Volcano (Live 2011)

The Mayor of Margaritaville paid homage to 1979’s Volcano by playing the album live in its entirety during his spring 2011 tour. The album opens with “Fins,” sounding as lively and festive as it did 32 years earlier. The Caribbean-flavored title track follows, with infectious steel drums banging in the foreground as Jimmy Buffett heckles his audience a bit for partying a little too hard. And though James Taylor couldn’t show up to sing on “Treat Her Like a Lady” like he did back in '79, Buffett’s backing band makes up for it with what sounds like a choir of gospel singers. That tune remains a solid sing-along, as does the children’s song “Chanson Pour Les Petits Enfants." Even ballads like “Stranded on a Sandbar,” “Survive," and “Sending the Old Man Home” still play with the timeless emotional comfort of a Shel Silverstein poem. Conversely, “Boat Drinks” keeps the party flowing with another anthem to those sweet, grownup beverages involving ice and a blender.