![]() ![]() Howie employed only females, so the joint drew a willing crowd. And a single spot it was, with the stage being the ten square feet normally occupied by Coffee Butler's piano bench in the front window of Howie's Lounge at 109 Duval Street. That didn't keep Jimmy from sharing the spotlight. There's some debate about who'd been hired for the gigs, but most believe it was Jerry Jeff Walker. Jimmy's earliest Key West related songs were tested on the Chart Room audience, and he sang a few that might surprise the die-hard fans: Tell Laura I Love Her was a frequent request, as were Danny's Song by Loggins & Messina, and the obscure, beautiful On My Own, written by B. Some nights he was joined by Vaughn Cochran on washboard ( and today a well-known artist ), Steve Goodman (writer of Banana Republic and City of New Orleans), and even Jim Croce. Jimmy began his tropical career playing for drinks in the The Chart Room for treasure divers, pot smugglers, beachcombers, politicians and friends. Jimmy saw the freebie and the bar's ambiance as omens of great things to come. Tom gave Jimmy his first beer "on the house" as a welcome to the island. The bartender on duty was Tom Corcoran, a friend of Jerry Jeff and today an author whose mystery novels are set in Key West and the Lower Keys. ![]() In November 1971, when Jimmy was brought for the first time to Key West by Jerry Jeff Walker and Teresa "Murphy" Clark, the trio's first stop in town was the Chart Room Bar at the Pier House Motel. Indeed, that's one of the stories we don't tell. Several of Jimmy's most valued possessions escaped harm and possible theft. Curse words, a broken beer bottle and a hasty exit were reported. One evening, in 1972, Jimmy was fortunate to escape the bar's upstairs apartment and a woman gone crazy on Lower Duval. There are more Anchor Inn stories that can't be told than ones that will be told. Squid" As we know the quote found its way to immortality. Speaking of the subject, there was a fine message crawled on the wall in the men's room: "Life and ink run out at the same time. Many survivors of The Snake Pit recall wee-hours dance marathons and Joe Cocker singing "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" 20 or 30 times a night. A blue cloud hung low, directly above the roof. Bud and Dorothy MacArthur's place at 208 Duval always was crowded - but more at three in the morning that at three in the afternoon. Murals on the insides of the window shutters were painted by Monkey Tom, swapped for a "bottomless" bar tab. The picket fence lining the sidewalk was erected to appease the city there had been too many complaints of saloon patrons falling out the front door. Men in clothes swiped from clotheslines gambled tens and twenties at the pool table. The restrooms often flooded you walked on bricks to keep your shoes dry. ![]() People slept in their cars behind the bar. As time passes, that quick November 1971 jaunt to the Keys means more and more to the island, the state of Florida, and the national culture. It changed his life and countless other lives in turn. Jimmy's discovery of the island meant everything to the man. Key West was an outpost over 100 miles from our mainland - closer to Cuba than to Florida - a place of fascinating history and charm, dependent upon the ocean for much of its income yet subject to the whims of weather and the perils of change. Jimmy Buffett had never before seen the Florida Keys. After a week or two of Florida-orientation, they piled into "Flying Lady," Jerry Jeff's elegant silver and maroon '47 Packard sedan, for a drive southward. Murphy and Jerry Jeff wanted to deliver some happiness to dispel Jimmy's gloom and sense of loss. ![]() The record industry didn't understand the young man's style, motivation or lyrics. His marriage to his hometown sweetheart had ended, and he'd failed to find many open doors in the Music City. Jerry Jeff, Murphy and her young son, Justin, had offered Jimmy refuge in their open-air Coconut Grove home after Jimmy fled Nashville's weather and business climate. Jimmy Buffett arrived in Key West in November 1971 with singer and songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker (already famous for "Mr. ![]()
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