After my meeting in Waco on Friday, The Blot headed north to Dallas in order to partake in one of the best pre-concert tailgates in all of music. I might be a tad biased though since The Blot is a bit of a parrot-head. While Jimmy Buffett is an amazing song writer, it’s his concerts that most fans rave about. I know a lot of people think he’s a two song artist, but I think most people would be surprised with how many Buffett songs they actually know if they gave him a listen. He’s definitely one of those artists where you might not know it’s him, but you definitely know his songs.
So last Saturday night Aly and I drove way north of Dallas to Frisco, Texas to see Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band perform at Pizza Hut Park (home of the local Major League Soccer franchise FC Dallas). This was only my second Jimmy Buffett concert, but after listening to his music for years and finally seeing him perform last year in Houston at Minute Maid Park, I wanted to relive the experience all over again.
If you’ve never seen Buffett live you really need to attend one of his shows at least once in your life, even if you generally don’t like concerts. The tailgating and pre-partying starts early in the morning with food, drinking and your basic debauchery going on all day leading up to the show that night. With everyone in their craziest hats, finest Hawaiian shirts, grass skirts and coconut bras, the scene inside the stadium is often as wild as the tailgate outside.
With hundreds of beach balls flying through the air at Pizza Hut Park and more beer and margaritas being sold at a concert than I can ever remember, the crowd was definitely into the show. At some points the show around me was even more entertaining than what was happening on stage, but that’s what's to be expected at a Buffett show. Its not just about the music, but the experience and the party.
While Buffett’s voice is not as strong as it once was, he is just as much of a showman as ever, at one point even pulling Texas native Lance Armstrong on stage. Jimmy, as always, played his most popular songs and closed the night with three strong covers, including one of my personal favorites “Rainy Day Women #12 and 35” by Bob Dylan. The only thing I can complain about is that after two and a half hours of performing, the show seemed to have ended way too early. I guess I’ll have to wait until Buffett’s next visit to Texas for a return trip to Margaritaville.
Jimmy Buffett
2008 Year of Still Here Tour
April 26, 2008 - Set List
Frisco, TX - Pizza Hut Park
01. Homemade Music
02. The Tiki Bar Is Open
03. Fruitcakes
04. Pencil Thin Mustache
05. Miss You So Badly
06. It's Five O'Clock Somewhere with Mac McAnally
07. We're Still Here
08. Cowboy in the Jungle
09. Brown Eyed Girl (Van Morrison cover)
10. Cheeseburger in Paradise
11. One Particular Harbour
12. Creola (performed by Nadirah)
13. The City (performed by Mac McAnally)
14. Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw
15. Come Monday
16. Makin' Music for Money (performed by Nadirah)
17. Piece Of Work18. Volcano
19. Son of a Son of a Sailor
20. Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes
21. School Boy Heart
22. A Pirate Looks at Forty
23. Far Side of the World
24. Southern Cross (Crosby, Still & Nash cover)
25. Margaritaville
First Encore:
26. Fins
27. Rainy Day Women #12 and 35 (Bob Dylan cover)
28. Another Saturday Night (Sam Cooke cover)
Second Encore:
29. Stories We Could Tell (John Sebastian cover)