James William Buffett December 25, β September 1, was an American singer-songwriter, author, and businessman. Of the over 30 albums released by Buffett, eight are certified gold and nine are certified platinum or multi-platinum by the RIAA. Buffett also parlayed the "island escapism" lifestyle of his music into several business ventures, including Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville restaurant chain, the now-defunct Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant chain, and ventures in hotels, casinos, liquor, and retirement communities.
His devoted fans are known as "Parrotheads". Buffett was born on December 25, , in Pascagoula, Mississippi , [ 23 ] and he spent part of his childhood in Mobile and Fairhope, Alabama.
As a child, Buffett was exposed to sailing: his grandfather, James Delaney Buffett, was a steamship captain from Newfoundland , and his father was a marine engineer and sailorβthese experiences later influenced his music. In , after seeing a folk music ensemble perform in Biloxi, Mississippi , Buffett realized that he wanted to be a musician. Buffett attended St. Ignatius School, where he played the trombone in the school band at age 8 in the s. Buffett enrolled at Auburn University and was taught how to play guitar by a Sigma Pi fraternity brother to "garner attention from girls".
In college, Buffett worked in a shipyard as an electrician and welder. After graduating in , Buffett moved to New Orleans and often held street performances for tourists on Decatur Street and played for drunken crowds in the former Bayou Room nightclub on Bourbon Street.
Buffett did not have much luck with music jobs but found work as an editorial assistant for Billboard , where he was the first to report that the bluegrass duo Flatt and Scruggs had disbanded. Buffett signed a two-album contract with Barnaby Records.
