121.  BEARDFISH – FRAN EN PLATS DU EJ KAN SE – 2003

I had never heard of Beardfish prior to my involvement in ProgDay 2006, but these guys came under our radar and I have since become a big fan.  They were one of the highlights of the festival and are as good live as their studio output indicates.  This is the band’s debut album and is testament to the unlimited potential that they have.  The album is a mix of English and Swedish lyrics.  The bands music is difficult to pin down.  There is a bit of a Zappa influence, but I think for the most part their stuff is more straightforward than most Zappa.  Everyone in the band is solid musicians and the songwriting is very good.  The vocals get a bit rough in spots, but overall I like the guy’s voice.  This album is not as good as their sophomore effort, but definitely showcases a band finding their footing in the recording studio.  Overall a very strong debut album.

122. BEARDFISH – THE SANE DAY – 2005

Wow……this is a great album.  In only their 2^nd studio album Beardfish has recorded what I think is one of the best albums of 2005.  “The Sane Day” is a two disc concept album that tells the story of a guy named Mike who is in the process of breaking up with his girlfriend who happens to be a beauty queen in the town of Gooberville in Mississippi.  Another main character is Dwight who is a ballroom dancer.  Sound weird?  Yea it’s weird, but it works.  Although these guys are from Sweden this is a very “American” sounding album.  The lyrics are all in English and you would probably never know the vocalist was Swedish just by listening to him.  The band has taken the elements that worked for them on their first album and refined them on this release.  The vocals still have some occasional raspy ness, but Rikkard’s voice fits this music perfectly.  There is lots of great instrumental work here as well as the band stretches out in several spots to show off their chops.  This band needs to get better distribution here in the U.S. as their albums are somewhat difficult to find.   The band are all young (oldest being 23 I think) and have a ton of potential.  Their music is very proggy, but with enough pop sensibility and hooks that I could see some of this stuff getting radio airplay if ever given the chance.   I think they are one of those rare bands that can appeal to just about every facet of the prog spectrum.  This is a highly recommended album.

123. THE BRIDES OF DESTRUCTION – HERE COME THE BRIDES – 2004

Once in a while I like to rock out to some just plain down and dirty sleaze rock, and the brides fit the bill pretty well.  Led by Nikki Six (Motley Crew) and Traci Guns (L.A. Guns) this mines similar territory to other L.A. based hard rock acts.  I originally picked this up after Classic Rock magazine listed it as one of the top 10 albums of 2005.  Unfortunately it does not really live up to that billing in my opinion.  The music sounds pretty much how you would think it would sound with this lineup, again typical of other L.A. based hard rock acts.  The songs are mostly pretty average, although a few stick out.  The opener “Shut The F**k Up” is a pretty cool rocker.  “Natural Born Killers” has a killer hook and is a highlight.  The ballad “Life” is another good one.  The rest of the album is all decent, but with nothing that really stands out.  This is an album that sounds pretty good driving down the highway in my car, but it not something that I pull out very often to listen to at home. 

124. JACKSON BROWNE – THE PRETENDER – 1976

This album takes me back in time.  I was first introduced to it when I was working on a radio station back in the early 80’s.  We had a copy of the album in the station and I remember taking it home, listening to it and really thinking it was great.  Brown is one of those artists that is really good when he is on, but can also be pretty average when he’s not.  This album, for the most part, is one of his best and I think the title track ranks right up with the best stuff he has written.  Browne’s laid back California musical style is in prime form here and his lyrics are some of his most personal.  I like every tune on the disc especially “The Fuse”, “Your Bright Baby Blues”, “Sleep’s Dark And Silent Gate” and the previously mentioned “Pretender”.  As singer / songwriter stuff goes Browne is one of the better ones.

125. JACKSON BROWNE – LOOKING EAST – 1996

This mid 90’s era album came at a time when Browne’s years as a platinum selling commercial artist were behind him.  “Looking East” would prove to be his last studio album of new material for more than a decade.  Overall this is a good, but not great Jackson Browne album.  The CD starts out strong with the politically tinged title track and a nostalgic look back at youth in “The Barricades Of Heaven”.  The third track “Some Bridges” is also good.  The rest of the album slides a bit with good to average Browne songwriting.  The album closes with a reggae number “It Is One” which does not quite work to my ears.  This is not a must own Browne album, but there is enough good stuff here to make it worth owning for fans of the man.

