 Song Lyrics -> Boats, Beaches, Bars, and Ballads
Take it Back by Jimmy Buffett and Matt Betton “I got a call one day to write a song for the Stars and Stripes challenge. The Americans were trying to win the American Cup back from the Australians. Soon after that, my first trip to Australia came together, and we opened the tour in Perth at the time of the race. For me, it was the party of the 80’s, and I think of this as the background music for an incredible stay down under.” - Jimmy Open season on the open seas and Captain says no prisoners please Skull and crossbones on a background of black We ain’t stealin’ we’re just takin’ back We ain’t stealin’ we’re just takin’ back Very simple plan of attack It’s our job and a labor of love Take it home to the up above We ain’t stealin’ we’re just takin’ back Very simple statement of fact Call it pillage or call it plunder We’re takin’ it back from them boys down under Hit us hard, took our treasure That was the worst thing they could do It will be our great pleasure To take it back from that captain kangaroo Yo ho ho, and a bottle of suds It’s a pirates fight we choose No we don’t want a bucket of blood Just a cup is all we could use Just a cup The sails are up and the bets are down Let’s lighten up this harbor town By hook or crook or new design We’re streakin’ for that finish line We ain’t stealin’ we’re just takin’ back Very simple plan of attack It’s our job and a labor of love Take it home to the up above We ain’t stealin’ we’re just takin’ back Very simple statement of fact Call it pillage or call it plunder We’re takin’ it back from them boys down under spoken We ask ourselves when we get in a fix What would Popeye do in a tight spot like this He’d race for his true love and easily win it In an old spinach can with a mast stuck in it Lift us up, take us high Time to let our spirits fly Lift us up, take us high Let us sail until we die Lift us up, take us high Let us float above the foam Let our sails fill the sky We are takin’ our sweet treasure home Take it back We’re takin’ it back Take it back! Love and Luck by Jimmy Buffett, J. Beroard, and J.C. Naimro  “Zouk” is a popular form of music from the French Antilles, the kind that makes you dance without knowing what the singer is saying. Since the songs are in patois French, this helps. I once received a request for permission to write new lyrics to the melody of Margaritaville by a very famous European singer and thought it was great and was interested to hear their interpretation. Well this is the melody to a song called “kole Sere,” written by my friend Joecely Beroard, the lead singer for a great Zouk band named Kaasav. The lyrics are mine and I hope that they like the way I interpret their music. This was the first song ever recorded at Shrimp Boat Sound in Key West and Steve Winwood is the guest organist. I thank him for taking time out from his fishing trip.” - Jimmy Better days are in the cards I feel Feel it in the changin’ wind I feel it when I fly So talk to me I’ll listen to your story I’ve been around enough to know That there’s more than meets the eye Everybody needs a little good luck charm A little gris gris keeps you safe from harm Rub yours on me, and I’ll rub mine on you Luckiest couple on the avenue With a little love and luck You will get by With a little love and luck We’ll take the sky In this megalo-modern world You’ve got to try Try a little love and luck And you’ll get by Mysteries don’t ever try to solve them We’re just players in a game And no one’s keeping score So have your fun Go ahead and tell your story Find yourself a lover Who will glue you to the floor Everybody needs a little good luck charm A little gris gris keeps you safe from harm Rub yours on me, and I’ll rub mine on you Luckiest couple on the avenue With a little love and luck You will get by With a little love and luck We’ll take the sky In this megalo-modern world We’ve got to try Try a little love and luck And you’ll get by Kole sere kole sere Kole sere kole sere Kole sere kole sere Kole sere kole sere With a little love and luck You will get by With a little love and luck We’ll take the sky In this megalo-modern world You’ve got to try Try a little love and luck And you’ll get by Kole sere, kole sere Kole sere, kole sere Kole sere, kole sere Kole sere, kole sere With a little love and luck You will get by With a little love and luck We’ll take the sky Love and luck We will get by Money Back Guarantee by Jimmy Buffett, Michael Utley, and Will Jennings “When I was working on Bourbon Street as a teenager, the big trill on my day off was to ride out St Charles Avenue on the streetcar to the Audubon Zoo and back. I kept that image and when we got together with the Neville Brothers a few years back, I combined that and the silly ads on television into the lyrics of this song. I do own a bamboo steamer and use it a lot. I never had to use my money back guarantee.” - Jimmy One day you’ll be glad I came around I may be the best thing you have found Ain’t much you can count on in this town I swear I’m speaking from my heart And I won’t let you down My love is guaranteed You’re never going to see the end of me I’ve got all