“Barometer Soup”: variety is the spice of life

It’s getting close to summer, and if this was 1995, it would be a great one, because Buffett was dropping a new album. If only we were so lucky. It dawned upon me that I forgot to make my typical bad joke at the end of my last review that includes the album title of the next album. For that, I sincerely apologize, and I am here to offer you a gift for your forgiveness. The gift? Why, it is a steaming hot bowl of “Barometer Soup”!

There is something about the opening instrumentals of “Barometer Soup” that are soothing, with them emitting the feeling that everything is alright. Buffett helps us feel that way, with him explaining how he has “plowed the seas and smoothed the troubled waters,” the hard work has been done and we need only enjoy the open seas now. Lines such as “go fast enough to get there, but slow enough to see, moderation seems to be the key” can be read to not only be about sailing, but life as a whole. This is a pretty song, and something about the line “we’ll barrel roll into the sun, just for starters” reminds us to not take life too seriously, because what joy comes from that?

I don’t know if I am making a deposit or a withdrawal, but I do know that for whatever I need, the “Bank of Bad Habits” has got it all! A song about pure indulgence and what consequences may come from those actions, Buffett explains it all by saying that “the wrong thing is the right thing until you lose control.” This song has amazing instrumentals, with it seeming unpolished yet cohesive at the same time, and its overall messaging is hilarious. This can be seen throughout the entire song, with the weirdest example of this being when Buffett describes pizza as the eighth deadly sin. Who would have thought? Give it a listen and let me know what you think; it is quite a unique song among his catalog, after all.

“Barefoot Children” is a lighthearted song about the careless joys and blissfulness of youth, with the initial inspiration for this song coming from Buffett just witnessing “barefoot children in the rain” during
his travels throughout the Caribbean. A much sadder tale is that of the “Remittance Man.” That is a title from centuries long gone to describe someone cast away from home, who are still receiving money from their family, but only on the condition they never return. The remittance man is the “black sheep” of the family, who was never, and will never be, understood. He can only keep traveling at this point, searching for an escape from this purgatory, yet no port of call provides him this safe harbor, and he is bound to keep going around and around, remaining a “prisoner of his fears.”

The “Blue Heaven Rendezvous” provides us a tropical relief from the gloom of “Remittance Man,” with this song being extremely relaxing, but it also is deeply embedded with a sense of nostalgia for days long gone; good days full of music and laughter.

Probably amongst some of the most unique songs from Buffett, we have the “Ballad Of Skip Wiley.” This song transports us to a small jazz bar down by the Everglades, where we are introduced to the legendary figure known as Skip Wiley! Ol’ Skip is what Buffett describes as an “environmental terrorist,” hellbent on the mission of giving Florida back to the gators, and restoring the Everglades all the way “from the Gulf Coast to Biscayne Bay.” We follow his daring escapades to sabotage tourist traps and in the process he “got the orange juice barons rather upset,” getting himself stuck in a manhunt. Skip Wiley would escape, but his plans would have to be put on the back burner for the foreseeable future, for “he was not meant to last, he belonged to the past.” This song is incredible; it is funny, entertaining and overall, its rock jazz instrumentals are a great change in pace from Buffett’s typical tropical rock sound, but the themes felt right in with his music. I couldn’t recommend this song any more! Also, word on the street has it that this past weekend, two fierce drag superstars performed this song at the school’s annual drag show! Glad to see the people at this school are finally accepting Jimmy Buffett as the premier musician of our times!

Well, another day, another album, and this one has so far proved to be an incredible continuation of Buffett’s Renaissance Era. The songs differ in their inspirations and their meanings greatly, ranging from
simple stories about the joys of being a child, to a wild story about Florida’s number one gator lover. Variety is the spice of life, and it appears to be a good choice for this album, with these different sounds, stories and instrumentals making a good first half of the album. Until next time, don’t let these final weeks get you down, and should anything of that sort happen, I suggest you listen to the wise words of Alan Jackson: ask yourself, “what would Jimmy Buffett do?”