126. JACKSON BROWNE – THE NEXT VOICE YOU HEAR THE BEST OF JACKSON BROWNE – 1997

This compilation of Browne’s career is ok, but there is a lot of material missing that could have been included.  In fact a more recent two CD retrospective was released a few years ago that covers a lot more ground than this disc does.  The choices of songs selected for this album are not necessarily Browne’s “greatest hits” although several of his big ones are included (“Doctor My Eyes”, “Running On Empty”, “Tender Is The Night”, “Lives In The Balance”).  The collection includes one track from each of his studio albums so some of his better album tracks are included here as well (“Late For The Sky”, “Barricades Of Heaven”).  The album also includes two new recordings “The Rebel Jesus” and “The Next Voice You Hear” both of which are good.  All in all this is a good collection, but might disappoint those just looking for Browne’s hits.

127.  JACKSON BROWNE – THE NAKED RIDE HOME – 2002

It took Browne over 10 years to put out an album of new material following “Looking East” in 1996.  “Naked” is a decent enough comeback although not as good as much of his earlier material.  The album begins with the title track which to me sounds like he is trying to recapture some of his romantic storytelling of yesteryear, but does not quite pull it off.  In fact I feel the same way about much of this album.  The material is good, but just not on the same level of similar things he has done previously.  There are a few highlights.  The politically charged “Casino Nation” finds Browne in fine topical form.  “Walking Town” is a duet with Don Henley which is good.  “Sergio Leone” is another cool song that meanders for almost 8 minutes before abruptly ending.  I have seen other reviews that criticize this song for never really going anywhere and I would tend to agree.  The writing style reminds me a lot of Warren Zevon, but although I think the meat of the song is great, it never really concludes which is a determent.   This album is ok, but considering it took 12 years to come out, it probably could have been better.

WARNING……next in the order comes Jimmy Buffett.  Now Jimmy is about as far from prog as you can get, but I have just about everything he has put out so for those of you who are not into him…….this is going to take a while……For many years Buffett was one of those artists that I just did not “get”.  I had heard “Margaretville” and “Cheeseburger”, but never really thought much of it.  I had friends who told me how much fun his concerts were, but having never seen him (nor having a great desire too) I had nothing to go by.  Then it all changed……..it was sometime in the early 90’s.  About 45 minutes from where I live is the town of South Haven which is located on the shore of lake Michigan.  For those of you not familiar with the great lakes they are basically huge inland seas without the salt water.  South Haven is a popular tourist town in the summer time and there is this bar that sits on top of an old riverboat docked in the harbor called The Idler.  Every summer a bunch of us take a half day off work on Friday afternoon and head off to the Idler for an afternoon of drinking and socializing (Dutchrocker on P&O has been to some of these excursions).  To make a long story short, this one afternoon we were hanging out at the Idler and they were playing a regular rotation of Jimmy Buffett music over the sound system.  This was not unusual, but for some reason on this day they were playing a bunch of album cuts and not just the hits that you usually hear.  I don’t know if it was too much sun, too much beer, or too much lake air, but that afternoon I finally “got” Jimmy Buffett.  I went out and purchased one of his albums and it has been downhill ever since.  In 1994 (“Fruitcakes” tour), my sister won a bus trip to see Buffett in Detroit and asked me to go.  I had never seen anything like it, and the show was a blast.  I officially became a “parrothead”and have gone to see him a bunch of times since then.

128.  JIMMY BUFFETT – DOWN TO EARTH – 1970

This is Jimmy’s first album when he was still trying to make it on the folk circuit in New Orleans and Nashville at the end of the 60’s.  He had not found his laid back beach bum persona yet, and the material on this disc is quite different from his later stuff.  Mostly folk-ish with a bit of country with 60’s style hippie sentiments in the music.  This album is a mixed bag, but on a few tunes Jimmy’s songwriting really shines and shows the potential of where he will eventually go.  “The Captain And The Kid” is a great song about his grandfather that he still does live today.   “Ellis Dee” (LSD…get it) is a typical Buffett play on words, “A Mile High In Denver” is Buffett’s answer to John Denver's "Rocky Mountain High".  There is also some real crap on this album bad country such as “Truckstop Salvation” and the attempted social statement in “Captain America”.  This album is certainly far from Jimmy’s best, but for a first album it certainly shows potential.

129.  JIMMY BUFFETT – HIGH CUMBERLAND JUBILIE – 1972

Jimmy’s second album follows a similar style as his first, but overall is the better recording of the two.  This is still pre-beach bum Buffett and many of the songs reflect a social / political consciousness that would fade away on his later (and more popular) recordings.  Songs like “Rockefeller Square”, “In The Shelter” and “Ace” all paint pictures of economic social situations that still ring true today.  Some of Jimmy’s best character studies are to be found here too with songs like “Death Valley Lives” and “Livingston’s Gone To Texas”.  Another highlight is the country rock romp of “High Cumberland Jubilee / Coming Down Slow” medley that closes the album.  Along with the good stuff there are some clunkers that sound very hippi-ish and dated.  Songs like “The Hang Out Gang” and “God Don’t Own A Car” probably went over really well in 1972, but have not aged very well.  This album would prove to be the last to be recorded for independent label as Buffett would move on to MCA for his next release.  It would also be his last album for many years to be recorded in Nashville which would reflect itself in the music to come.

