Wednesday, October 29, 1997
Jimmy Buffett sails away in Irvine
MUSIC: Crowds delight in crooner’s inviting and reminiscent
set
By Aimee Phan
Daily Bruin Staff
According to the Billboard charts, Jimmy Buffett has no right to
be popular. He only has one top ten hit – "Margaritaville" from
1977 – and gets little airplay from radio stations. Yet the
51-year-old crooner continues to make Forbes magazine’s list of the
world’s richest entertainers and his summer tours almost always
sell out.
On Saturday, Jimmy Buffett and his Coral Reefers ended another
successful summer tour (this one billed as the "Havana Daydreamin’"
tour) in Irvine Meadows with a spirited performance, indicating
that the 30-city tour had not tired them out.
His enduring popularity must be attributed to his legions of
devoted fans, affectionately called "Parrotheads," who flock to his
annual summer concerts. It’s not hard to understand why. A ticket
to a Buffett concert is like a mini-Caribbean vacation for a night.
Buffett, who started his career by singing at little joints in New
Orleans, understands that a show needs much more than just good
music for fans to brave the chilly Irvine weather and hellish
parking lot.
What resulted was a concert that felt more like an island street
fair, down to the set design and the hilarious comic interludes in
between songs. But the biggest draw was Buffett himself. With his
famously mellow attitude and the genuine affection he shows to his
audience, Buffett is as popular for his goofy and optimistic song
lyrics as he is for his inspired performances.
A Jimmy Buffett concert starts long before the band gets on the
stage with giant pre-parties and barbecues anticipating their
arrival. Irvine Meadows opened their parking lot at 3 p.m. for the
8 p.m. show, bringing in hundreds of tropically decorated
winnebagos and trailers full of enthusiastic fans who were anxious
to pre-party with margaritas and cheeseburgers, two staples of the
Buffett menu that recall his most popular songs.
But the parking lot was only a prelude to the exceptional
performance that Buffett and his band gave the appreciative
audience. Not content to just play their mellow music, the show
also featured beautiful background sets of Havana and the Caribbean
Sea.
And since Irvine Meadows doesn’t usually furnish big screens,
fans were delighted to find two large screens on either side of the
stage so even those sitting on the lawn could see close-ups of the
singer’s youthful face and playful expressions. The big screens
also gave cool visuals to Buffett’s sea-loving songs, showing
breathtaking scenes of Havana and other Caribbean islands that have
been musical inspiration for so many years.
Buffett kicked off the show by announcing he was taking the
audience to Havana on his sailboat, declaring "You don’t even need
a passport when you come in with the Coral Reefers."
Guiding his passengers through the Caribbean, Buffett sang a
variety of tunes from his many albums, with such favorites as "Why
Don’t We Get Drunk," "Cheeseburger in Paradise," "Changes in
Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes," and "Fins." Buffett also treated
the audience to his unique covers of "Brown-Eyed Girl," "La Bamba"
and "Guatanamera."
Unlike other bands who mistakenly refer to Irvine as part of
L.A., Buffett clearly did his homework for his audience, dropping
references to the crowded I-405, the clear weather in Laguna Hills
and the impending El Nino.
One special highlight during the second half was the contest
"Stumpo El Bando." Two audience members were chosen and given the
opportunity to win a trip to Key West if they could outwit the band
by naming an old song from one of their albums that they couldn’t
play.
Buffett’s charisma shined through as he finished his last song
and the audience pleaded for yet another encore. But Parrotheads
can take comfort in knowing that Buffett will surely be back next
year, singing and dancing to the same old songs. And they wouldn’t
want it any other way.