Jimmy Buffett, Ryan White
Jimmy Buffett, Ryan White
9 Rating(s)
List: $25.99 | Sale: $18.20
Club: $12.99

Jimmy Buffett
A Good Life All the Way

Author: Ryan White

Narrator: Gibson Frazier

Unabridged: 10 hr 55 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/09/2017


Synopsis

A candid, compelling, and rollicking portrait of the legendary pirate captain of Margaritaville—Jimmy Buffett.

In Jimmy Buffett: A Good Life All the Way, acclaimed music critic Ryan White has crafted the definitive account of Buffett’s rise from singing songs for beer to his becoming a tropical icon and inspiration behind the Margaritaville industrial complex, a vast network of merchandise, chain restaurants, resorts, and lifestyle products all inspired by his sunny but disillusioned hit “Margaritaville.”

Filled with interviews from friends, musicians, Coral Reefer Band members, and business partners who were there, this book is a top-down joyride with plenty of side trips and meanderings from Mobile and Pascagoula to New Orleans, Key West, down into the islands aboard the Euphoria and the Euphoria II, and into the studios and onto the stages where the foundation of Buffett’s reputation was laid.

Buffett wasn’t always the pied piper of beaches, bars, and laid-back living. Born on the Gulf Coast, the son of a son of a sailing ship captain, Buffett scuffed around New Orleans in the late sixties, flunked out of Nashville (and a marriage) in 1971, and found refuge among the artists, dopers, shrimpers, and genuine characters who’d collected at the end of the road in Key West. And it was there, in those waning outlaw days at the last American exit, where Buffett, like Hemingway before him, found his voice and eventually brought to life the song that would launch Parrot Head nation.

And just where is Margaritaville? It’s wherever it’s five o’clock; it’s wherever there’s a breeze and salt in the air; and it’s wherever Buffett set his bare feet, smiled, and sang his songs.

About Ryan White

Ryan White, the author of Springsteen: Album by Album and Jimmy Buffett: A Good Life All the Way, has twice been named one of the top feature writers in the country by the Society for Features Journalism. He spent sixteen years at The Oregonian covering sports, music, and culture. He’s written for The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, The Sacramento Bee, The Dallas Morning News, and Portland Monthly. He lives in Portland, Oregon.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Fred

I met Tom Corcoran at a book signing. He wrote the series devoted to Alex Rutledge, Key West Photographer dragged into solving murders around the island. Good author. Why do I mention him here? Well, he is a friend of Jimmy Buffett and provided assistance to White in the production of this book and......more

Goodreads review by Lance

(Initial Disclosure: I am a huge Parrotthead since discovering Jimmy Buffett music in the late 70s.) I hesitate to read biographies that aren't authorized by the person/victim, but after ignoring this book when it was released, found it in the bargain bin and couldn't stop myself. It is basically a b......more

Goodreads review by Sue

If you've ever been to a a Jimmy Buffett concert or listened to a CD, you'll want to read this book to learn more about the man who sings about the good life sailing on his boat yet is the CEO of Margaritaville, a company with restaurants, hotels and resorts. This is a well researched book that trac......more

Goodreads review by Andrew

This is the best book I've read capturing the mythos of who Jimmy Buffett is--and I've read several. It manages to explain his dichotomy of artist and businessman without trying to apologize for either. It reveals what must be unprecedented access to many long-time Buffett associates, if not the man......more

Goodreads review by Sam

Pull up a bar stool Parrotheads and listen close to the life of the King Conch of Margaritaville as he lives the life we all wish we could.......more