120.  JIMMY BUFFETT – A WHITE SPORT COAT AND A PINK CRUSTACEAN – 1973

Jimmy moves to Key West and the rest is history.  The title to this album is a play on the old Marty Robbins song “A White Sport Coat And A Pink Carnation”.  Buffet begins his fascination with the tropics on this album although he still keeps his feet somewhat dipped in Nashville / Country as well.  The album scores his first novelty hit with “Why Don’t We Get Drunk (And Screw)” along with other long time favorites “Grapefruit – Juicy Fruit” and “He Went To Paris”.  “Why Don’t We Get Drunk” is the only song on the album that Jimmy did not write (although most people assume that he did).  His first song about moving to Key West “I Have Found Me A Home” is here as is the very cool album closer “Death Of An Unpopular Poet”.  This album also contains one of my all time favorite Buffett songs “Cuban Crime Of Passion” which tells the story of a murder in Havana with the great line “that’s what the people like to read about, up in America”.  All in all this is a very good Buffett album and would be the springboard to bigger things for Jimmy.

Steve Sly

ProgDay 2007

http://www.progday.com

(NP - Audioslave - Out Of Exile)

131 .JIMMY BUFFETT – LIVING AND DYING IN ¾ TIME – 1974

Buffett is still rooted in Key West for this album, but the music actually takes a step backward towards his country Nashville leanings.  Although the cover shot is of Jimmy on board and old shipwreck of a boat called “Good Luck” the album itself is one of his least tropical oriented works. Buffett scores his first big top 40 hit on this album with “Come Monday” and also includes longtime fan favorite “Pencil Thin Mustache”.  As a whole this album leans a bit too far on the country side for my tastes.  Songs like “Brahma Fear”, “Brand New Country Star”, “The Wino And I know” are straight forward country.  They are all decent songs, but what I normally like about Buffett.   My favorite song on the album “The Ballad Of Spider John” is not even a Buffett original, but a cover of WA Ramsey.  Jimmy also does a live cover of Lord Buckley’s “God’s Own Drunk” which is good, but not as good as the live version that appears on the “You Had To Be There” live album a few years later.  Buffett also covers one of his own songs here with a new version of “Livingston’s Gone To Texas” that originally appeared on his “High Cumberland Jubilee” album two years prior.  A lot of Buffett fans really love this album, but for me it is not one of his best.

132 .JIMMY BUFFETT – A1A – 1974

By this time Jimmy was immersed in the laid back counterculture that was Key West in the mid-70’s.  The title of the album refers to highway A1A that descends through the Florida Keys and ends in Key West (very close to where Buffett lived at the time).  I have always called this the “Key West” album since about half the songs deal with the town and its residents.  The album has 8 Buffett originals and 3 covers.  This album is a bit of a mixed bag, but contains some of Buffett’s best all time work.  “A Pirate Looks At Forty” is an all time fan favorite that most people take as autobiographical, but was actually about a person Jimmy knew (Buffett was much younger than 40 when he wrote this).  “Trying To Reason With The Hurricane Season” is another all time classic where you first start to see Buffett questioning the longevity of his hedonistic lifestyle.  “Nautical Wheelers” is another cool song about an old Key west dance group.  “Tin Cup Chalice” is another classic, where you can practically smell the salt air and see the sun setting on the Key West shoreline.  The rest of the album is good, but nothing that really stands out.  The first track, a cover of Alex Harvey’s “Making Music For Money” is ironic in that it is kind of a put down of the kind of entertainer Buffett would eventually become.   Many people consider this to be one of the essential Buffettt albums.  Although there are others I like better this one certainly deserves its high reputation in the Buffett catalogue.

