Buffett’s People and Beyond Rare Buffett/Goodman Live Recording
A Funny
Thing Happened on the Way to The Keys
I was
reminded of this curious story when a friend in the media mentioned that I was
friends on Facebook with someone he wanted to contact. I won’t name names, because all of the sudden
he’ll no doubt get all kinds of friend requests from people he doesn’t know.
The story
goes back to 2007/2008, prior to my moving to Key West, when I lived in
Miami/Dade. My friend Dave has always been a music fan, especially acoustic music.
He had been stationed at Homestead AFB in the late sixties, early seventies and
upon his release from the service, he elected to stay in South Florida. He
based himself in the vibrant Coconut Grove area, which then was a quaint little
bohemian village on the water of Biscayne Bay. My friend Dave was also a
serious audio file and would do sound for various coffee houses and bars that
hosted live music.
Being the
sage fan that he is, My friend Dave would record the gigs, direct from the
board to his reel to reel! The quality was always superb. It wasn’t as though
someone was out in the audience holding a microphone up in the air in the crowd.
No, this was direct off the sound board and when you heard the audience, it was
through the singer’s microphone on stage that would pick it up.
Now, I met
Dave in the nineties I guess? He’s still a major fan of live music to this day
I will add, and that’s how I met him.
Dave gave
me a few of his recordings. I have a Steve Goodman gig at a little place called
Bubba’s, in Coconut Grove and also a recording of Gamble Rogers, which I think
was recorded at The Flick, just off the University of Miami’s campus, in South
Miami.
Another
that Dave gave me was the last set of a Steve Goodman gig, again at Bubba’s in
the Grove. This was interesting in particular, in that a guy named Jimmy Buffett
was there as well for this last set, sitting in.
As it was,
both Jimmy Buffett and Steve Goodman had just flown in from Nashville after
recording Buffett’s first album written in the Keys, “A White Sport Coat and a
Pink Crustacean” the name of which was a tongue in cheek parody of Marty
Robbins song “A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation”.
Few knew
who Buffett was at the time. Hell, it wasn’t even his gig. Fame would come
after the album’s release. My friend Bill “The Cox That Rocks” Cox was there
that evening and became an instant Buffett fan. However, when Steve Goodman
introduces him, the crowd gives a polite, subdued, quiet applause.
The
recording is one set at the end of the evening. A lot of banter between them
both, some quite saucy actually. Really fun stuff! As it turns out, this is said
to be the oldest live recording of Buffett and the quality is fantastic!
At one
point or another, I made a post about it on Buffett’s fan forum on his website
in 2007. Suddenly I’m inundated with messages! Everyone wants a copy!
Now My
friend Dave is the nicest guy around. Very easy going. I didn’t think he’d mind
at all, but before I did anything. I only thought it right to touch base with
him on it. It’s his recording after all.
Dave was a
gracious as ever. What he told me was “I don’t mind anyone having the recording
at all! However, as I made it, I would like to hand Jimmy Buffett the recording
and shake his hand. I made the recording, so I should be the one who gives it to
him. That’s it.”
Fair enough!
The obvious stipulation being that Buffett is the first recipient.
Well, that’s
when I went to work! I spent days attempting to get in touch with Buffett and after
talking to a bunch of people, I was finally put in touch with the
aforementioned individual at the top of this blog.
He had an
unusual location geographically, in my view to be part of the Buffet business
group, however, having said that, I was put in touch with him through Buffett’s
“people”.
He always
came across as a very nice fellow. We went back and forth quite a bit. I told
him what we had. Then he got back to me saying that Buffett remembered Bubba's and thought he
remembered Dave as well. I recall during these exchanges, Buffett had just done a
concert in Hawaii.
At the
beginning things progressed quite well. My contact said he was told that it
should be pretty easy to accommodate Dave’s request the next time Buffett was
in Miami, or maybe Dave could come to Key West, if Buffett would be going there
first?
Then it ran
into what I named “The Buffett Personnel Quagmire”. The funniest, most ironic part about it was that it was
the exact same thing Buffett would have written a song about had he been in my
shoes. Something like “Fruitcakes” where he’s questioning the ridiculousness of
society and bureaucratic nonsense.
