Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band has confirmed the completion of a new album, featuring the leader’s voice three years after his passing.
Buffett died at the age of 76 in 2023, but the band continued – and now they’re preparing to launch a record with previously unreleased songs.
Mac McAnally and Michael Utley co-produced Equal Strain on All Parts, which was recorded with Buffett and released two months after he passed away. In a new interview with Billboard, McAnally outlined what to expect from the upcoming release.
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“[F]For the most part [it’s] things that have never been out,” he said, adding that the few which had were “cut for a one-off purpose, a TV episode or a movie.”
He continued: “The oldest of these tracks is from 2003, and the newest is maybe four years ago or so. None of those things have ever been on a Jimmy Buffett album. We’re pretty excited.”
The album includes the song “Workin’ ‘n’ Playin’,” first performed on tour in 2015 and 2016. “[Buffett]Jimmy and I used to talk about the fact that our work is playing, and our play is work,” McAnally explained.
“[W]We wrote that song the year we had a tour called Workin’ ‘n’ Playin’. It’s really good, so it’s on this album, and we do it now as sort of a duet between the band and Jimmy.”
‘You Can Tell Jimmy Buffett’s Smiling’ on Posthumous Album
Also present are an unused track from the 2017 musical Escape to Margaritaville, backing music for Buffett’s Frank Bama character on the 21st-century version of Hawaii Five-O, and the full piece backing his Jurassic World cameo, of which only a few notes have previously been heard.
Reporting that the music was all done, but that there was no title or release date yet, McAnally added: “It’s a good hodgepodge. When you hear Jimmy sing you can tell that he’s smiling; you can hear that smile…
“I’ve been listening to that smile for three months finishing this record, so I’m almost sore from smiling — but I ain’t gonna quit.”
The Coral Reefer Band are currently touring the U.S.
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Gallery Credit: Ultimate Classic Rock Staff
