Buffett began playing guitar during his first year at Auburn University before continuing his college years at Pearl River Community College and the University of Southern Mississippi. He began his musical career in Nashville, Tennessee, during the late 1960s as a country artist and recorded his first album, the country-tinged folk rock record "Down to Earth" in 1970.
Moving to FLorida, Buffett's second release was 1973's A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean. Albums Living & Dying in 3/4 Time and A1A both followed in 1974, Havana Daydreamin' appeared in 1976, and Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes followed in 1977, which featured the breakthrough hit song "Margaritaville".
Buffett's album License to Chill, released on July 13, 2004, topped the U.S. pop albums chart for the first time in his career.
Buffett continued to tour regularly until shortly before his death, although later in his career, he shifted to a more relaxed schedule of around 20–30 dates, with infrequent back-to-back nights, preferring to play only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. This schedule provided the title of his 1999 live album.
In August 2006, he released the album Take the Weather with You.
On April 20, 2010, a double CD of performances recorded during the 2008 and 2009 tours, called Encores, was released.
In 2020, Buffett released Songs You Don't Know by Heart, a fan-curated collection of his lesser-known songs rerecorded on his collection of notable guitars.
Illness and death:
In May 2023, Buffett was hospitalized to "address some issues that needed immediate attention" and rescheduled tour dates. In late August, he entered hospice care and had a final meeting with family and friends, in which his last words to his sister were "have fun". Buffett died on September 1, 2023, age 76, at his home in Sag Harbor, New York, due to complications from Merkel-cell carcinoma, a rare and aggressive skin cancer, with which he had been diagnosed four years earlier. He was surrounded by his family, friends, music, and dogs at the time of his death.
Mermaid In The Night
Jimmy Buffett Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cast my line out as far as it would reach
Looking for something from the frying pan
I kick back with a beer in my hand
I must've got a big one cause it's bending my pole
I'm having to fight just to keep my hold
It could be a whale (oh) God only knows
She's larger than life
Made from holy water
She's covered in green
She's got little scales upon her
She's larger than life
She's a mermaid in the night
She's got a set of gills, like no fish I've ever seen
Long blonde hair and a tail in between
I'm in love with a creature from the sea
And she's bringin' out the crustacean in me
Her voice is a temptation it's a siren song
When we kiss there could be no wrong
I ask her to marry me, to be my wife
And we could do the backstroke for the rest of our lives
She's larger than life
Made from holy water
She's covered in green
She's got little scales upon her
She's larger than life
She's a mermaid in the night
In Jimmy Buffett's "Mermaid in the Night" lyrics, the singer paints a picture of a casual fishing trip that turns into a magical encounter with a mermaid. The song begins with the singer fishing on a sandy beach, hoping to catch something to eat. He describes the struggle he's having trying to reel in whatever he's caught, which he believes could be a whale, but it's not wearing any clothes. As he continues to fight with the fish, he realizes that he has actually caught a mermaid.
The second half of the song showcases the singer's infatuation with the mermaid. He describes her as being "larger than life," made from "holy water," covered in green with little scales upon her. The singer is enamored by her, falling in love with her beauty and sings that he wants to marry her. He calls her voice a "siren song," which is a nod to Greek Mythology. The song ends with the singer dreaming of spending his days with the mermaid, swimming and doing the backstroke for the rest of their lives.
Overall, "Mermaid in the Night's" lyrics turn a typical fishing trip into an adventure filled with mythical creatures and romantic aspirations. The singer goes from fishing for dinner to falling in love with a mermaid in the span of a few verses.
Line by Line Meaning
I went out fishing on a sandy beach
I went out fishing on a sandy beach
Cast my line out as far as it would reach
I cast my fishing line out as far as it could go
Looking for something from the frying pan
I was hoping to catch something to cook for dinner
I kick back with a beer in my hand
I relaxed with a beer in my hand while waiting for a bite
I must've got a big one cause it's bending my pole
I caught something really big and it was pulling on my fishing rod
I'm having to fight just to keep my hold
I had to struggle to keep my grip on the fishing rod
It could be a whale (oh) God only knows
I wasn't sure what I caught, it could have been a whale
Whatever it is it's not wearing any clothes
Whatever I caught, it wasn't an animal that wears clothes
She's larger than life
The mermaid I caught was larger than life
Made from holy water
The mermaid was created from holy water
She's covered in green
The mermaid had green scales or seaweed on her
She's got little scales upon her
The mermaid had small scales on her body
She's a mermaid in the night
The mermaid I caught was visible only in the dark of night
She's got a set of gills, like no fish I've ever seen
The mermaid I caught had gills like no other fish I'd ever seen
Long blonde hair and a tail in between
The mermaid had long blonde hair and a tail in place of legs
I'm in love with a creature from the sea
I fell in love with the mermaid I caught from the sea
And she's bringin' out the crustacean in me
She was bringing out my inner sea creature, making me feel more connected to the ocean
Her voice is a temptation it's a siren song
Her voice was tempting and alluring, like a siren's song
When we kiss there could be no wrong
Our connection was perfect, nothing could go wrong
I ask her to marry me, to be my wife
I proposed marriage to the mermaid, asking her to be my wife
And we could do the backstroke for the rest of our lives
We could swim together, doing the backstroke for the rest of our lives
Lyrics © Royalty Network
Written by: JAY R OLIVER, ROGER E. GUTH, Jay Oliver, Roger Guth
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind