As noted in my list of songs representing "Education Abroad in Popular Music", Jimmy Buffett has so many songs with references to travel or geographical locations that I felt he deserved a separate listing of his own. I'm not the first to make that connection. At one time, Dr. William V. Davidson, chairman of the Department of Geography and Anthropology at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, taught a course called "Geography, based on Jimmy Buffett's Songs." That inspired me to teach my own course, "From Mobile to Margaritaville: Human Geography in the Music and Fiction of Jimmy Buffett," which I taught in January terms 2012 and 2013 at Luther College.
If you're not familiar with his music, please read the following before you start recommending him to your students (who are probably already aware of much of his music). There is often a fine line between living your life to the full and savoring every minute of it on the one hand, and loosely bridled hedonism on the other. Jimmy Buffett's music often stradles that line fairly evenly. If you're offended by references to alcohol and its consumption, then you won't like many of his songs. In many cases, sensitive insights about life come with a "rum chaser."
Just reading his lyrics does not really give an accurate picture of what his music is really like. In addition to having some very creative, as well as often sensitive, lyrics, his music is a great mix of Caribbean sounds with a dash of rock, as well as a little "country," thrown in for good measure. As he describes it himself, "I've got a Caribbean soul I can barely control,/and some Texas hidden deep in my heart." If you want to know a little more about him and his music, a good place to start might be my own "Parrothead Connection," which has links to a number of other sites, including the "official" Margaritaville page.
If you have any questions or comments about this list, please don't hesitate to contact me by e-mail.
In the following list, songs are arranged by title, album (with abbreviations as noted in the table below), and sample lyrics. The hyperlinks for album titles are to the "Margaritaville" site's Discography link. For the the lyrics to the individual songs on an album, click on the link for each title. Unless otherwise noted, the composer for each song is Jimmy Buffett.
| Album Title | Abbreviation | |
|---|---|---|
| A1A | A1A | |
| A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean | AWSCAAPC | |
| Banana Wind | BW | |
| Barometer Soup | BS | |
| Beach House on the Moon | BHOTM | |
| Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes | CILCIA | |
| Christmas Island | CI | |
| Coconut Telegraph | CT | |
| Far Side of the World | Far Side | |
| Floridays | Floridays | |
| Fruitcakes | Fruitcakes | |
| Havana Daydreamin' | HD | |
| High Cumberland Jubilee | HCJ | |
| Hot Water | HW | |
| Last Mango in Paris | LMIP | |
| Licence to Chill | LTC | |
| Living and Dying in 3/4 Time | LADI3/4T | |
| Off to See the Lizard | OTSTL | |
| One Particular Harbour | OPH | |
| Somewhere over China | SOC | |
| Son of a Son of a Sailor | SOASOAS | |
| Take the Weather With You | TTWWY | |
| Volcano | Volcano |
| African Friend | |
|---|---|
SOASOAS |
"Disembarking at Duvalier Airport Seeking transportation to town As the purple ink dried on his passport He could still feel the eyes look around ... Business in Aruba concluded He now had a little money to spend That's how I came to meet my African friend" |
| Banana Republics | |
| By Steve Goodman, Jim Rothermel and Steve Burgh CILCIA |
"Down to the Banana Republics, down to the tropical sun Go the expatriated Americans, hopin' to find some fun" |
| Barometer Soup | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Russ Kunkel, Jay Oliver, Roger Guth, and Peter Mayer BS |
"Follow in my wake You've not that much at stake For I have plowed the seas And smoothed the troubled waters Come along let's have some fun The hard work has been done We'll barrel roll into the sun Just for starters" |
| Beach House on the Moon | |
BHOTM |
"Past the falls they call Victoria down the river named the Nile drifts a tiny little handmade boat it's shaped just like a smile" |
| Beyond the End | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Marshall Chapman, and Will Jennings LMIP |
"Mayan moon was burnin' We saw visions Of the past returnin' On the shore The band was playin' We all heard What the moon was sayin'" |
| Boat Drinks | |
Volcano |
"Lately, newspaper mentioned cheap air fare I gotta to fly to Saint Somewhere I'm close to bodily harm" |
| Boats To Build (with Alan Jackson) | |
| by Guy Clark and Verlon Thompson LTC |
"It's time for a change I'm tired of that same ol' same The same ol' words the same ol' lines The same ol' tricks and the same ol' rhymes