133.JIMMY BUFFETT – HAVANA DAYDREAMIN – 1976

By 1976 Buffett had developed a solid cult following, but had still to really hit the big time.  That would come with his next album “Changes In Latitudes”, but on “Havana” he had yet to jump on the platinum bullet train.  Buffett’s backing unit The Coral Reefer Band was fully realized by this album, and the main players would remain with Buffett for years to come, some to this day.  The album is again a mix of originals and covers with songs by Steve Goodman (“This Hotel Room”), Jesse Winchester (“Defying Gravity”), Fingers Taylor (“Big Rig”).  I don’t think that this album stands up to either the previous one “A1A” or the next one “Changes In Latitudes”, but it does have it’s moments.  “My Head Hurts, My Feet Stink, And I Don’t Love Jesus” was a clever novelty song with the very young Oak Ridge Boys providing backing vocals.  The title track “Havana Daydreaming” is classic buffet.  “Kick It In Second Wind” is an autobiographical rocker that tells the story of the band.  For some reason he also re-records “The Captain And The Kid” which was originally on the “Down To Earth Album”.  The new version is pretty much the same as the old one.  This album was recorded at the height of Buffett’s partying days and there are several references to various drugs and alcohol found on the disc.  I rate this as an average disc in the overall Buffett catalogue.

134.JIMMY BUFFETT – CHANGES IN LATTITUDES CHANGES IN ATTITUDES – 1977

The album that would blow Buffett’s career into the stratosphere, “Changes” launched the hit title track and his theme song “Margaretville”.  The song turned out to be a gold mine for Buffett and has been the cornerstone of his empire ever since.  Unlike many artists who hit commercial peaks with albums of sub-par material, “Changes” deserves it’s platinum status.  This really is one of Buffett’s best albums and there is not a bad song in the bunch.  For all the cries of “selling out” by fans of his early material, the songs on this album rank with the best he has ever done.  Along with the big hits the album contains a slew of great Buffett originals.  “Wonder Why We Ever Go Home” sees the author questioning the restlessness of coming off the road.  “Tampico Trama” tells the tale of getting in trouble in Mexico.  “Miss You So Badly” and “Landfall” or two other songs dealing with the trials and tribulations of being on the road.  The cover tunes on the album are all great too.  Steve Goodman’s “Banana Republics” is a perfect song for Buffett to do telling the tale of ex-patriot Americans living south of the border.  “Lovely Cruise” is a nice little ballad that Buffett still sometimes uses to close his shows to this day.  “Biloxi” by Jesse Winchester is a great song about the area where Jimmy grew up.  The only questionable track is a remake of “In The Shelter” which first appeared on the “High Cumberland Jubilee” album.  The re-done version neither adds nor subtracts from the original.  All in all “Latitudes” is one of Buffett’s best and a must own album for his fans.

135.JIMMY BUFFETT – SON OF A SON OF A SAILOR – 1978

By the time “Son of a Son” is released Buffett has become a huge star, headlining big arenas across the country and cultivating his legion of “parrot head” fans.  His last album “Changes In Latitudes” was a lot to live up to, and although “Sailor” is not quite as good it does come very close.  Buffett managed two more huge hits from this album, the title track and the novelty song “Cheeseburger In Paradise”. The album charted in the top 10.  Buffett writes every tune on this one and the results for the most part are very good.  “Livingston Saturday Night” is an aggressive rocker that was also in the “Rancho Deluxe” and “FM” soundtracks.  “Coast Of Marseilles” is a nice lost love song.  “Cowboy In The Jungle” ranks right up there with Buffett’s best with its parrothead philosophical chorus of “roll with the punches”.  “Fool Button” is a cool rocker.  “Manana” is one of my all time favorite Buffett tracks and the album closer “African Friend” is another winner.  The only song that really does not work for me is “The Last Line” which is a bit of a throwaway track.  This album would find Jimmy at his commercial peak and things would start going downhill sales wise from here on out until his more recent big country comeback.  “Son Of A Son” remains essential Buffett.

136.JIMMY BUFFETT – VOLCANO – 1979

“Volcano” is the album where Buffett’s commercial success begins to slide a bit.  The album still sold well and had three songs “Fins”, “Volcano” and “Boat Drinks” that were minor hits.  “Fins” and “Volcano” are two fan favorites that are never missing from Buffett’s live set lists to this day.  The album as a whole is another strong one, but a step down from his previous effort “Son Of A Son……”.  Buffett writes or co-writes every song on the album.  Highlights include “Fins” which is a great up-temp rocker with lyrics about “the sharks that swim on the land”.  “Treat Her Like A Lady” is about a ship not a woman.  “Chanson Pour Les Pettits Enfants” with it’s French chorus is a unique Buffett tune.  “Survive” is another good one.  Anyone who lives in the north can relate to the “I want to go where its warm”  lyrics of “Boat Drinks”.  The remaining songs on the album are pretty average Buffett.  Ironically the title track on the album was inspired by the volcano on Montserrat which a few years later would erupt and destroy the majority of the island. 

