With deep sadness, we’re writing this blog post about Jimmy Buffet who unfortunately lost the battle with the cancer on September 1st, 2023. Namely, his official website declared Jimmy’s passing in a statement.
The beloved singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett passed away at his home in Sag Harbor, Long Island on Friday, September 1, 2023, surrounded by family and friends. Buffett, 76, had been fighting Merkel Cell Skin Cancer for four years. He continued to perform during treatment, playing his last show, a surprise appearance in Rhode Island, in early July.
With a recording career that spanned more than fifty years, Buffet was one of the most successful performers in popular music. He recorded hits like “Margaritaville,” “Come Monday,” and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.”
Jimmy filled arenas with fans who called themselves “Parrot Heads.” He also popularized a signature blend of folk, country, and Caribbean music with lyrics that often reflected Buffett’s world travels.
Buffett, a pilot and a sailor, composed songs about Jamaican police shooting at his plane (“Jamaica Mistaica”), himself getting lost in the Sahara Desert (“Buffet Hotel”), and the smugglers he had encountered along the Florida Gulf Coast (“A Pirate Looks at 40”).
Bob Dylan praised lesser-known Buffet compositions “He Went to Paris” and “Death of an Unpopular Poet”. Songs that reflected the observational, storytelling skills Buffet developed in his early career as a journalist for Billboard magazine.
Buffett’s multifaceted career is a testament to his remarkable versatility and entrepreneurial spirit. Beyond his music, he found success as an author. He achieved the rare distinction of having number one best-sellers on both the fiction and non-fiction lists of the New York Times Book Review.
Additionally, Buffett ventured into the world of business. He crafted a diversified lifestyle brand empire that encompassed Margaritaville hotels, restaurants, and even retirement communities, all while introducing beloved sidelines like Land Shark beer.
His keen sense of branding and business acumen catapulted him to the upper echelons of financial success. Solidifying his status as one of the most prosperous musicians in history.
Jimmy Buffet was born on Christmas, 1946 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and grew up in Alabama. During his early years, he played and sang in the streets and bars of New Orleans. He was in marriage and love with Jane Slagsvol for 46 years.
After their first meeting in Key West, the two immediately connected and became close. Buffett described their first meeting, saying, “The next time I saw her, she was wearing a tight, long pink dress that made a lasting impression on me.” Soon after, they moved into a shared home and married in 1977.
It’s no surprise that Buffett wrote at least one song about his wife. That’s the 1978 hit song “Come Monday”. It was written for Slagsvol while he was in LA. on tour, and she returned to Key West.
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