Days precious days
I'm gonna build me a boat |
| The Captain and the Kid | |
HD |
"I never used to miss the chance to climb up on his knee And listen to the many tales of life upon the sea We'd go sailing back on Barkentines we'd talk of things he did Tomorrow just a day away for the Captain and the kid" |
| Changes in Latitudes | |
CILCIA |
"Reading departure signs in some big airport Reminds me of the places I've been Visions of good times that brought so much pleasure Makes me want to go back again . . . These changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes Nothing remains quite the same Through all of the islands and all of the highlands If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane" |
| Changing Channels | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Mac McAnally OTSTL |
"Survivors of tidal waves Children of former slaves Strange how they all behave Like it's another world
There's an island in the ocean |
| Christmas in the Caribbean | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Michael Utley, Will Jennings, Marshall Chapman, and Diana Haig CI |
"It's Christmas in the Caribbean Snowbirds fill the air It's Christmas in the Caribbean Lots of presents everywhere We don't live in a hurry Send away for mistletoe It's Christmas in the Caribbean Got everything but snow" |
| Cinco De Mayo In Memphis | |
| By Guy Clark and Chuck Mead TTWWY |
"Meanwhile down on Beale Street Drinkin' in a Beale Street Bar There's a fog rollin' off the Mississippi Has anybody seen Arkansas
The deckhands from the towboats
Chorus |
| Coast of Marseilles | |
| By Keith Sykes SOASOAS |
"I sat there on the coast of Marseilles My thoughts came by like wind through my hand How good it'd be to feel you again How good it'd be to feel that way again" |
| Coconut Telegraph | |
CT |
"Tuesday on the island Not much goin' on The parties are all over They ended just past dawn The jungle drums are beating With the tales from late last night 'Cause stories bear repeating For everyone's delight" |
| Come Monday | |
LADI3/4T |
"Headin' up to San Francisco For the Labor Day week-end show I've got my hush-puppies on I guess I never was meant for glitter rock and roll And honey I didn't know That I'd be missin' you so Come Monday, it'll be all right Come Monday, I'll be holdin' you tight I spent four lonely days in a brown L. A. haze And I just want you back by my side" |
| Cowboy In The Jungle | |
SOASOAS |
"There's a cowboy in the jungle And he looks so out of place With his shrimpskin boots and his cheap cheroots And his skin as white as paste Headin' south to Paraguay Where the Gauchos sing and shout Now he's stuck in Porto Bello Since his money all ran out" |
| Cuban Crime of Passion | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Tom Corcoran AWSCAAPC |
"Well now Billy Voltaire was a piano player up from Miami way He used to play in the bars, he could sound like the stars Ladies would pay and pay One night he did wind up playin' in Havana town Nobody knew, least Billy Voltaire that these were his final sounds" |
| Desperation Samba (Halloween In Tijuana) | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Will Jennings, and Timothy B. Schmit LMIP |
" Halloween in Tijuana Full moon in my eyes I wonder how in the hell I got here Without a disguise Should I take this last step Or turn myself around Or follow my intuition into that border town" |
| Distantly in Love | |
OPH |
"Tried to phone from Paris thinking things could be arranged Me and you would rendezvous but I found your number changed So I drove to San Remo where the crazy painter dwells Toasted our old photograph still up there on his shelf" |
| Duke's On Sunday | |
| By Henry Kapono Ka'aihue TTWWY |
"People in here from all over the world Men women little boys and girls Gather round by the seaside Beach party tropic style Diamondhead and palm trees Surf riders on the sea This is the place to be Oh this is the place to be
On the beach at Waikiki Duke's on Sunday" |
| England | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Buzz Cason HCJ |
"Somebody told me the last word they heard her say was England Somebody said that she mentioned the airline and the fare Now I wonder if's she's there So tally-ho Jolly good show My woman's gone to England" |
| Everybody's Got a Cousin in Miami | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Michael Tschudin Fruitcakes |
"Everybody's got a cousin in Miami Everybody understands the impromptu Dancing in the heat to the beat That turns your clothing clammy Everybody needs to have a dream come true" |
| Far Side of the World | |
| Far Side |
"Following my song line Past bamboo shacks and shops Behind a jitney packed like sardines, With bananas piled on top.