137.JIMMY BUFFETT – COCONUT TELEGRAPH – 1980

Around the time of “Coconut Telegraph” Buffett was beginning to leave his hard partying days behind him and becoming a more “mature” artist.  Album sales really began to fall off by this time, but “Coconut” remains one of the gems in Buffett’s repertoire as the material is strong throughout the disc.  Every song on this album is a good one, and a few have become Buffett classics.  All of the songs except for two are Buffett originals.  “It’s My Job” is a great song about people doing various things for a living written by fellow Coral Reefer band member Mac McAnally.  “Stars Fell On Alabama” is another cover that fits Buffett’s style perfectly.  Of the Buffett originals the title track is a great one.  “Incommunicado” deals with the death of John Wayne.  “Growing Older But Not Up” is classic Buffett with one of his famous lines “I’d rather die while I’m living than live while I’m dead.  “The Good Fight (Co-written with J.D. Souther) is another strong track.  “The Weather Is Here I Wish You Were Beautiful” is a classic Buffett play on words and a fan favorite to this day.  The album closes out with the mellow “Island” and a song about his daughter “Little Miss Magic”.  “Coconut Telegraph” is not an album that you often see mentioned along side some of earlier bigger sellers, but this album really is one of his best.

138.JIMMY BUFFETT – SOMEWHERE OVER CHINA – 1981

Sales of new Buffett albums continued to slip with “Somewhere Over China” as nothing on this disc got much if any airplay and the album tanked at the cash register.  It remains one those albums that many Buffett fans do not own.  It is a pretty average album for Jimmy, but there are a few gems to be found on it.  Al of the songs were written by Buffett except for the final two tracks “Steamer” and “Slow Boat To China”.  Of the originals highlights include “”Where’s The Party” whose lyrics suggest that the party life may not be all its cracked up to be.  “Its Midnight And I’m Not Famous Yet” may be one of the best songs about Las Vegas ever written, and rocks harder than Buffett normally does.  The title track “Somewhere Over China” is another good one telling the story of a world weary traveler.  “I Heard I Was In Town” is a great little country tune with clever lyrics.  This album has a melancholy feel to a lot of it especially compared to the good time party tunes of many of Buffett’s other works.  It is one of Buffett’s most overlooked albums, but worth owning if you are a fan.

139.  JIMMY BUFFETT – ONE PARTICULAR HABOUR – 1983

I find this one to be a bit of a mixed bag.  There are some really great songs on this album, but there is also some filler as well.  As usual it is a mix of Buffett originals and covers.  Cover highlights include the good time concert song “Stars On The Water” from Rodney Crowell, Steve Goodman’s “California Promises”, and a lively Caribbean style take of Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl”.  Of the Buffett originals the title track “One Particular Harbor” remains a concert favorite to this day and is a great song.  “We Are The People Our Parents Warned Us About” has become the Parrothead theme song.  “Twelve Volt Man” is another great Buffett lyric and “Distantly In Love” is a breezy little ditty that closes the album.  The rest of the disc is ok, but nothing really stands out.  For the most part this is another strong Buffett album.

140 JIMMY BUFFETT – RIDDLES IN THE SAND – 1984

With “Riddles” Buffett appeared to be in search of an audience.  He could still draw well on the concert trail, but his album sales had sunk significantly since his “Margaretville days.  With “Riddles” he appears to be going after the country audience with its album cover of Jimmy in a cowboy hat and several country tunes being prominent on the album.  Buffett was also going through some difficult personal times during this album, and it shows in songs like “When The Wild Life Betrays Me”, “She’s Going Out Of My Mind” (written by Mac MCanally specifically for Buffett), “Bigger Than The Both Of Us” and “Love In Decline”.  Several of these songs are straight ahead country, but they work well for the most part.  Other highlights of the album include “Who’s The Blonde Stranger” and Jimmy’s personal philosophy song “La Vie Dansante”.  Several long time concert favorites also appear here including “Ragtop Day”, and “Knees Of My Heart”.  Overall this is a strong, but often overlooked Buffett disc.

Steve Sly

ProgDay 2007

http://www.progday.com

(NP - The Who - Sell Out)

141.    JIMMY BUFFETT – LAST MANGO IN PARIS – 1985

Buffett goes back to writing all of the songs on this album except one, and for the most part it works well.  After dabbling with country on the “Riddles In The Sand” album, Buffett moves back away from it with the exception of two tracks on “Mango”.  “Please Bypass This Heart” is nothing spectacular, but the other country oriented tune on the album turns out to be one of it’s best with “If The Phone Doesn’t Ring, It’s Me”.  I believe it has been covered by several country artists over the years and is a really great song (this is coming from a guy who does not like country music).  Other highlights on the album include “Frank And Lola” a hilarious character study of a middle age couple trying to re-kindle a spark in their relationship on vacation in Florida.  “Desperation Samba” is another great Buffett “south of the border” tune.  The title track “Last Mango In Paris” is classic Buffett.  The album closer “Beyond The End” is a song a lot of Buffett fans don't seem to care for, but I think it makes a nice grandiose close to the disc.  The album also includes several of Buffett’s popular concert favorites “Jolly Mon” and “Gypsies In The Palace”.  Some of the production on this album is very 80’s oriented which dates it a bit, but overall this is another good album from Jimmy.