you need Like a ginsu knife or a bamboo steamer Late night TV hawk-eyed screamer You’ll be the coffee I’ll be the creamer I’m money back, money back guaranteed Money back, money back guaranteed I just do my best to stay alive Got a junked out car but you should see me drive Racing down St. Charles Avenue Ain’t got much but what I got Will sure be good for you My love is guaranteed You’re never going to see the end of me I’ve got all you need Like a ginsu knife or a bamboo steamer Late night TV hawk-eyed screamer You’ll be the coffee I’ll be the creamer I’m money back, money back guaranteed Money back, money back guaranteed Flyin’ down the highway of my dreams You will find my crazy love Is always what it seems My love is guaranteed You’re never going to see the end of me I’ve got all you need Like a ginsu knife or a bamboo steamer Late night TV hawk-eyed screamer You’ll be the coffee I’ll be the creamer I’m money back, money back guaranteed Money back, money back guaranteed I’m money back, money back guaran… Money back, money back guaran… Money back, money back guaranteed Money back, money back guaran… Money back, money back guaran… I’m money back, money back guaranteed Money back, money back guaran… Money back, money back guaran… Money back, money back guaranteed Money back, money back guaranteed Christmas in the Caribbean by Jimmy Buffett, Mike Utley, Will Jennings, Marshall Chapman, and Diana Haig “I guess since Christmas is my birthday, I should have written at least one Christmas song. This certainly won’t give “White Christmas” a run for its money, but it proves the point that snow isn’t everything.” - Jimmy It’s Christmas in the Caribbean Snowbirds fill the air It’s Christmas in the Caribbean Lots of presents everywhere We don’t live in a hurry Send away for mistletoe It’s Christmas in the Caribbean Got everything but snow Lights are blowing in the palm trees Stockings hanging from the mast Santa riding on a dolphin Don’t you want to make it Don’t you want to make it last It’s christmas in the caribbean Snowbirds fill the air It’s christmas in the caribbean Lots of presents everywhere We don’t live in a hurry Send away for mistletoe It’s christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Suntanned children sleeping Hoping Santa will come true Christmas morning marlin leaping Oh it’s papa’s birthday Mister Buffett’s birthday too! It’s christmas in the caribbean Snowbirds fill the air It’s christmas in the caribbean Good feelings everywhere We don’t live in a hurry Send away for mistletoe It’s christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Christmas in the caribbean Got everything but snow Elvis Imitators by Steve Goodman, Michael Smith
“This song was written my Steve Goodman and John Prine. Elvis is still dead or alive, and this song has remained locked away in the vaults of Margaritaville Records for years now, just waiting for the perfect time to be sprung on an unsuspecting public. So against a lot of people’s better judgement, I broke it out. So far I have not heard from Elvis, so I don’t know if he likes it or not-but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s seen at one of our shows this summer.” - Jimmy spoken - Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen I’d like to do this next song especially for you and for the king Well….I walk up to the mike and and then I shake my hips I take a deep breath and put a snare on my lips See me on the street you wouldn’t know my name But imitating Elvis is my claim to fame So when you put my imitation name in lights There’ll be imitation good rockin’ tonight Cuz I’m an an Elvis imitator and I just can’t stop Imitating Elvis from the bottom to the top Imitate the way he talked, the way he smiled I throw away my scarf and make the crowd go wild This imitation Elvis may not be the king But baby I’m the next best thing Singing Viva Las Vegas and the G.I. Blues Won’t you love me tender in my blue suede shoes Well let me be your teddy bear, if you must Oh baby please surrender, ’cause I need your touch Well if you feelin’ lonely, need a place to dwell Come on down to imitation heartbreak hotel We’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Ooooh we’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Ooooh we’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Ooooh we’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Yeah my gold lamee cape and my sequined suit Pompadou haircut and my high-heeled boots Imitating elvis is the only way I can make it through my imitation day I know this rocking music can’t be denied Cause I was imitating him before he died Well I’m an an Elvis imitator and I just can’t stop Imitating elvis from the bottom to the top I imitate the way he walked, the way he smiled I throw away my scarf and make the crowd go wild This imitation elvis may not be the king But baby I’m the next best thing Yeah rock (rock rock rock) Ooooh we’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Ooooh we’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Ooooh we’re gonna rock (rock rock rock) Well baby, it’s the next, best thing spoken - Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen Viva las