Think of Jimmy Buffett, and most people think of feel-good pop songs, especially “Margaritaville“. But Buffett, who tragically passed away in 2023, was a talented songwriter with an ability to write lyrics that transcended genres.
These three Jimmy Buffett songs would still work at country radio today.
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“Come Monday”
“Come Monday” is written by Jimmy Buffett, and included on his 1974 album, Living and Dying in 3/4 Time. The song is about looking forward to reuniting with someone they love, after being apart. The song says, “Come Monday, it’ll be alright / Come Monday, I’ll be holdin’ you tight / I spent four lonely days in a brown L.A haze / And I just want you back by my side.”
Buffett wrote the song while thinking about Jane Slagsvol, whom Buffett was dating, and would eventually marry. He later admits he was in the middle of a serious depression when it was written. “Come Monday” became Buffett’s first Top 10 single.
“It is a song that kept me from killing myself in the Howard Johnson’s in Marin County [California],” Buffett says on The Late Show with David Letterman. “Well, it hit, and I paid the rent, got my dog out of the pound, and I was deathly depressed, too.”
“I was in a Howard Johnson’s under Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, and living there, playing in San Anselmo,” he adds. “It was awful, and I wrote this song, and it hit, and the rest is history.”
In tribute to Buffett after he passed away, Kenny Chesney and the Zac Brown Band performed this song.
“Boat Drinks”
Country music loves a good drinking song, which is why “Boat Drinks” would work perfectly at country radio. “Boat Drinks” was actually never a single, but it remains a favorite among fans of Buffett.
“Boat Drinks” came out in 1979 as the B-side of his 1980 song, “Survive”. The light-hearted song says, “Oh, I know I should be leaving this climate / I got a verse but can’t rhyme it / I gotta go where it’s warm Boat drinks Waitress, I need two more boat drinks / Then I’m headin’ south ‘fore my dream shrinks.”
“Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes”
“Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes” is the title track of Buffett’s 1977 album. The song became a moderate country hit when it was released, peaking in the Top 25.
“Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes” encourages the love of travel. The song says, “It’s those changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes / Nothing remains quite the same / With all of our running and all of our cunning / If we couldn’t laugh, we would all go insane.”
The song is one of Buffett’s that had success on Adult Contemporary, Country, and the all-genre Billboard Hot 100.
Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images
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