142.    JIMMY BUFFETT – FLORIDAYS – 1986

“Floridays” is another one of Jimmy’s albums that often seems to get looked over by fans, but there is some really strong material to be found here and it deserves more respect than it gets.  This is one of those albums that does not blow you away upon first listen, but rather creeps up on you the more you give it a chance.  Several of these songs have a lot of subtle charm that you don't necessarily catch right off the bat.  “Creola”, “First Look” and the title track “Floridays” all fit this category.  When I first heard the album I did not really like any of them, but now they are some of my favorite tracks on the album.  “If It All Falls Down” is the only cover tune on the album, but it fit’s Jimmy perfectly.  “No Plane On Sunday”, and “When The Coast Is Clear” are both solid songs.  The highlight of the album has to be “Nobody Speaks To The Captain No More”.  Buffett has a history of songs telling the stories of colorful senior citizens and this one ranks right up with his best.  The lyrics are rather sad and depressing which is not typical of most Buffet songs, but this one is a very poignant piece of music.   The only real weak points on the album are the opening and closing tracks “I Love The Now” and “You’ll Never Work In This Business Again”.   “Floridays” is definitely one of Buffett’s most underrated albums.

143.    JIMMY BUFFETT – HOT WATER – 1988

For me this is probably the low point in Jimmy’s recorded career.  It is not a bad album and there are several songs on here that make it worth owning, but overall it is not in the same league with his better stuff.  It says something that two of the best songs on the album are covers and not even written by Buffett.  Johnny Clegg’s “Great Heart” and Jesse Winchester’s “L’air De La Louisiane” are both good with “Great Heart” still occasionally finding it’s way into Jimmy’s live set.  Most of the Buffett written stuff is very average for him.  I do like the lead off track “Homemade Music” even thought it sounds like it was deliberately written to produce a “hit” and is very 80’s sounding.  “Prince Of Tides” and the closer “That’s What Living Is To Me” are both ok.  Other than that everything else is rather dull.  Although he could still draw well on the concert stage, Buffett’s recording career was in “Hot Water” by this time.  I am not 100% sure, but I believe this was the least selling album of his career (with the possible exception of his very early stuff).

144.    JIMMY BUFFETT – OFF TO SEE THE LIZARD – 1989

I have always thought that this was one of Buffett’s more underrated efforts.  Although the album is far from his best, there is a lot to like on this disc, and it is certainly different from most of what he has put out over the years.  The album actually serves as a companion piece to Buffett’s first foray into books the short story collection “Tales From Margaretville”.  About half the songs on the album are musical accompaniments to the stories in the book.  The main character in the song “Take Another Road” is also the main character in Jimmy’s most recent novel “A Salty Piece Of Land” (a sequel to one of the short stories in “Tales”).  Highlights for me include the opening track “Carnival World” which I have always found catchy as hell.  It should have been a hit single.  “Boomerang Love” (despite the annoying chorus) is decent.  “The Pascagoula Run” tells the story of Jimmy’s wild man uncle Billy.  The album closer “Changing Channels” is also a nice little ballad.  The rest of the album is good to average with Buffett writing all but one track “Mermaid At Night”.  The album does suffer from some cheesy 80’s production, but overall “Lizard” is an overlooked piece of work that is worth owning.  For further insight into many of the songs reading the “Tales From Margaretville” book adds an additional element to the enjoyment of this album.

