The San Diego Union Tribune has a review of Tuesday’s show: “Jimmy Buffett plays surprise Belly Up concert — six things of note”
“I don’t know what tour this is,” Jimmy Buffett said after he walked on stage Tuesday night at the Belly Up Tavern with his band, the Coral Reefers. “But we’re starting here.”
With his new theatrical work, the Broadway-bound “Escape to Margaritaville — The Musical,” set to begin previews May 9 at La Jolla Playhouse, Buffett may well become a temporary fixture here. (It opens May 29 and runs through June 18, although an extension is possible if “Escape” fares as well at the box office as Buffett and playhouse honchos hope it will.)
Announced last Wednesday, barely two hours before it went on sale, his Tuesday night Belly Up show sold out in less than a minute.
That was great news for the lucky 600 fans who were able to score tickets for the all-general-admission show, but not for the approximately 7,000 others who tried — and failed.
Here’s what they missed.
1. A long, long wait to get in
2. A 19-song performance that clocked in at 95 minutes
It opened with “Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes” and concluded with a spirited romp through Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl.” Some of the highlights included the bluegrass-tinged versions of Buffett’s “Gypsies in the Palace” and the Eagles’ “Take It Easy,” the mass audience sing-along on Crosby, Stills & Nash’s “Southern Cross” and Buffett’s amusingly literal physical interpretations of the lyrics to his perpetually sizzling rave-up, “Cheeseburger in Paradise” … He also performed “Son of a Son of a Sailor,” and “Come Monday”.
3. A disappointment …there was no encore Tuesday.
4. A preview, of sorts, of “Escape to Margaritaville — The Musical”
5. A pre-tour warm-up show … Buffett and his ace band knocked the rust off and got their music lubricated again.
6. Cleanup on aisle 1 … The Belly Up on Tuesday had the stickiest bar floor this writer has encountered.
I liked the KUSI LIVE news reports before the show where the real story and enthusiasm of Parrotheads was broadcasted. I was interviewed as the Pirate and I can’t wait to see more of Jimmy in San Diego, especially La Jolla. Going to opening night of “Escape to Margaritaville” and I would love to write a better arrival than this bc I don’t think his writer even knows his music. Let me know if I can report the real PH scene!
Has the set list been posted anywhere?
Probably on Margaritaville.com but I have a picture with it and can were it for you. He added. “PIrate looks at 40.” Bc someone sharpie penned it in and that was a great suggestion and pleased this pirate!
I’ll wife it up for you today.
LOL… wife it up is funnier!! 🙂 I posted a majority of the set list on the BN Facebook feed, but it was written on pink post-it paper while at work as I could recall it, and not in order.
All good. Thank you. Wife it up was pretty funny though. 😜
Tampa 6/3/17 will be my 125th Buffett show although some of those goes back to the early 70’s and were more bar gigs than concerts.
Been a nice run.
Thanks again.