Margaritaville may have topped out at #8 but it hung around the charts for 22 weeks which is a good run, especially for a song that didn't reach the top 5. It ended up as the #14 song of the year and is probably better remembered than many of the actual #1s. I mean, it's fueled Buffets' career for decades although that's not to minimize his catalog. I, too only like a handful of his songs but the ones I do like, I really like.
That's probably part of it too (why it didn't chart higher). I remember it being on the radio for a long time.
The lyrics to Undercover Angel makes it a borderline novelty record. I liked it but always thought it was kind of silly. The single's label was gorgeous. O'Day also wrote hits for Helen Reddy (Angie Baby) and The Righteous Brothers (Rock n Roll Heaven).
"Undercover Angel" has a vibe that is relaxed yet there is just enough drive to help it move along nicely. It's 70's AM pop with a leeeetle r&b thrown in for good measure. The tight musicianship really helps to elevate this track.
It's also a song you hardly hear on the radio these days. I can't remember the last time I heard it on 'CBS-FM. O.T.O.H., they still play Manfred Mann's "Blinded By The Light" every several hours . . .
I loved "Margaritaville" and remembered it a little from the time, but it became something of a staple on pop oldies radio and also on "light rock" stations, which multiplied like kudzu around the end of the decade. I think country radio picked it up as an oldie as well - it had gotten to #13 on that chart. Anyhow, it pretty quickly picked up more play as an oldie than most #1 hits from 1977, and it did so across four separate formats - rock-leaning pop stations, adult contemporary/light rock stations, country and later in the '80s more dedicated "oldies" stations. Even some fairly "alternative" stations like KFOG in the Bay Area continued to play it until at least the turn of the century. It just goes to show how both the overall chart placement of a song and its longevity can get a big boost from being trans-genre. It's a good song, I don't know if it's better than "Margaritaville". "Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes" would be another contender for his finest hit. I will say that "Come Monday" sounded way ahead of its time for 1974.
Gonna Fly Now Despite the fact I never bought the single, and really was starting to ween myself away from AM radio (except in the car) to FM radio around this time, this was a song that was everywhere. I can't say specifically where I would have heard it, but hear it I did. It was all over the place. Margaritaville I've talked about this before in a Buffet thread, but I had a friend in High School who was a huge Buffet fan. Prior to his breakout with this song, he wasn't an "underground" artist per se, but there were not a lot of people that I knew who were into him pr even listened to him. My friend loaned me a couple of the ABC Records Albums, "A1A" and maybe "White Sports Coat and a Pink Crustacean" and I really liked those and ended up buying all the ABC records them before "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitude" came out. It was very strange that suddenly someone who you thought was well off the radar suddenly was all over the radio. I still go back to that record, to me its the height of his records. I still really enjoy this song. "Changes" is the only Buffet I ever listen to anymore. I was a huge fan through "Volcano" and then started fading away. Now he would fall into the "loved it then, hate it now category," not so much the early stuff, but all the "parrot head" stuff that would come after.
Is that true by '77? I know by the early '80s FM eclipsed AM, but I think at this point AM still had the larger audience. The more lucrative audience was certainly on FM at this point, though. AM was increasingly for old people, poor people and little kids. Even semi-affluent teenagers in the suburbs typically had a decent FM radio by this point (I think I had access to 4 around the house by this point), and they also typically had one in the car they could listen to.
AM was being dominated by country, classical, and easy listening music as well as talk radio, sports, and news. You still had pop, R&B, disco, and jazz on AM, but they were also moving to the FM band.
Oh they were all over FM by '77. But AM still had the ratings trophy I think for another year or two. The move to the much higher-fidelity FM band had a huge impact on what kind of music was popular with listeners, too. Remember, this is before digital compressors came along and FM had the dynamic range completely squeezed out of it, which started in the early '80s (with analog compressors) and spread throughout the decade. With its stereo, wide frequency response and relatively low noise floor during this era FM could - under good conditions, anyhow - deliver a really immersive experience. Well-engineered acts like Linda Ronstadt, the Eagles, Steely Dan, Pink Floyd, Elton John and Fleetwood Mac really stood out compared to AM-sounding, compressed, tinny singles coming from, say, Glen Campbell or David Soul. That stuff always struck me as a waste of a good stereo. Why swill Bud when you could spend your time sipping champagne? Indeed, FM was considered so high-fidelity that Dolby FM was briefly a thing in the late '70s and early '80s, where a system similar to the Dolby B used by cassettes was applied to FM radio broadcasts in an attempt to further quash their noise floor. With a frequency response of around 20Hz to 15kHz, FM could provide a fuller-spectrum response than all but the best turntables and tape decks, although it was a bit more limited when it came to noise and - especially - stereo separation. Still, I remember hearing FM receivers even at Radio Shack that sounded incredible when fed with a strong signal from an outdoor antenna. By the mid '80s, FM frequently sounded not all that much better than AM - harsh, overcompressed, no stereo separation - but during this era the contrast between FM and AM couldn't be more dramatic.
