Today my home state of Florida lost one of its dearest and truest friends. In a state as divided as ours it’s sometimes difficult to find a unifying presence that everyone could get behind. Jimmy Buffett was such a figure. The poet laureate of beachfront observations, the Lincoln of flip flop melodies. Part buzzed soulful wanderings in search of the horizon and the other part nostalgic restaurant mogul.

Make no mistake a link to Florida’s golden past has been severed today. A little bit of charm has faded from the Sunshine State and a towering representation of Old Florida charisma has disappeared.

As a son of a sailor I can’t begin to explain how important Buffett’s music was in my childhood. My dad was a dive shop owner in South Florida and Buffett was the soundtrack of our lives. Each Christmas, Buffett’s Christmas album was proudly blaring in the living room as we put the tree up. Each trip to the Keys Don’t Stop The Carnival filled our family’s van.

My dad met Buffett a few times over the years. The first time he was about 15 or 16 years old and it was at Disney World. They used to do concerts for locals and my dad when with a few of his boyhood friends. Buffett asked his friend Tim for a joint.. 

Then years later my grandfather was working on a program for the prepaid colleges in the Bahamas. The whole family went And Jimmy put on a concert. My parents  met Buffett backstage after a concert. My dad telling him he always wanted to met the singer. Buffett let out a rebel yell and said with his southern twang “Alright man!” He then looked at my mom and called her a babe!

My dad would sing to sleep each of his three children a different Buffett song. My brother’s was Son of a Sailor, my sister’s was Delaney, and mine was Little Miss Magic which he changed to Little Mister Magic.

In a way that’s how I remember my childhood in 90’s Florida. The gentle sound of my father’s voice singing me to sleep as a young boy to a Buffett song, the ocean wind hitting my face as Son of a Sailor finished on a portable radio, and my teenage brother’s mild frustration as Dad put in another CD.

Somehow this magical, talented, carefree spirit managed to reach millions of Floridians. Became a huge facet of our cultural identity and remained a positive influence on our society. And I know it’s his own Damn fault. Rest Easy Jimmy Buffett!