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'Margaritaville' singer Jimmy Buffett dies aged 76

American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, best known for his 1977 hit Margaritaville, has died aged 76.
"Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs," a statement from his family on his website announced.
"He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many."
Singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett performs during a concert in Key West, Florida on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023
American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, best known for his 1977 hit Margaritaville, has died aged 76. (Rob O'Neal/Florida Keys News Bureau via AP)
The family mentioned no cause of death in its statement.
Buffett was still touring and performing shortly before his death but had no upcoming tour dates despite rumours of more shows across 2023 and 2024.
Illness had forced him to reschedule concerts in May and Buffett acknowledged in social media posts that he had been hospitalised, but provided no specifics.
Tributes on Saturday came from all walks of life, from Hollywood star Miles Teller posting photos of himself with Buffett to former US Senator, Doug Jones of Alabama, who wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that Buffett "lived life to the fullest and the world will miss him."
Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys wrote: "Love and Mercy, Jimmy Buffett."
Former US President Bill Clinton wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "Jimmy Buffett's music brought happiness to millions of people. I'll always be grateful for his kindness, generosity, and great performances through the years."
Margaritaville was an easy-listening classic, in which the main character of the song drowns his sorrows in margaritas on account of a failed romance.
It contains the memorable line: "Some people claim that there's a woman to blame but I know it's my own damn fault".
The song quickly took on a life of its own, becoming a state of mind for those "wastin' away," an excuse for a life of low-key fun and escapism for those "growing older, but not up".
"What seems like a simple ditty about getting blotto and mending a broken heart turns out to be a profound meditation on the often painful inertia of beach dwelling," Spin magazine wrote in 2021.
Singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett finishes a song at the Parrot Heads Meeting of the Minds convention in Key West, Florida on Nov. 5, 2015
Buffett was still touring and performing shortly before his death but had no upcoming tour dates despite rumours of more shows across 2023 and 2024. (Rob O'Neal/Florida Keys News Bureau via AP)
"The tourists come and go, one group indistinguishable from the other. Waves crest and break whether somebody is there to witness it or not. Everything that means anything has already happened and you're not even sure when."
Later in Buffett's life, Margaritaville became the name of a range of businesses and products in his business empire, with Buffett landing at number 13 in Forbes' America's Richest Celebrities in 2016 with a net worth of $850 million.
There also was a Broadway-bound jukebox musical, Escape to Margaritaville, a romantic comedy in which a singer-bartender called Tully falls for the far more career-minded Rachel, who is vacationing with friends and hanging out at Margaritaville, the hotel bar where Sully works.
Jimmy Buffett talks about the premiere of "Escape to Margaritaville" at the Saenger Theater in New Orleans on Monday, June 12, 2017.
Jimmy Buffett talks about the premiere of "Escape to Margaritaville" at the Saenger Theater in New Orleans on Monday, June 12, 2017. (Chris Granger/The New Orleans Advocate via AP)
James William Buffett was born on Christmas day 1946 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and raised in the port town of Mobile, Alabama.
He graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and went from busking the streets of New Orleans to playing six nights a week at Bourbon Street clubs.
He released his first record, Down To Earth, in 1970 and issued seven more on a regular yearly clip, with his 1974 song Come Monday from his fourth studio album Living and Dying in ¾ Time, peaking at number 30. Then came Margaritaville.
Buffett was actually in Austin, Texas, when the inspiration struck for Margaritaville.
Jimmy Buffett. October 1, 1988.
Later in Buffett's life, Margaritaville became the name of a range of businesses and products in his business empire (MCA Records)
He and a friend had stopped for lunch at a Mexican restaurant before she dropped him at the airport for a flight home to Key West, so they got to drinking margaritas.
"And I kind of came up with that idea of this is just like Margarita-ville," Buffett told the Republic. "She kind of laughed at that and put me on the plane. And I started working on it."
He wrote some on the plane and finished it while driving down the Keys.
"There was a wreck on the bridge," he said. "And we got stopped for about an hour so I finished the song on the Seven Mile Bridge, which I thought was apropos."
Jimmy Buffett ... jocular, yet sensitive. March 28, 1979.
Jimmy Buffett ... jocular, yet sensitive. March 28, 1979. (ABC Records)
Buffett also was the author of numerous books including Where Is Joe Merchant? and A Pirate Looks At Fifty and added movies to his resume as co-producer and co-star of an adaptation of Carl Hiaasen's novel Hoot.
He performed on more than 50 studio and live albums, often accompanied by his Coral Reefer Band, and was constantly on tour.
He earned two Grammy Award nominations, two Academy of Country Music Awards and a Country Music Association Award.
Buffett is survived by wife Jane Slagsvolv and their three children – daughters Savannah Buffett and Sarah Delaney Buffett, and adopted son Cameron Buffett.
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