Search - Jimmy Buffett :: Before the Beach

Ruth F. (GospelQueen) from RALEIGH, NC
Reviewed on 8/9/2006...

Love it. A must for all true fans.

Nashville Jimmy

Thomas Magnum | NJ, USA | 07/11/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This cd is basically Jimmy Buffett's first two albums, Down To Earth & High Cumberland Jubilee, combined together. The only omission is Mr. Buffett's first single, "The Christian?", which was on Down To Earth. The songs were recorded before he had ever been to Key West and they do not contain any of the Carribean flavor that his later recordings would have. The songs are written mostly in the country-rock vein. There is no mention of later Buffett themes like sailing, the beach or partying. The album gets stronger as it plays on and it shows the progress Mr. Buffett was making as a performer. The songs that were originally on his second album are better than ones on the first and you can hear how Mr. Buffett's writing was improving and getting stronger. The better songs include "Death Valley Lives", "Ace", "Rockerfeller Square", "Bend A Little" and "In The Shelter" as well as two songs that would be rerecorded on later albums, the pretty and touching "The Captain & The Kid" and "Livingston's Gone To Texas". The cd is uneven at times, but it is worth a listen to hear a young Jimmy Buffett before he became the King of the Parrotheads."

Recycled Jimmy

Travis K. Hutson | Raleigh, NC United States | 09/19/2001

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I am a huge "Parrothead." I own every Jimmy album that's been released, which is about 30. I even own this one, but this is a recycled version of Jimmy's first 2 albums -- Down To Earth and High Cumberland Jubilee. Basically they stuck almost all of the songs from those 2 albums on this one. Furthermore, it's country. It's not Jimmy's normal stuff. Even Jimmy doesn't like this stuff. He said so in his book "A Pirate Looks at 50." This is titled "Before the Beach" because it's the music Jimmy was making before he went on his first trip to Key West. At that point he metamorphosized into the Jimmy we know and love today. Again, I say this is COUNTRY -- not Jimmy's brand of music."