https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-new...aville-singer-dies-songwriter-rcna103104By Henry Austin and Phil Helsel
Jimmy Buffett, the singer-songwriter who drew millions of fans with his folksy tales of living and loving on sandy beaches, frozen concoction in hand, died Friday night. He was 76.
“Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs,” the statement said. “He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.”
“Margaritaville,” Buffett’s most recognized song, inspired restaurants and resorts, and helped make him a billionaire. This month, Forbes placed his real-time net worth at $1 billion.
He was also nominated for two Grammy Awards, for “Hey Good Lookin’” — a cover of the Hank Williams classic — and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” a duet with country superstar Alan Jackson. Buffett dubbed his brand of music “drunken Caribbean rock ‘n’ roll.”
Fans, affectionately dubbed “Parrotheads,” were quick to pay tribute to the singer, who was born in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on Christmas Day 1946.
Some fans quoted “Margaritaville,” which was released in 1977 and launched him into national fame and into the history of American music.
Many also cited “One Particular Harbor” when remembering the singer: “But there’s one particular harbor/ So far yet so near/ Where I see the days as they fade away/ And finally disappear.”
After learning guitar at college he began playing on the streets of New Orleans before going on to form his first band, the biography on his website says.
He later moved to Nashville, Tennessee, to work for Billboard Magazine and try his luck as a singer, the biography says. But it was in Key West in the 1970s that Buffett “found his true voice,” the biography adds.
Fellow country singer Jerry Jeff Walker first let him stay at his Coconut Grove home, and then they drove in a 1947 Packard to Key West, he told graduating students at the University of Miami, where he received an honorary doctorate in music in May 2015.
“Needless to say, my life took a big and wonderful change towards South Florida, which has a lot to do with why I’m standing here today,” he said, while wearing under the academic robes.
He would go on to make 27 studio albums — with four platinum and eight gold albums — in a career that spanned over five decades
As time went on, Buffett appeared on TV, movies and his work became a musical.
Buffett also appeared in the film “Jurassic World” as “running park visitor with margarita drinks,” as IMDB put it. He carried two, one in each hand.
And he guest-starred in the Tom Selleck show “Blue Bloods,” playing both himself and a virtual double who posed as the singer and scammed people.
There was also a Broadway show based on Buffett’s music, “ Jimmy Buffett’s Escape to Margaritaville,” which debuted in 2017.
He also dedicated some of his time to charity, starting the "Save he Manatee Club,” a non-profit that seeks to protect the large, docile marine mammals from boating injuries and harm by the actions of people.
In a 2017 interview with Men’s Journal, Buffett was asked what remained on his bucket list before he died. “I have four things: Learn to hang ten. Go to space. Go to Pitcairn Island, where my Buffett ancestors are from. And go to Antartica,” he said.
The singer is survived by his wife, Jane Slagsvol, two daughters, Savannah and Sarah, and son, Cameron.
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R.I.P Jimmy.
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