I ran away from politics, |
| Fins | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Deborah McColl, Barry Chance, and Tom Corcoran Volcano |
"She came down from Cincinnati It took her three days on the train Lookin' for some peace and quiet Hoped to see the sun again . . . She's saving up all of her money Wants to head it south in May Maybe roll in the sand with a rock 'n' roll man Somewhere down Montserrat way" |
| First Look | |
Floridays |
"So I'll just cruise on my landing gear And taxi 'round Rio town Up to the mountain, down to the sea Take me to Leblon where the samba queen a-waits for me" |
| Frenchman for the Night | |
Fruitcakes |
"Blame it on the Champs Elysees Blame it on a tune Blame it on the stroke of Monet But you can't escape the moon You can't escape the moon. He sees the stars above As the floor to heavens light While the angels taunt C'est une nuit blanche He's a frenchman for the night" |
| Havana Daydreamin' | |
HD |
"Stashed his trash in Ecuador Bought a good suit of clothes Flew on up to Mexico Standin' by the shore" |
| He Went to Paris | |
AWSCAAPC |
"He went to Paris lookin' for answers To questions that bothered him so He was impressive, young and aggressive Savin' the world on his own
But the warm summer breezes |
| I Have Found Me a Home | |
AWSCAAPC |
"Yes I have found me a home I have found me a home You can have the rest of everything I own 'Cause I have found me a home And the days drift by They don't have names And none of the streets here look the same There aren't many reasons I would leave 'Cause I have found me some peace" |
| I Wish Lunch Could Last Forever | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Jay Oliver OTSTL |
"I wish lunch could last forever Make the whole day on big afternoon We'll begin with dessert a little coconut tart Tastes as sweet as a piece of your heart Cafe au lait beneath the Paris moon" |
| Incommunicado | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Deborah McColl and M.L. Benoit CT |
"Travis McGee's still in Cedar Key That's what ol' John MacDonald said My rendezvous's so long overdue With all of the things I've sung and I've read They still apply to me They all make sense in time" |
| Island | |
CT |
"Island I see you in the moonlight Silhouettes of ships in the night Just make me want that much more Island I see you in all of my dreams Maybe someday I'll have the means to reach your distant shores" |
| Jamaica Mistaica | |
BW |
Safety and Liability?
(Written after Jamaican officials shot at his plane, mistaking it for a drug smuggler) "Come back Come back Back to Jamaica Don't you know we made a big mistaica We'd be so sad if you told us goodbye And we promise not to shoot you out of the sky" |
| Jimmy Dreams | |
BS |
"Sound of the low tide The smell of the rain Travellin' alone On my boat and my plane Take it all in It's as big as it seems Count all your blessings Remember your dreams" |
| King of Somewhere Hot | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Ralph MacDonald, William Salter and Robert Greenidge HW |
I've travelled all around the world And there are places that still stand out to me None can really quite compare To my island in the sea My personal utopia A place to run to where I can hide away Where I can truly reign supreme Somewhere fresh and clean where a man can dream" |
| L'air de la Louisiane | |
| By Jesse Winchester HW | "A walk in the woods of old Louisiana the shadows are long Our steps are silent in the Louisiana air You and I say nothing as we suck sugar cane For one minute I'm happy in the Louisiana air" |
| Landfall | |
CILCIA |
"Sail away, for a month at a time Sail away, I've got to restart my mind And you'll find me back at it again" |
| Last Mango in Paris | |
LMIP |
"He said 'I ate the last mango in Paris Took the last plane out of Saigon Took the first fast boat to China And Jimmy there's still so much to be done.'" |
| Lone Palm | |
Fruitcakes |
"My garden is filled with papayas and mangos My life is a mixture of reggaes and tangos Taste for the good life I can't live it no other way While out on the beach there are two empty chairs That say more than the people who ever sit there From under my lone palm I can look out on the day" |
| Lovely Cruise | |
| By Johnathan Baham CILCIA |
"It's been a lovely cruise I'm sorry it's ending, oh it's sad, but it's true Honey, it's been a lovely cruise" |
| Manana | |
SOASOAS |
"Called all my friends on those cheap nightly rates Sure was good to talk to the old United States While the lights of St. Thomas lie twenty miles west I see General Electric's still doing their best" |
| Migration | |
A1A |
"Well now if I ever live to be an old man I'm gonna sail down to Martinique I'm gonna buy me a sweat-stained Bogart suit And an African parakeet" |
| Margaritaville | |
CILCIA |
The anthem of everyone wanting to spend their time away from their day-to-day world, and instead of working,
"Wastin' away again in Margaritaville |
| Meet me in Memphis | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Michael Utley Floridays |
"He's holed up down on Ramrod Key in the Tavenier Hotel Livin' out his loneliness like an oyster in a shell" |
