Showing posts with label Jimmy Buffett. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jimmy Buffett. Show all posts

Monday, August 18, 2014

Jimmy Buffett - Bristow, Virginia August 16, 2014



Jimmy Buffett
And the Coral Reefer Band

Bristow, Virginia
August 16, 2014
     You would think that after all of these years crooning about cheeseburgers and margaritas that Jimmy Buffett would be mailing it in by now.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The man still delivers a high energy, top-notch performance.  His band was particularly sharp on this cool and breezy August night in Northern Virginia.  Jimmy was in fine voice as well.

     He opened the show with a rousing version of Jimmy Cochran's "Summertime Blues" and then immediately hit the high note with crowd favorite, Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl".  This featured the band bouncing up and down in unison during the "La-la-la-la-la-la" parts.  If anyone in the crowd wasn't into it by then, there was something very wrong with them.

     The band segued through an entertaining set of old songs, new songs, country songs and even a virtuoso instrumental by Mac McAnally.  One of the highlights for me was the introduction of Brendan Mayer, son of long time Buffett guitarist Peter Mayer.  Brendan displayed his considerable guitar chops on several songs and was featured on his own composition "Something to Say".  Jimmy migrated to the rythym section to play tambourine on that one!

     My favorite tune was the Stephen Stills composition "Southern Cross".   We saw Jimmy
Buffett in Las Vegas several years ago and this was one of the encores.  Jimmy used it this time to get the crowd into a frenzy for the big finale: "A Pirate Looks at Forty" followed by "Fins" and, of course, "Margaritaville".  This show's encore including "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere" with "Let's Get Drunk" mixed in was well received and everyone left very happy.

     This show had a different vibe than the Vegas show we attended in 2011.  The crowds were both energetic, but the Virginia crowd seemed to have more families and younger adults.  Jimmy Buffett has managed to transcend generations and genres and attracts a very diverse crowd.  There was a fairly large contingent of the grey haired set, myself included.  The lady next to me was alternating sips of beer with puffs on an Albuterol inhaler.

     My wife made the comment that a Jimmy Buffett show is not really a concert - it's a giant party where Jimmy Buffett shows up.  You have to admire the man for finding his own unique style and sound, sticking with it, perfecting it and turning it into a franchise.  For a guy known more for party anthems though, his ballads and musicianship are quite remarkable.  His ability to work a crowd is unparalleled.  I enjoyed Jimmy's reminiscences of playing The Cellar Door in Georgetown in his early days, being the first show at this venue and also playing at the White House.  

     My days of driving three hours to and from a show, fighting crowded parking lots and standing (and jumping and dancing) for several hours may be winding down.  This is one performer that I would still go through all of that to see.  It was a lot of fun, which I think, for Jimmy Buffett, is the point!  Thank you, Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band, for entertaining us for all of these years and keeping it fun.


    Posted by at No comments:
    Labels: , , ,

    Sunday, October 23, 2011

    Jimmy Buffett and The Coral Reefer Band, MGM Garden Theater, Las Vegas, Nevada, October 15, 2011



    Jimmy Buffett and The Coral Reefer Band
    MGM Garden Theater, Las Vegas, Nevada
    October 15, 2011

    This was no ordinary concert.  It wasn’t even an event or a “happening”.  It was a total multi-sensory, “you’ve got to see it to believe it” experience!  The evening started early.   We decided to stop by Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville restaurant for dinner before the concert.  Apparently about 20,000 other people had the same idea.  In celebration of the opening of the new “Margaritaville Casino,” the adjacent street was closed and there was a giant block party.  People had been partying there for quite some time.  There was a band, concession stands, bars and an amazing array of Parrot Heads in every imaginable costume.  I felt pretty underdressed in a mere tropical print shirt and shorts, but we tried our best to “blend.”  The centerpiece of this celebration of all things Buffet was “Lucky Rita” an enormous margarita, mixed over the preceding several days.  The purpose (successful) of concocting “Lucky Rita” was to set the Guinness Book of World Records record for the world’s largest margarita.

    http://www.margaritaville.com/videos.html?ma_id=5&mc_id=517 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNG_rSfA9KM  






    This “frozen concoction of which I speak” started with 2125 gallons of Margaritaville Gold Tequila and 708 gallons of Triple Sec.  They were selling margaritas for $38 per souvenir blender full.  We opted for a couple of Land Shark beers. 

                 We realized that we would never get into the restaurant with enough time to get to the show, so we began our walk up the Strip, stopping in the Paris Hotel and Casino for dinner.  They had a wonderful “Recession Special” with an all-inclusive dinner (including a glass of wine) for $25.95 each.  It was a very good meal and by far the best deal we found in Las Vegas.

                Then it was on the MGM Grand Garden Theater.  We joined a procession of very intoxicated people as we meandered through the casino, most of the crowd regaled in Parrot Head or Cheeseburger hats, flowered leis, shark costumes and tropical attire.  This was a sight to behold.  This procession drew curious looks from the casino patrons, who were, at least momentarily, distracted from pulling levers on slot machines, tossing dice and drawing cards. 





                The crowd was happily drunk.  We didn’t really find anyone obnoxious, belligerent or unruly (well, at least not until the concert was over.)  The crowd was almost as much fun to watch as Jimmy Buffet.  There were all ages present, most in some sort of costume.  By the end of the show, a lot these folks were having a hard time navigating the stairs. 

                It was the second time we had seen Jimmy Buffett, the first time since 1981.  Jimmy looks more like Joe Biden now than the curly-haired troubadour of the 1970s and 80s, but he can still put on a terrific show.  He is the consummate entertainer, peppering the time between songs with banter and quips.  The set list included many of the same songs as the 1981 show and the crowd very happily sang along with all of the lyrics.  Highlights were “Brown Eyed Girl”, “Margaritaville” and “A Pirate Looks at Forty.”  Two recent songs which were recorded as collaborations with country artists also brought the fans to their feet: “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere” (recorded with Alan Jackson) and “Knee Deep” (recorded with The Zac Brown Band.)  The show finale began with the theme from “Jaws” and the whole crowd started the “Fins to the Left, Fins to the Right” dance.  The encore began with a rousing rendition of “Viva Las Vegas”, continued with a very good version of Stephen Stills’ “Southern Cross” and an acoustic solo performance by Jimmy of “Tin Cup Chalice.”  A very satisfied crowd shuffled and stumbled out to the strip or, in our case, to the monorail train having been part of something special.




        SET LIST

    The Wino And I Know
    Brown Eyed Girl
    It’s Midnight And I’m Not Famous Yet
    Pencil Thin Mustache
    Off To See The Lizard
    It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere
    Life Is Just A Tire Swing
    Son Of A Son Of A Sailor
    Come Monday
    Why Don’t We Get Drunk And Screw
    Volcano
    Cheeseburger in Paradise
    One Particular Harbour
    Use Me
    Bama Breeze
    Jolly Mon Song
    Knee Deep
    Margaritaville
    School Boy Heart
    A Pirate Looks At Forty
    The City
    Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes
    Fins

                ENCORE
    Viva Las Vegas
    Southern Cross
    Tin Cup Chalice


    Posted by at No comments:
    Labels: , , , ,
    Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)