vegas Viva las vegas Domino College by Jimmy Buffett and Dan Fogelberg “One of those winters back in the early eighties, Dan Fogelberg showed up in St. Barts, and we took off south aboard that grand old yacht Escapade. The night before, my guitar had been stolen out of my car, and of course we had been inspired by events of the week and wanted to write songs. Now our trip had a mission. We picked up some leads in the marketplace in Charlestown, the main city on the island of Nevis, which led us to the hills to Butlertown, where we met a man who made guitars. On the way to his home, we passed a roadside shed with a cold beer sign and the words “Domino College” painted on a piece of driftwood. I sat in for a few games and was given a quick education by the old men seated around the table. That night, as we lay at anchor under the cliffs below Brimstone Hill listening to the monkeys jabbering in the trees, we stared this song. I have often thought I might like to go back down to Domino College and get my master’s degree.” - Jimmy Found myself a matchbook Beside some hotel bed Opened it up and looked inside And this is what it said Get on back to school Domino college, back to school Boneyard of knowledge Working vacation in a third world nation Back to school Fly down to miami Get yourself a boat Fill it full of suntan oil And rent yourself a goat Ain’t no registration Ain’t no student loan You may not learn to read or write But you will surely learn to roll them bones Get on back to school Domino college, back to school Boneyard full of knowledge Working vacation in a third world nation Back to school They don’t rap your knuckles If you cut the class They just track you through the jungle boy Then they kick your ass It’s a different kind of domino theory They teach you down in Butler town If you lose you buy the booze And then the student body all falls down They can’t get back to school Domino college, back to school Fountain of knowledge Working vacation in a third world nation Back to school Get on back Make your parents hate you Be a big disgrace Act just like a domino And fall on your face You can’t get back to school Domino college, back to school Fountain of knowledge There ain’t no graduation from this kind of education Back to school Working vacation in a third world nation Back to school spoken- Oh, Jan & Dean be true to your school. Big six, big six, whose got it? Goddamn Robert when you gonna play man, hey man, say, you know whose turn it is Everlasting Moon by Jimmy Buffett and Matt Betton “You have never heard this before unless you were at the live shows in Atlanta or Cincinnati in the summer of ‘90. Matt Betton and I penned this. I love the idea that somebody steals the moon and moves it to a better place. Who but a bunch of baby boomers could conceive such a notion?” - Jimmy The sky revealed the rumor In a misty gray cocoon Some angry baby-boomers Stole the everlasting moon They found a new location Clear and poison free In a distant constellation Oh, they called it lunacy Hangin’ in the sky The perfect alibi Baby come outside with me There’s a moon you’ve got to see Smiling every place With his laser-painted face Light of love in each moonbeam Want you step into my dream Everlasting moon Back when nature ruled the heavens Oh gypsies, fools, and loons Were dragged across the ocean By that everlasting moon When it goes from full to crescent I move in and out of tune It’s the envy of the kremlin It’s our everlasting moon Shinin’ in the sky The perfect alibi Baby come outside with me There’s this moon you’ve got to see Smiling every place With his laser-painted face Light of love in each moonbeam Want you step into my dream Everlasting moon Everlasting moon Middle of the Night by Jimmy Buffett, Will Jennings, Art Neville, and Mike Utley “Back in prehistoric times (the sixties) when I was working on Bourbon Street, I used to go to the Ivanhoe Piano Bar on my break and listen to a couple of local singers called the Neville Brothers. Needless to day, we have all made it off Bourbon Street and on to better things, but I still don’t think there are too many bands around today who can compare to Art, Cyril, Charlie and Aaron when they harmonize. It was a thrill to work with them on this song which was one if three that I wrote with Art, Will Jennings, and Mike Utley one summer in New Orleans. The other two songs eventually made it onto Neville albums, but this one did not. It was inspired by late-night television ads and the St. Charles Avenue streetcar in New Orleans.” - Jimmy Middle of the night Hold on til morning We will see the light Love is spawning Middle of the night Hold on forever We will get it right All together When will we listen When will we ever learn Read all about it This tide has got to turn Old folks and baby’s Crying in the storm I try to tell them Soon they’ll be safe and warm Lord let us out of this hall full of mirrors Make it all clearer Don’t let us fall In the middle of the night Middle of the night New voices calling Saying it’s alright I’m not falling Middle of the night Halfway till morning Middle of my life New days dawning
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