"Chanson pour les petits enfante, Chanson pour toude le monde"

It was the summer of 1977 ,at a very young age, spending many hours at our local swim club where they play the local radio station over loud speakers. Averaging around 5 hours a day at the club you would hear the "summer song" over and over again as the station drowned us with the latest hits. This was the summer where I would never forget a song by a college drop-out from Mississippi turned beach bum. (eventually he graduated) And it wouldn't be until a few years later I actually purchased one of the albums this beach bum concocted. Some say he may only be a "one-hit-wonder" but he did produce a few other notable songs which local stations would play. But one Hit song remains to this day a top attraction and some say a destination but perhaps only a state of mind to most who have experienced this Hit song. However, he is also a author and only one of seven who have appeared on the New York Times best seller list for Fiction and Non-Fiction works but mostly known for providing us with songs that tell of exotic far off places that we dream about. To reach these far off places you must either attempt the voyage by either sailboat or sea plane. If you choose to sail away to that one particular harbour make sure you bring your flip flops and suntan lotion.Voyage by sea plane (no plane on Sunday) will give you a different point of view to your final destination or state of mind. When you get their you will find the ultimate holy grail of all destinations. No passport needed, no T-shirt required, just the right attitude and latitude.

Welcome to MARGARITAVILLE by JIMMY BUFFETT.

(If you are not a fan of Jimmy's then you won't understand. For some of my South Florida friends I know you are sick of Buffett so don't read any further!!)

In 1983 I purchased his "One Particular Harbour" album. Since then I haven't looked back. His music and books are as much a part of my life as the sun & ocean are in Hawaii. My first Buffett concert remains a blur and to this day it was either 1983 or 1984. Since then I've only missed one year of his shows. In 1995 I would miss his concerts as I set sail for the island of Moorea in Tahiti. And he wasn't playing in Hawaii at the time either so flying back to Hawaii wasn't an option. CA was the closest and I was unable to leave Moorea. However, I would certainly make up for the lost religious experience. Prior to my departure for Moorea I sent live flowered leis to Jimmy and the band via Fed Ex to Cincinnati Riverbend Ampitheather for his opening of the Summer 95 tour around Memorial day. Unbeknownst to me, the concert was cancelled because of heavy rains and flooding and I learned later that perhaps he never received the flowered leis. Oh well. So returning from Moorea I would remain in Hawaii and continue to fly back and forth to CA west coast to see his concerts or fly back to Ohio and time it with his east coast tours.

Then in 1999 I moved to Bermuda. Knowing that Buffett doesn't play in Bermuda I had to keep an eye out for his summer/fall millennium ending tour. He made his last shows of the millennium in West Palm Beach FL. And I made my first class flight plans as soon as I could.

(side note; I rarely had advanced tickets to any of his shows, I just would show up to ticket window on concert day and ask for any last minute releases, it works every time!) (only twice have I purchased scalped tickets, Irvine CA and Indy IN) Met my buddy from Ohio at the concert and the rest is history.

Over the years, in Hawaii, Buffett started to return to Waikiki. The Waikiki Shell is the ultimate place to witness his shows. Open area, under swaying palm trees, salt air, rainbow colored lights and cold beer! The year 2004 Jimmy and his band played in Waikiki then I learn that he is scheduled to play a private show for Wells Fargo Co. on the grounds of the Hilton Waikoloa Village where I was working at the time. Needless to say, I made it into the private show and stood stage side next to his guitar rack the whole concert. (note; this is the only Buffett concert where I never had one drink!) After the show as Jimmy is leaving, he looked at me waving, and I was pointing to his set list which was taped to the stage floor next to his mic stand, he bent down and tore it off and gave it to me.

Fast forward to fall of 2007, Jimmy is in Waikiki a few days before his show. I know he likes to surf the beach break outside of Royal Hawaiian (pink hotel). I take a chance and head down to the beach with video camera. Just in time to see him paddle out with his buddy from Maui, Tim. Upon his return to the beach, camera rolling, I meet up with him and chat a bit about the surf and the upcoming concert. He is polite and doesn't want to create a "feeding frenzy" on the beach so he wanted to play it cool and low profile. He asked what I was going to do with the video of him surfing. I told him I would make him a copy. He said he might use it to display on his big screen TVs during the concerts. I'm totally stoked. He gives me a cell number to call later on. He also asks if I;m going to the concert, my reply was smart ass, "is the pope catholic?" He busted a nut laughing. He invited me to his sound check prior to concert. This was way cool. Then during the actual evening show he dedicated a song to the beach guys he met the day before while surfing!! I went crazy!

Now you may be asking yourself, Why is Patrick so hell bent on Buffett? I guess I really don't have a set answer but simply put, I relate to his music & storytelling they all take on a different look and it's better than be addicted to drugs. His concerts are a High and I intend to keep getting High everytime he's in town!

"I know I don't get their often enough but God knows I surely try, it's a magic kind of medicine that no doctor could prescribe". JB.

The Tahitian words on top translate to: "Life of the land is exhausted but there's still abundance in the sea". On the island of Moorea years ago Jimmy penned this while looking out over the vista (le belvedare) above Cooks Bay & Opuhnua Bay (hence One Particular Harbour) If you want a natural High then I suggest this vista. I make sure to stop there every time I visit Moorea.

The French words at top of my post translate to; "Song for the children, Song for the World".

Thanks Jimmy for we are all children of this world.

Pirate