“Well, we’re
not sure who this Dave guy may be?”
Me: “He’s a
sixty something year old Jewish guy originally from Long Island, New York”
Them: “But
we don’t know who he is. We just don’t know?
All of this
translates to lawyers and inter corporate members searching to move up the corporate Buffett ladder by getting involved and inserting their presence.
What
happened to “Where are the Junior Mints????”
Before all
of this, it seemed that Buffett was talking to my contact directly. Things like
Buffett remembering Bubba’s and thinking he remembered My Friend Dave. Now,
however, things appeared to have changed. Clearly other people were now exerting
their influence.
Next thing
you know, my contact is saying that people in the Buffett organization are all
saying the exact same thing: “Just send me the recordings and I’ll make’s sure
he gets it”
Seriously?
What kind
of a moron do they take me for anyway?
What their
intention was is exactly the intention My friend Dave was hoping to avoid. Some
complete and utter asshole, attempting to walk in and hand Buffett the
recording of Buffett and Steve Goodman playing at Bubba’s in Coconut Grove
before “.. Pink Crustacean” was released, and taking all the glory in their own
eyes.
Then I got
the ultimate statement to date.
“Well, we’re
not sure who this Dave guy may be?”
Okay, Right! The implication was more than obvious.
Like some
Jewish guy, originally from Long Island, now in South Florida for almost fifty
years after serving several years in the United States Air Force, about Buffett’s
age, is going to strap on a bomb vest and blow their sacred cash cow to kingdom
come.
They’ve got
to be kidding.
I want some
Junior Mints people!!!
Not long
after that I moved to Key West. I felt bad for the relay guy I was dealing
with. It started out with him being the point man. After it was established
that we had something of good value and interest, the rest of the staff all
jumped on the bandwagon, making the point man basically a relay man. Like I say, it was actually the perfect backdrop
for a Buffett song. Ironically, Buffett’s crew would have been the crux in the
focus of the angst of the song!
Regretfully,
Buffett never got the recording. Fortunately neither did the ones in his
organization who said “Just give it to me and I’ll make sure he gets it” They
were attempting to usurp My Friend Dave’s work. Those jerks must have thought that I just fell
off the turnip wagon. I mean, seriously? Really?
All we wanted was honesty and integrity. That
seemed to be the case when Buffett was talking to our contact. Likewise with
our contact. At that point it was all straight forward. However, when the
lawyers, the office turds, and all the bullshit grinders that goes along with
them settled, and they messed things up royally. The songs are still in My
Friend Dave’s computer and they don’t have anything.
The saddest
part of it all is, looking at the average age of Buffett fans, there’s most
likely a fair amount of folks that have gone on to their reward between 2007
and today and never heard these recordings. My Friend Dave certainly wasn’t
being unreasonable. He recorded the event, which in any other situation, would
never have been recorded in the first place, had it not been for him.
Additionally,
it’s not like a recording that was made at some gig in say, 1988, with some fan
holding up a mic among 60,000 fans. This is with the late Steve Goodman and
recorded before Jimmy Buffett, was “Jimmy Buffett”. Although My Friend Dave said all he wanted was
to hand JB a CD, shake his hand, and go on his merry way, my contact and I
talked about My Friend Dave and JB having lunch together for the exchange. That
would be nice! A casual lunch at maybe Scottie’s in Coconut Grove, mere blocks
away from where the original gig took place, well over forty years ago.
Check below
for a clip from the gig in question, “Cuban Crime Of Passion”
I want
Junior Mints!
*An interesting anecdote that goes with the story: Around the early 2000's Bill "The Cox That Rocks" Cox met for the first time My Friend Dave. As it turned out, they both had attended many, many of the same gigs over forty years. The gig here was one of them! Bill passed away a year and a half ago. He was a major Buffett fan from the Bubba's gig to his last breath. In the early years, he would go to Buffett's gigs in the middle and upper Keys, often hanging out together after the show. Bill's highlighted in my book below. Miss you Bill!
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Cuban Crime Of Passion - Performed live by Jimmy Buffett and Steve Goodman at Bubba’s
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Thank you everyone!!
