Top 25 American Musicians: #22

I have lived in Key West for nearly two decades, and no musical artist in the history of this great, eclectic little island city has done more to provide terrific musical entertainment than Jimmy Buffett. He richly deserves his place of distinction. Buffett is truly a master of both lyrics and music. He does it all, which puts him on a different level from most other musical contributors. The number of catchy tunes Jimmy has penned is truly staggering. And decades into a great run, he continues on, stronger than ever. His four-CD MCA box set, Boats Beaches Bars & Ballads, includes a lot of his earlier work and is the clear place to begin with Jimmy Buffett music. My personal favorite is Floridays.

We see Jimmy around from time to time at his studio at Shrimp Boat Sound and in the small restaurants and clubs in town. Locals never fail to give Jimmy his well-deserved privacy. And everyone is always happy to welcome him back to the place he began.