145.    JIMMY BUFFETT – FRUITCAKES – 1994

Buffett took 5 years off between studio albums, which for him is an eternity.  In that five year span something strange happened.  Although Buffett had still been a decent concert draw throughout the 80’s, sales of his albums had once again slipped off the radar screen.  Between “Lizard” and “Fruitcakes” Buffett had focused more on writing (books) and expanding his chain of Margaretville restaurants / clubs.  The strange part is that in the 5 years that he took in between albums instead of his fan base slipping away; it did the opposite and actually grew by leaps and bounds.  “Fruitcakes” would be the first Jimmy Buffett album to reach “gold” status in many years all without the benefit of any radio or video airplay.  Instead of selling out in a few days, his concerts starting selling out in 5 minutes.  Jimmy Buffett became a ticket scalper’s dream as the demand for seats to his shows became a phenomenon.  The “Fruitcakes” album and tour would prove to be a huge comeback for Buffett, but it has never been clear to me why it happened. The “Fruitcakes” album is a decent enough effort, with some good songs on it, but it is not as good as several of the albums that he put out in the 80’s in my opinion.  I remember when Bob Eichler reviewed this one he said something about the start of Jimmy’s “white man rap” period.  I know exactly what he is talking about.  On several spots on the album Buffett talks……and talks….and talks.  In concert, he is a storyteller and his rants work well in that context, but on a studio album it just comes across as corny.  This is especially true of the title track “Fruitcakes” where Buffett drones on and on about movies, junior mints among other topics.  The album has a few really great songs.  The opener “Everybody’s Got A Cousin In Miami” is a 7 minute plus romp.  “Lone Palm” is a great little ballad.  His cover of the Grateful Deadd’s “Uncle John’s Band” is a nice twist on the original.  The title track “Fruitcakes” is pretty good too (without the rap).  The rest of the album I find to be rather dull.  I seem to be in the minority on this one as many Buffett fans rate this album as one of their favorites, but for my ears, although there are a few highlights, this is very average Buffett.

146.    JIMMY BUFFETT – BAROMETER SOUP – 1995

This is more like it.  To me “Soup” is a much better album that “Fruitcakes” and I rate it right up with his classic albums.  Almost every song here is a winner. The album starts with the title track “Barometer Soup” which is one of those songs that you hear it once and you can’t get it out of your head.  If radio would have given this a chance I think it could have been a hit.  Other highlights include “Barefoot Children”, “Bank Of Bad Habits”, “Remittance Man”, “Lage Nom Ai”, “The Ballad Of Skip Wiley” and “The Night I Painted The Sky”.  The album closer is a spirited high energy cover of James Taylor’s “Mexico”.  Buffett has a talent for picking good cover songs and this one is perfect for Buffett to tackle.  On the down side Buffett includes some silliness that has plagued many of his 90’s era albums.  Songs like “Don’t Chu-Know” are meant to be light hearted fun, but seem more like album filler to my ears.  Overall “Barometer Soup” is one of Buffett’s best 90’s era albums and a big improvement over “Fruitcakes” in my opinion.

147.    JIMMY BUFFETT – BANANA WIND – 1996

“Wind” is another really strong 90’s era album from Buffett.  After his mediocre late 80’s albums and the lackluster “Fruitcakes” in 94, Jimmy seemed to really get back on track with “Barometer Soup” and “Banana Wind”.  Some of the best songwriting of his career is to be found on this album that is often overlooked by fans of the Buffett catalogue.  I remember around the time this album came out I was sitting in a movie theater and they were playing music over the loudspeakers prior to the start of the film.  Usually it is background noise, but this song came on that caught my attention right away.  I thought the voice sounded familiar and sure enough it turned out to be the single “Only Time Will Tell” from the then new Buffett album.  I don't think I ever heard it again anywhere other than the album, but it is a great song that should have been a hit.    There is really only one clunker n the whole album, the song “Mental Floss” that see Buffett trying to be lighthearted and it just comes across as corny to me.  The rest of the album is solid with highlights including; “Jamaica Mistaica” which tells the true story of Buffett getting shot at in Jamaica when his plane was mistaken for a drug running plane.  “Banana Wind” is a cool and breezy instrumental.  “Overkill” has Buffett taking on the music industry with some of the harshest words he has used on disc in years.  “Desdemona’s Building A Rocket Ship” further explores a character from one of his novels.  “Happily Ever After (Now And Then) is another cool little song.  For me though, the real highlight of this album is the last song “False Echoes” that was written about Jimmy’s father and his struggle with Alzheimer’s disease.  The song clocks in at over 9 minutes and is truly one of Buffett’s most heartfelt well written compositions of his entire career.  The song shows just how good a songwriter Buffett can be when he puts his mind to it.  For me “Banana Wind” is a must own album for any Buffett fan and is his best studio album in the last two decades.

148.    JIMMY BUFFETT – BEACH HOUSE ON THE MOON – 1999

“Beach House” is much more of a mixed bag than his previous two studio releases.  There are some really strong songs here, but there are also some of Jimmy’s worst as well.  On the down side, the album contains what has to be one of the weakest songs Buffett has ever written “Math Suks”.  It is meant to be fun, but is just plain stupid.  Other weak moments include a cover of “You Call It Jogging”, “Lucky Stars”, and “I Don’t’ Know And I Don’t Care”.  These are not necessarily bad songs, just very blah.  On the positive side the title track “Beach House On The Moon” is one of Jimmy’s most misunderstood songs.  It is not about some fantasy beach house, but concerns his father who had recently passed away.  If you listen to the lyrics it is his father Cameron who inhabits the Beach House On The Moon.  It always surprises me that people often don't pick up on the lyrics that make this a totally different song.  The song Permanent Reminder Of A Temporary Feeling is a good one and contains one of my favorite lines “Evolution can be mean, there is no dumb ass vaccine”.  Semi-True Story is a good one, and the album closer Oysters And Pearls is also a nice sentiment.  Buffett has a talent for picking great cover songs and his version of Bruce Cockburn’s Pacing The Cage is one of his strongest.  As a whole this album is not nearly as good as the two previous studio releases, but there is enough good material on the disc to make it worth owning.  Just skip over Math Suks…..

149.    JIMMY BUFFETT – FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD 2002

When I first heard this album I was not that impressed in fact I thought it was his weakest release in years.  But, over the course of repeated listens it has grown on me and I have learned to appreciate some of the subtleties to be found on the disc.  The album is significantly different from much of his output and is probably the least tropical in theme since his very early stuff.  In fact much of the album has more to do with Africa then it does the Caribbean.  This album is quit reflective and lacks the party escapist themes that usually crop up on Jimmy’s album.  Highlights include the opener Blue Guitar with its African beats.  Autour Du Rocher that tells the story of a hotel / bar that Buffett used to own on St. Barts, that burned down in a fire back in the late 80’s.  Last Man standing shows that Buffett is not quite ready to retire yet.  The title track Far Side Of The World serves as a travelogue of Buffet’s journeys through Africa and spending New Years Eve at the turn of the century at a place called Zanzibar (a picture of the hotel is on the back of the album cover).  The last track Tonight I Just Need My Guitar is a simple tune that works great to close out the record.  Jimmy once again picks some great covers as well doing another Bruce Cockburn song All The Ways I Want You and a rocking cover of Sonny Landreth’s USS Zydecoldsmobile complete with a scorching guitar solo from Sonny himself.  On the down side What If The Hokey Pokey Is Really What Its All about does not really fit in with this collection and reeks of a deliberate attempt to create a crowd participation number for his live shows.  I am not a huge fan of the track Altered Boy either.  The rest of the songs on the album are all good.  Far Side is a very different album for Buffett and probably will not satisfy some of his parrothead faithful, but if you give this one a chance you will find a lot to like on this disc.

150.    JIMMY BUFFETT – LICENSE TO CHILL – 2004

Much to the surprise of just about everyone including Jimmy himself, Buffett makes one of the most remarkable commercial comebacks in the last few decades with the release of “License To Chill”.  The album became a smash hit and sat at the number one spot on the album chart for weeks, and was nominated for a Grammy.  The album spawned several huge country singles including a cover of Hank Williams “Hey Good Looking” and “Trip Around The Sun” a duet with Martina McBride.  I believe it is his best selling album ever.  For this to happen to a performer in his late 50’s is truly remarkable.  The comeback actually began before the release of this album.  Country crooner Alan Jackson asked Buffett to appear on the song “It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere” which became a huge smash.  Buffett had been mulling over the possibility of doing a pure country album and decided to strike while the iron was hot.  “License” is loaded with gust appearances from a who’s who list of country music stars.  Clint Black, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, Toby Keith, George Straight, Martina McBride, Bill Withers and Nancy Griffin all put in an appearance.  So the question is…….is the album any good?  I guess it depends on your perspective.  Not being a huge fan of country music this is far from my favorite Buffett album, but it does have its moments.  I tend to like his more traditional non country oriented tracks on this album the best.   “Coast Of Carolina” is simply one of the best love songs he has ever written.   This song really gets to the heart of his marriage and tells the history of it’s ups and downs.  I am not usually big on love songs but this one resonates with me for some reason.  “Coastal Confessions” is a cool tune.  His cover of John Hiatt’s “Window On The World” works well.  Another highlight for me is the cover of the Grateful Dead’s “Scarlet Begonias” which I like better than the original and seems to be another perfect song for Buffett to tackle.  The album closer “Back To The Island” is another nice track.  Of the country stuff, “License To Chill”, “Boats To Build”, “Trip Around The Sun” are all good ones.  When I saw Buffett in Chicago a few years ago Martina McBride came out and sang “Trip” with Buffett.  She has an awesome voice.  The rest of the album is ok, country fans probably like it more than I do. 

Steve Sly

ProgDay 2007

http://www.progday.com

(NP - Audioslave - Out Of Exile)