Son of a Son of a Sailor

Album: Son of a Son of a Sailor (1978)
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Songfacts®:

  • Buffett wrote this song about his grandfather, James Delaney Buffett, who was a huge influence on his life. Buffett's grandfather was a sailor born in the town of Rose Blanche in Newfoundland, Canada, later moving to Glace Bay in Nova Scotia and eventually settling in Mobile, Alabama. His death in 1970 also inspired Buffett's early tune "The Captain and the Kid."
  • This was the only song Jimmy Buffett performed in his only appearance on Saturday Night Live (May 13, 1978). He had to do it sitting down with his leg propped up in a cast after breaking it in a softball game earlier that week. >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Julian - Oakland, AR
  • Buffett said of the song: "I saw a picture of my grandfather after he had come back from a trip to Nova Scotia. He was born there but left when he was a young man and didn't return until he was 84. He was standing on dock staring at an old sailing schooner, and the look on his face told the story of where he had come from and where he had been. I have always been very proud of my heritage as a sailor and wrote this for the men who taught me the skills."
  • In the lyrics, Buffett claims to have "Read dozens of books about heroes and crooks, and I learned much from both of their styles." According to the biography Jimmy Buffett: The Man From Margaritaville Revealed by Steve Eng, the singer grew up reading the classics on the insistence of his mother. One that stood out was Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, an adventurous tale about a boy who tussles with pirates on the quest for buried treasure.
  • Son Of A Son Of A Sailor was Buffett's highest-charting album of the '70s, peaking at #10 in the US.

Comments: 7

  • James from Fort Myers FlI remember my grandfather was a sailor back then, he showed me this song and said "this song sounds like you and me." I have listened to it ever since
  • Myles from New OrleansBuffett broke his leg three times in 1978 and 1979, the first time was in a baseball game with The Eagles. Why Dave from Sante Fe thinks Buffett broke it from flipping his seaplane in 1978 makes zero sense since Jimmy didn't fly a seaplane until 1985.
  • Annie from Lexington,He broke it 3 times in a year; fiat was softball game...so, could be all 3 reasons
  • Steve from Brighton, MiI would bet I saw Jimmy at Hill Auditorium in Michigan around 1978 and he played with a cast on his leg. He sang stepped on a flop top broke my leg and had to limp on back home.
  • Dave from Santa Fe, NmThe only time I've seen JB with a broken leg was at the Santa Barbara bowl and it was due to an accident he had in his seaplane when it flipped over during a landing. If you were at the Bowl that night do you remember the moths all over the stage and Jimmy complaining about "bug abuse" :)
  • Huey from St Augustine, FlI believe the reason Jimmy Buffett's leg was in a cast on his SNL appearance in 1978 was due to an injury in a softball game. He broke his leg in a softball game that year. I never was aware that he broke it in a motorcycle accident.
  • Lalah from Wasilla, AkOthers might think Jimmy Buffett's greatest song is Margaritaville but this is my favorite. As a kid I spent a lot of time on sailboats with my dad and grandfather. I miss them both now.
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