the other guy is bigger than you.\<\< —The dragon observes ---
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2000, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/29 "2000-03-12T05:01:00Z")
I like Jimmy Buffett alot. Very relaxing. Except for “Cheeseburger in Paradise.” I must dance to that song. I must. It’s uncontrollable. Hey Ike, got a joke for ya: What did the Grateful Dead say when the acid wore off? “What the fuck are we listening to this shit for?” Mwaaaaahaaaaaaahahahahaha… * * * This space blank, until Wally thinks up something cool to put here. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2000, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/30 "2000-03-12T05:47:00Z")
> [@](#): > > I thoroughly enjoy goofiness, and it’s plain damned fun to melt into a crowd of folks sporting coconut-scented suntan oil (in the winter), gaudy shirts and relaxed attitudes. I agree with pretty much everyone here (particularly the above). Buffet and his music give folks a chance to chill out, act silly, and just generally have a good time without fear of looking like a weirdo. But there’s one other thing about Buffet - he’s _really_ having a great time up there on stage. He enjoys what he’s doing, and it shows. His lack of pretension, his willingness to act like a fool, and his ability to laugh at himself (along with his crazy fans) makes him one of the most **entertaining** entertainers around. ## Hey, if the band’s just going to _stand_ there and play as if they were in a recording studio, I’ll stay home and listen to the record, thankyouverymuch. When I go to a concert, I want some ACTION, some CHATTER, some FUN up there on stage! Buffet delivers. [**StoryTyler**](http://sites.netscape.net/storytyler/homepage) “Not everybody does it, but everybody should.” ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2000, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/31 "2000-03-12T05:51:00Z")
Yo! **Frankd6, Dirty Devil, ChiefScott!** What shall we do to Cristi? * * * Uke ---
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2000, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/32 "2000-03-12T06:10:00Z")
Wait! My husband told me to tell you that joke! He’s a musician! He understands the polyrhythms you like so much! There was an earthquake! A flood! I had a flat tire! It wasn’t my fault! I swear! * * * This space blank, until Wally thinks up something cool to put here. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2000, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/33 "2000-03-12T22:29:00Z")
I’d like to reiterate that I never intended this to be a Buffet-bashing thread. Not only has it been moved to the pit, another thread that really was meant as flamebait has been squelched in favor of this one. This is what I get for not being careful with my tone. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2000, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/34 "2000-03-13T00:28:00Z")
Buffett does have some great lyrics. From “A Pirate Looks at 40” (also my favorite Buffett tune), about a frustrated drunk: Mother, Mother Ocean After all my years I have found Occupational hazard being My occupation’s just not around Aaaah. It’s not Paul Simon, but it’s a great line. ---
**Author:** ![Dirty\_Devil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Dirty\_Devil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dirty_Devil)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2000, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/35 "2000-03-13T16:50:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by Ukulele Ike: > \*\*Yo! > > **Frankd6, Dirty Devil, ChiefScott!** > > What shall we do to Cristi?\*\* I say we tie her up with some hemp string, make her listen to a twenty-two minute China/Rider from 1972 and feed her fatty veggie burritos and kind grilled cheese sandwhiches until she sees the light. Oh wait, that kinda’ sounds good. Maybe I’ll have to join her. * * * March winds will blow all my troubles away. ---
**Author:** ![jab1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee7513/32.png) [@jab1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jab1)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2000, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678/36 "2000-03-13T20:12:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by ReservoirDog: > **I think it speaks to the average IQ of a Florida resident.** I used to live in Florida. It caused me to form the hypothesis that high heat and humidity and heavy tourist traffic have a deleterious effect on a person’s IQ. California has a lot of tourists, but a different climate and the residents here seem more intelligent that those of Florida. I have yet to test this hypothesis due to a lack of funds. Wonder if I could get a government grant… * * * When all else fails, ask Cecil. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-the-hell-is-it-with-jimmy-buffett/4678.md?page=1)