“Fruitcakes”: Buffett’s Renaissance era

1994, Jimmy Buffett dropped a new album, the first in five years, making this the longest break between albums that Buffett had ever had in his career. During this period, he took time to focus on his writing, creating two books. This return to music is a momentous occasion for us, because in my eyes, this album starts a period in Buffett’s music in which the quality and greatness of these albums rival the albums of the golden era in how amazing they are. With “Fruitcakes,” we enter the Renaissance era (very original term, I know).

As the intro of “Everybody’s Got a Cousin in Miami” begins, we are soothed with a tropical instrumental that’s dominated by amazing percussions, but it continues to build until we reach the first verse. This
instrumental intro demonstrates a common fixture of the Renaissance era, in which really well produced
instrumentals, which have always existed in Buffett’s music, are amplified. This song is entertaining, with it describing the history, stories and people that make up the magical city we call Miami. It’s a song that starts slow and builds energy, which sets up the rest of this album quite well. Overall, it’s a good song, and I love the outro where Buffett shares a bad dream where his Coral Reefer bandmates demanded better pay from him.

A cover of the Grateful Dead song of the same name, “Uncle John’s Band” takes a more peaceful tone as compared to the previous song. The lyrics include a lot of imagery and references to American literature and the American culture of the late 1960s. I consider myself much more of a Parrothead than a Deadhead, so I am most definitely biased when I say I believe Buffett did wonders for the song as compared to the original version.

“Lone Palm” reflects on life and one’s journey through it, with all its motions. Buffett enjoys the simplicities of life, explaining how his “life is a mixture of reggaes and tangos.” The focal point of the song is what he thinks of when he looks out from under his lone palm towards “two empty chairs that say more than the people who ever sit there.” Life is full of different emotions and feelings, from highs of love to the lows of loneliness, with a hint of indecision. This is all unpredictable yet inevitable when it comes to the journeys we take. I would love to indulge in this song further, referencing more lyrics. However, when I try to shoehorn too many lyrics in a review, I typically lose the plot and make no sense. So, I will instead recommend you listen to the song instead. It is a lovely track off the album that brings questions to mind while simultaneously calming you after all.

The namesake of the album, “Fruitcakes,” is a song that is quite interesting to say the least. It can be best described by what Buffett yells at the end of this song’s intro: “We need more fruitcakes in this world and less bakers! We need people that care! I’m mad as h*** and I don’t want to take it anymore!” The modern world is complicated, and Buffett is complaining about this all the way back in the 1990s; it isn’t much better now. This song illustrates all those complexities, from government and religion to relationships; it’s all complicated. However, we can all do our part to be kind and make the world just a little less confusing for each other. We could all be a little more of a fruitcake. This is a funny and very entertaining song from Buffett, and a worthy listen.

“Sunny Afternoon” is already a classic song by the Kinks; however, Buffett does it one better by adding his Parrothead flare to it. “She’s Got You” is a nice cover of the Patsy Cline song of the same name, but it isn’t anything too special. “Apocalpyso” explores how “this universe is bound to blow,” but despite that, Buffett isn’t too bothered by the idea. When the end arrives, it will only be the cause for another party, where “we’ll be dancing when we go!” Accompany that with some soothing tropical instrumentals from a recorder, and we got a pretty good song.

We made it to the end of this review, but there is still more to go in the album of course. As always, I am excited to show more with you guys, as I hope you all look forward to the next edition as well!