| The Night I Painted the Sky | |
BS |
Setting off fireworks on the Fourth of July in St. Martin: " The rockets in the air And the people everywhere Put away their differences for a while" |
| No Plane on Sunday | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Michael Utley Floridays |
"You can throw your luggage down Lose your cool and stomp around But there's nothin', nothin' you can do Wipe away your girlfriend's tears Go to the bar and have some beers There ain't no way that bird's gettin' through No plane on Sunday Maybe be one come Monday Just a hopeless situation Make the best of it's all you can do" |
| One Particular Harbour | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Bobby Holcomb OPH |
" I know I don't get there often enough But God knows I surely try It's a magic kind of medicine That no doctor could prescribe ... But there's this one particular harbour So far but yet so near Where I see the days as they fade away And finally disappear" |
| Party At The End of the World | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Peter Mayer, Roger Guth, and Will Kimbrough TTWWY |
"There's a place you can go, called Tierra Del Fuego Down in the Southern Hemisphere It's kind of Troy without Helen, past the straits of Magellan And things are always lookin' up down here
There's a party at the end of the world |
| A Pirate Looks at Forty | |
AIA |
"Mother, mother ocean, I have heard you call Wanted to sail upon your waters since I was three feet tall You've seen it all, you've seen it all" |
| Railroad Lady | |
| By Jimmy Buffett and Jerry Jeff Walker AWSCAAPC |
"South Station in Boston to the freight yards of Austin From the Florida sunshine to the New Orleans rain" |
| Remittance Man | |
BS |
Based on a character in Mark Twain's Travelling the Equator:
"Sinner on the mainland |
| Son Of A Son Of A Sailor | |
SOASOAS |
"As the son of a son of a sailor I went out on the sea for adventure Expanding the view of the captain and crew Like a man just released from indenture As a dreamer of dreams and a travelin' man I have chalked up many a mile Read dozens of books about heroes and crooks And I learned much from both of their styles " |
| Somewhere over China | |
SOC |
"Just a semi-normal person Thought he had the future planned Then he won some silly sweepstakes Now he had a hundred grand Never stopped to think of taxes He was gone before they knew With a flair for ol' romantics To the Orient he flew" |
| Steamer | |
| By John Scott Sherrill SOC |
"I remember that steamer Time you set sail The crowd was steamin' Streamin' and leanin' on the rail" |
| Stories We Could Tell | |
| By John B. Sebastian A1A |
"Talkin' to myself again Wonderin' if this travellin' is good Is there somethin' else a' doin' We'd be doin' if we could" |
| Take Another Road | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Jay Oliver, and Roger Guth OTSTL |
"Follow the equator, like that old articulator Sail upon the ocean just like Mr. Twain Never look back, this is my plan Run my pony through the sand Somewhere, somewhere" |
| Tampico Trauma | |
CILCIA |
"I must look a mess I must admit But I have been travelling quite a bit South of the Border" |
| That's What Living is to Me | |
HW |
Based on Mark Twain's dedication on the title page of Following the Equator "Be good, and you will be lonely."
"Jason Mason hears the sound
Be good and you will be lonesome
On a timeless beach in Hispaniola |
| Tin Cup Chalice | |
A1A |
"I wanna back to the island Where the shrimp boats tie up to the pilin'" |
| Tonight I Just Need My Guitar | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Mac McAnally Far Side |
Sometimes more than others You see who and what and where You are I'm a one-man band with no Immediate plans Tonight I just need my guitar |
| Trying to Reason with Hurricane Season | |
A1A |
"Well the wind is blowin' harder now Fifty knots or thereabouts There's white caps on the ocean And I'm watchin' for waterspouts It's time to close the shutters It's time to go inside In a week I'll be in gay Paris That's a mighty long airplane ride" |
| Volcano | |
| By Jimmy Buffett, Keith Sykes & Harry Dailey Volcano |
"I don't know I don't know I don't know where I'm a gonna go When the volcano blow" |
| The Weather is Here, Wish You Were Beautiful | |
CT |
"The weather is here I wish you were beautiful The skies are too clear life's so easy today The beer is too cold, the daiquiri's too fruitiful No place like home when you're this far away I don't care what they say" |
| Weather With You | |
| By Neal Finn and Tim Finn TTWWY |
"Everywhere you go You always take the weather with you Everywhere you go You always take the Weather" |
| Window On The World | |
| by John Hiatt LTC |
"A broken promise I kept too long A greasy shade and a curtain drawn A broken glass and a heart gone wrong That's my window on the world.
A cup of coffee in a shaky hand |
| Wonder Why We Ever Go Home | |
CILCIA |
"Years grow shorter, not longer The more you've been on your own Feelin's for movin' grow stronger So you wonder why you ever go home Wonder why you ever go home" |
| To send me e-mail: |
|---|
slind@norse.org |