Music: Food for the soul
If you enjoy history and these articles, we are seeking sponsors and contributors to support the work. Contact Bob at robertmford@aol.com and/or donate via Venmo @bobfordshistory
Music has the power to start a revolution, or even calm a baby.
The drumbeat of native culture is as important to them as Bach and Beethoven is to European society.
The effect of music is deep and ingrained but also very personal. It can spark great individual joy or sadness. Listening to poignant songs can bring healing, getting the hurt out into the open.
Throughout history, music has focused on societal wrongs and prompted needed reforms.
When musicians come along and foster unexpected generational pivots, history acknowledges and salutes: the Beatles, Elvis, Aretha Franklin, Hank Williams, BTS, etc.
Those groups unique enough not only to create a loyal fandom but foster a specific lifestyle are another thing, the Grateful Dead and Jimmy Buffett come to mind.
OK, this is where I admit it, I was a Parrot Head.
Buffett combined country, rock, calypso and pop music into his own “tropical rock,” that took you to the promised party land. If you attended Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band concert. Yes, thanks to Sherie Gabbert I’ve been to 10. Troubles or life struggles were left at the concert door as you walked in.
The over-the-top outfits Parrot Heads wore set the tone before the music began. There was definitely an unsaid one-upmanship competition as everyone dressed in pirate or Caribbean gear, with stuffed parrots, inflatable sharks, margaritas and cheeseburgers front and center.
At the MGM in Vegas, I was sitting next to a fellow party animal who was wearing a 12-pack of Corona beer as a hat with a stuffed parrot on his shoulder. We started talking, he had a thick Northeastern accent, turns out he was a Red Sox fan too.
As the concert pulsated he danced like an uncoordinated 50-year-old white guy just out of prison.
“You come to Vegas every year to see Jimmy?”
I yelled, “You bet! And other shows around the country when I can get away! What do you do in Boston?”
“I’m a Neurosurgeon!” as he popped another Corona he’d snuck into the concert off his hat!
“I sell escapism.” Buffet told 60 Minutes in 2004. The audience is full of successful people who, for that one day, want to have unrepentant fun!
I met Randy Lake about halfway through my Parrot Head days. Randy was my good friend Craig Patrick’s neighbor in Florida. It turned out he was also Jimmy Buffett’s pilot, nice!
Randy hooked us up with premium passes where we ate with the band and avoided those long lines with incredible access. It's hard to stay humble as you walk past everyone standing in line.
One morning we headed out to the Vegas airport where he gave me a tour of Jimmy’s plane. A Cessna twin prop, really nothing too special, I’d cross that visit off my bucket list had I thought of putting it on.
Those were the days, as thousands of dedicated fans partied for years with gusto, escaping and losing oneself in the music and laid back culture.
Last month, I traveled to South Carolina to visit a buddy who lived in, wait for it, Margaritaville. A retirement community dedicated to preserving the “Buffett” lifestyle. When completed there will be 6,900 brightly colored homes surrounding a common Caribbean entertainment complex of golf courses, restaurants, shops and theaters dedicated to adult fun! Everyone had a souped up golf cart and a friendly dog with ... no kids!
Sadly, in recent years both Jimmy Buffett and Randy Lake died of skin cancer, leaving me and throngs of Parrot Heads with memories of concerts and odd outfits hanging in the closet. One day, we will have to explain to our grandchildren that grandparents can have fantastic fun too!
In Margaritaville, Buffett’s music is a constant. It sets the tone for enjoying life as Jimmy loved to profess.
“If life gives you limes, make Margaritas.” and “Is it ignorance or apathy? Hey, I don’t know or care!”
When you can escape do it, we all need resets, go and find whatever gives you joy.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I walked the Apple Blossom Parade last weekend, what a wonderful day. It reminded me of the good in our city and the importance of family. So many children chasing after candy with parents and grandparents trying to reel them in, big day for dentists.
All too often we focus on what’s wrong. Take a break and go to a parade, listen to a Jimmy Buffett song. Create memories with your children, it’s the little things in life that teach. Our job as parents is to lead by example.
—————————————
Bob Ford’s History will appear in each edition of the Weekender and Midweek. You can find more of Bob’s work on his website bobfordshistory.com and videos via YouTube, TikTok and Clapper
