Show Notes:
Recorded Wednesday, August 16 2006, (9:30 PM – 11:00 PM) at Big Al’s in Browstown MI; and location recording from Caseville MI on Saturday, August 12.
“Mike, Mickey, Schmoe, and Greg discuss their pilgrimage to the Cheeseburger Festival, and Scott joins in to opine on Banana Wind. Special guest stars: Meredith and Laura.”
Note: I’m still trying to find time to edit the Caseville video. The first interview was recorded Saturday afternoon outside the Official Cheeseburger Store (6912 Main Street, Caseville MI 4872). The second interview was conducted Saturday night near the park amphitheater, with Air Margaritaville performing in the background. The “thirty to forty, between sets” refers to a cheeseburger eating contest held during the Air Margaritaville intermission.
In regards to the release date for Banana Wind: it was released on June 4 1996. As with Barometer Soup, I got a chance to listen to it the night before it came out, at the now defunct Blockbuster Music on Michigan Ave in Dearborn. I consulted my journal to back this up, and I am reminded that we’d seen these same songs performed in concert at Pine Knob the previous Thursday (May 30).
…I took Middlebelt to Michigan and headed to Blockbuster Music. I needed to pre-order the Buffett disc today if I wanted to get in on that sticker deal. So I sat at their “bar” and listened to the CD. The copy they had was still in its plastic holder, so I asked if they had one open. The guy took that one and unlocked it for me. I listened to bits of each song. I got more than halfway through before I lost track and had to skip around, losing my place. Some of the songs were familiar from the concert. These seemed to be the ones I like best. I couldn’t help but feel slightly disappointed though. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was rushed — because I wasn’t really in the mood, seeing as Mike wasn’t here to make an event out of it [like last year] — but a lot of the album did not grab me as Barometer Soup had done. And I did not care for the overall acoustic sound. The constant strumming got rather monotonous and the some of the songs sounded the same. I noted how the sign behind the “bar” advertised a “collection of stickers” if I pre-ordered. I also liked how the CD was only $12.99 and I would only have to put down five dollars. I was willing to pay for it now, and I was also planning on buying Mike’s copy too. That way I could either pick up both copies Tuesday or he could just swing in and pick his up without having to bother much. I figured I owed it to him; not only was he going through hell [with his dad in the hospital], but he had also provided both the food and booze last Thursday.
The following day, after giving blood at the Red Cross in Southgate, I returned to Blockbuster Music in Dearborn.
I went over to Blockbuster and picked up my two CDs. The kid recognized me and went off to get my CDs from the back. He rang me up but didn’t mention any stickers, so I brought the subject up. He didn’t seem to know anything about it, but the second kid went to the back and came out with a long thin strip in clear plastic. I thought the collection of stickers must be on some wide ribbon, but what he handed over was a simple, single bumper sticker. It was white with “PARROTHEAD” in pink. It was terribly lame, but it was apparently legit since it had MCA and Blockbuster logos on it. The guy remembered to give me two. [After work I swung by Mike’s house to leave the CD with his wife.]
The “Oh? oh? oh? — ooooh!” reaction is from 1987, when Mike sneaked down to the stagefront for the encores. I’ve got the audio but it really isn’t clear enough to include here.
The “Aeolian chords” line is from a famous quote by William Mann, music critic of the London Times, where he described the “Aeolian cadence at the end of “Not a Second Time” (the chord progression which ends Mahler’s ‘Song of the Earth’)” when reviewing With the Beatles. Is that Don’t Stop the Carnival song “Just an Old Truth Teller”?
I coudn’t resist monkeying with Scott’s reviews, turning them into a kind of Poetry Corner-type segment. The music in the background is Mozart’s Piano Concerto In D minor, K. 466: 1st Movement.
Meredith and Laura manage to make a special appearance just before the end. Laura used to be the cook at Big Al’s and, by remarkable coincidence, also had a porch crashed into. The “Dan” mentioned, now in Nicaragua, is the same Dan heard at the very beginning of our Show 0.
The selection did not make the final cut, again, but our next album review will be for Coconut Telegraph.
My favorite show quote is a tie this week: “OK. Jimmy flies. We get it.” and “You’re Chicken Taco Guy!”
> Download Episode 13
Overall, Banana Wind quickly left the Schmoe-tation of Buffett albums played on CD. It is a nice collection of mostly forgettable songs. Maybe that is too harsh. They just don’t stick with me. Not at all. I can enjoy listening to them. But I don’t miss them. I was still surprised to see how this did not hold up to other albums released in the 90’s by Jimmy. And, as discussed, the fact that a Banana Wind is a wind of very strong force, this album makes me think it is a nice warm breeze. It is nice, but forgettable as you head into the air conditioning.
It was released June 4, 1996, supposedly. I know I got it that day and listened to it for a week. Then we saw him live. And then it left my rotation.
I agree with Mick’s original assessment that the songs sound the same.
It has no particular place in my Buffett Mythos. Although I am fond of the fact my daughter loves School Boy Heart and asked to have me put it on her iPod with her other Buffett favorites. Signifies she is branching away from the Meet Me in Margaritaville listing.
Track by track
1. This is OK. Very forgettable.
2. A title turned into a song. And based on true events that we saw unfold, so that was cool. And I like the working in of the old “Come Back to Jamaica” slogan. So this song should have been a 1:30 hidden track or something. Not some attempt at an epic pop song that just won’t end. The song will not end. It is one or two verses too long.
3. *Killer Kut* Best, most polished song on the album. The new Jimmy Buffett song. Forget the story songs, it is simply about his life, or what his life is told in a snippet. But that is OK. One an album is fine with me.
4. Sounds like a band at a Holiday Inn. But, I have to admit, when this song came on shuffle while I was sitting around the pool on vacation, it was nice. Gave me more appreciation for it. This song reinforces the idea a banana wind is a slight, almost non-existent, tropical breeze.
5. Another song like a bad SNL skit — it will not end. BUT — if they can just let loose on this live, it could be a big improvement.
6. *Killer Kut* I like this. From the Honey Do conference. Fun and different.
7. Next.
8. This song improves as it continues. I like the second ending.
9. Another title turned into a song. But hey, that’s what Jimmy does. Sometimes it works. Sometimes not. Gimmick!
10. OK.
11. *Killer Kut* Good song. From the Steamer conference. Jimmy does ballads well. He really does.
12. I know this song is touching and everything. I can listen to it and I can appreciate it. But is it OK to say it bores me.
13. 13. Jimmy acting looking for extra bonus hidden track because EVERYONE had one of those in the mid-90’s. We know why Jimmy isn’t an actor.
14. I like this song and the treatment, although I don’t remember the original. Jimmy sounds like he is having some fun. The band too.