In the New York area, two AM stations (WVNJ 620 and WPAT AM 93) were devoted to easy listening - but so were four FM stations (WVNJ 100.3, WPAT FM 93.1, WTFM 103.5 and WRFM 105.1). WQXR, the main classical station, in those days was on both AM (1560) and FM (96.3) - followed by WNCN (104.3). Country in NYC was the AM province (WHN 1050). Jazz was mainly WBGO 88.3 and WRVR 106.7 - both FM. R&B was divvied up between "traditional" WWRL 1600 AM and "progressive" WBLS 107.5 FM. New York wouldn't have a full-time disco station until the next year - and when it did, it ended the dominance of WABC Musicradio 77 forever, leading to a chain of events that would culminate, in the next decade, with that station abandoning music altogether. In the Top 40 field, there was WABC, plus WNBC 66 on the AM dial - and on FM, 99X (WXLO 98.7) and, every now and then, WPIX-FM 101.9. As for talk radio, there was WMCA, the former "Fabulous 57," but the leader was WOR 710.
I don't care much for "Undercover Angel," but I do like it a lot better than either of those songs! It does have a great hook and a memorable chorus, so even if I don't like it much, I can see why it got to #1. Among his really rabid fans - often called GOP's for "grumpy old parrotheads", Buffett's (note he spells his last name with two Ts) first four ABC albums are known as his "outlaw period," and are widely considered his best. Whether or not to include the Changes in Latitudes Changes in Attitudes album with that part of his catalog is the subject of a lot of debate, but in my opinion it fits. I guess you either love or hate everything that came after "Margaritaville", but I'm in the former camp. Incidentally, while he never again came anywhere near the top ten on the singles chart, since the mid-90s most of his albums have made it that far. One - License to Chill (2004) - got to #1, no small accomplishment for a guy who hadn't had a hit single in almost 30 years at the time. I also agree "Come Monday" is far superior, by the way. In a similar vein, here's a rarity (released only on his box set) that I've seen win over a lot of new fans (yes, those are the Neville Brothers backing him up):
Jimmy Buffett seems to have a lot of fun with his music, so I'll give him credit for that. What I dislike is the feeling of smugness that I get from him. Maybe smugness isn't the word I'm looking for...I get the feeling that Buffett thinks his music is much BETTER than it really is. He believes he's some kind of master writer and composer of pop/rock music, when in fact he's about average among professionals. He really does exert that lazy, laid-back feeling so important to the mood of what he's trying to do, but I always feel like it's a hard sell. I like "Come Monday" a lot though, probably his best track.
Undercover Angel *giggles* Margaritaville I've never liked anything else I've heard by this guy, but this song is pretty great. Everything I think he tries to project, often in a hackneyed and trite way, with his whole persona and countless albums is distilled to perfection in this song. I want to live on a boat when I hear it.
Marvin Gaye - Got to Give It Up I'm not as familiar with this one as with his stuff from earlier in the decade so that whenever I hear this, I forget that it's actually Marvin Gaye doing this. It's so different than songs like Mercy Mercy Me or What's Going On. Got to Give It Up is an interesting song for me. I don't really think it's that great of a song, like, as a composition. However, that groove is super fantastic. It's clear that the song isn't meant to give you some deep meaning on life, it's supposed to get you off your ass and onto the dance floor to have a blast. I guess I can feel both sides, it's kind of messy as a recording but the groove is also spot-on. It's a total party song, and perfect for that. Bill Conti - Gonna Fly Now Fun fact: at my wedding reception my wife and I (and the rest of the wedding party) came in with this song, down a big staircase. It was incredibly awesome. This song was one of my main takeaways the first time I watched Rocky. Great movie, but this song just kicks all kinds of butt. I love how over the top it is! The main melody line with the horns is fantastic. The groove is perfect and made for strutting or coming into a ring. The orchestra and vocals really contribute to the massiveness of the sound. Great guitar solo with the horn bursts behind it. I feel 10 feet tall when listening to this. Love it! Alan O'Day - Undercover Angel The main keyboard riff in the verses is pretty much the same thing as The Beatles' It's All Too Much. Even if I wasn't hearing that, I still don't find much to like about this song. The mix is a bit weird, with things like the drums being a bit too loud, along with the vibes. The psychedelic touches (reverb on the vocal) make it stand out, but also show up as a gimmick. This one is forgettable for me. As for Buffett, I love just about every song he released in the 70's, even those first two albums. His 80's/90's output has some bright spots, but also some serious duds. Overall I think he's a really good songwriter. I don't see the "smugness" factor that some of you do. I totally realize he's not for everyone. Changes in Latitudes is a great album and I will agree that Come Monday is a better song than Margaritaville, even though it's nowhere near as iconic.
First, let me apologize to the Time Cops for jumping a bit but I seriously doubt anyone is gonna bring Jimmy Buffet up again on this thread. His very next album is probably my favorite with two of his best songs - the title cut, Son Of A Son Of A Sailor and this beauty which was relegated to a b-side. How rude! I've always liked his nautical tunes even though I get seasick on a raft. Jimmy Buffett - Coast Of Marseilles. Nothing smug about this one.
On the radio stations I was listening to in southern California at the time, Margaritaville was inescapable. Like others, I'd always just assumed it had been no. 1.
I love this but can’t separate it from the movie - they’re always intertwined in my mind. So, I can’t really tell you if I would like it as much as a stand alone track. But, as a soundtrack, it’s iconic.
You must have never read or seen an interview with the man. (Understandable if you're not a fan, but still.) He's always the first to admit he's no better than average as a musician or a songwriter. Where he does see his strength is as an entertainer, and given what a concert draw he's been for decades now, it would appear a lot of people agree. (Perhaps tellingly, I don't - I've only ever been to one of his shows and that was enough. I'm there for the music, not the party, thank you very much.)
