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Early in the 2000s, Jimmy Buffett experienced one of his periodic revivals thanks to the legions of contemporary country singers indebted to his sunny, relaxed party music. His influence had been bubbling under during the latter half of the '90s, but in 2003 he suddenly was front and center, performing a duet with Alan Jackson on the "Margaritaville"-styled smash "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," while echoes of his music were clearly heard in country's first superstar of the new millennium, Kenny Chesney. Never one to miss an opportunity -- or, as he puts it in the liner notes, "not being one to let a cultural phenomenon pass me by like a misguided comet" -- Buffett decided to go the whole hog and record his own country album, License to Chill, for the summer of 2004. He calls in a lot of favors here, drafting Jackson, Chesney, Toby Keith, Clint Black, George Strait, Martina McBride, Nanci Griffith, and, for a change of pace, Bill Withers, for duets on this generous 16-track album. Usually, such a surplus of guest stars overwhelms the main artist, but that isn't the case here, since everybody bends to fit Buffett's style instead of the reverse. These guests not only give Buffett a straight man for his jokes, but also help focus his musical direction and song selection, since it all feeds into the album's sun-kissed contemporary country direction. Musically, this isn't all that far removed from either his early-'70s work or "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," which is hardly a surprise, but what is surprising is that it's one of the most enjoyable latter-day albums from this notoriously inconsistent artist. There are still some overly silly, even embarrassing moments, such as the frequent tossed-off puns and the cringe-inducing "Simply Complicated," but these are the exceptions on this cheery collection of laid-back country-rockers and beach ballads. Again, the difference on License to Chill isn't the music, but the consistency of the songwriting and the performances, resulting not only in Buffett's strongest record in years, but an album that sits comfortably next to that new Kenny Chesney album, and that means he accomplished exactly what he set out to do.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Kenny Chesney, FeaturedArtist - Alan Jackson, FeaturedArtist - Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Clint Black, FeaturedArtist - Hank Williams, Composer, Writer - Toby Keith, FeaturedArtist - George Strait, FeaturedArtist
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Alan Jackson, FeaturedArtist - Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Guy Charles Clark, Composer, Writer - Verlon K Thompson, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Kenny Chesney, FeaturedArtist - Jimmy Buffett, Composer, Writer, MainArtist - Alan Gordon Anderson, Composer, Writer - Lyman Corbitt McAnally Jr, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - James W Buffett, Composer, Writer - Lyman Corbitt McAnally Jr., Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Will Kimbrough, Composer, Writer - Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Toby Keith, FeaturedArtist
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Bruce Cockburn, Composer, Writer - Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Stephen Bruton, Composer, Writer - Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Martina McBride, FeaturedArtist - Alan G Anderson, Composer, Writer - Sharon M Vaughn, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - James W Buffett, Composer, Writer - William Harrison Withers, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - James W Buffett, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Paul Hampton, Composer, Writer - Hal David, Composer, Writer - George Strait, FeaturedArtist
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Clint Black, FeaturedArtist - James W Buffett, Composer, Writer - Bingo Gubelman, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Bill Withers, FeaturedArtist - William Harrison Withers, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - John Hiatt, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Bruce Cockburn, Composer, Writer - Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - NANCI GRIFFITH, FeaturedArtist
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Jerome J Garcia, Composer, Writer - Robert C Hunter, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Jimmy Buffett, MainArtist - Leon Russell, Composer, Writer
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. ℗ 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
Album review
Early in the 2000s, Jimmy Buffett experienced one of his periodic revivals thanks to the legions of contemporary country singers indebted to his sunny, relaxed party music. His influence had been bubbling under during the latter half of the '90s, but in 2003 he suddenly was front and center, performing a duet with Alan Jackson on the "Margaritaville"-styled smash "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," while echoes of his music were clearly heard in country's first superstar of the new millennium, Kenny Chesney. Never one to miss an opportunity -- or, as he puts it in the liner notes, "not being one to let a cultural phenomenon pass me by like a misguided comet" -- Buffett decided to go the whole hog and record his own country album, License to Chill, for the summer of 2004. He calls in a lot of favors here, drafting Jackson, Chesney, Toby Keith, Clint Black, George Strait, Martina McBride, Nanci Griffith, and, for a change of pace, Bill Withers, for duets on this generous 16-track album. Usually, such a surplus of guest stars overwhelms the main artist, but that isn't the case here, since everybody bends to fit Buffett's style instead of the reverse. These guests not only give Buffett a straight man for his jokes, but also help focus his musical direction and song selection, since it all feeds into the album's sun-kissed contemporary country direction. Musically, this isn't all that far removed from either his early-'70s work or "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," which is hardly a surprise, but what is surprising is that it's one of the most enjoyable latter-day albums from this notoriously inconsistent artist. There are still some overly silly, even embarrassing moments, such as the frequent tossed-off puns and the cringe-inducing "Simply Complicated," but these are the exceptions on this cheery collection of laid-back country-rockers and beach ballads. Again, the difference on License to Chill isn't the music, but the consistency of the songwriting and the performances, resulting not only in Buffett's strongest record in years, but an album that sits comfortably next to that new Kenny Chesney album, and that means he accomplished exactly what he set out to do.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 16 track(s)
- Total length: 00:57:08
- Main artists: Jimmy Buffett
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Mailboat Records
- Genre: Country
2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc. 2018 2004 Mailboat Records Inc.
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