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Watch Jimmy Buffett Play ‘Margaritaville’ For Hunter S. Thompson At Aspen High School In 1977

September 6, 2023

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Jimmy Buffett was closely associated with Key West Florida and the greater Gulf Of Mexico region, with tropical and nautical themes frequently the subjects of his songs. Another location with close ties to Buffett that’s perhaps lesser known is Aspen, Colorado.

In the early 1970s, Buffett began spending summers in Aspen, later buying a home and spending winters and other seasons there. He kept the residence for many years and continued to come back to Aspen after selling his property, maintaining a close relationship with the mountain town and its people.

According to the Aspen Times, “The house he bought was a rustic creekside two-building property in Old Snowmass that Buffett would later sell to the Eagles’ Glenn Frey, who would convert Buffett’s log-built garage and office into the famed Mad Dog Ranch Studios in 1986.”

Frey and his Eagles bandmates were also part of the 1970s music scene in Aspen that also included the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and others. Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson resided in Woody Creek, just north of Aspen and became acquainted with Buffett.

“On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio.” HST
(Stories I Tell Myself: Growing Up with Hunter S. Thompson
Book by Juan Fitzgerald Thompson) pic.twitter.com/JbQf41pmPq
— Jimmy Buffett (@jimmybuffett) December 12, 2020

“I lived down valley and, through a mutual friend, I got invited over to Hunter’s house,” Buffett said in the Thompson biography Gonzo. “Of course, I was a huge fan. And then he came down and saw my show in Denver with a bunch of guys from Aspen and we just immediately locked in.”

In early 1977, Buffett performed at an event held at Aspen High School auditorium that featured a Q&A with Thompson. Following the interview with Thompson, Buffett performed “Margaritaville” while accompanied by Frey and Steve Weisberg.

With its release in January 1977 on Buffett’s album Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes, “Margaritaville” was a relatively unknown newcomer when Buffett, Frey and Weisberg performed the song at Aspen High. Buffett altered the lyrics to reference Thompson (who showed up on stage soon after) and included a “lost” verse referencing cocaine.

Check out the early version of “Margaritaville” below:

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