#103 – Scarlet Begonias
#103 – Scarlet Begonias
-by Stacy Garwood-
If there was one song that could weave together the Deadheads and Parrotheads, it would be Scarlet Begonias. A fusion of eccentric fans, fun, and flash, with beads, bangles and feathers, and tie-dye and Hawaiian prints, and while the two groups have always had many similarities, and probably several people who wear both hats, when Jimmy Buffett covered the beloved Grateful Dead song Scarlet Begonias, these eccentric groups were undoubtedly fused together with music.
“She had rings on her fingers and bells on her shoes, And I knew without askin’ she was into the blues, She wore scarlet begonias tucked into her curls, I knew right away she was not like other girls, other girls…”
Scarlet Begonias was released in 2004 on JB’s album License To Chill. License To Chill was produced by long time Coral Reefer’s Mac McAnally and Michael Utley, under Mailboat Records and was recorded both at Jimmy’s own Shrimpboat Sound Studio in Key West and in several Nashville, studios including Seventeen Grand, Sound Emporium and Blackbird, with mixing done at La La Land in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
License To Chill is unusual for several reasons, one of which is that the album contained more cover songs than originally written or cowritten work by Jimmy. Eleven of the sixteen songs were covers of other artists’ work. It’s also unusual in the number of vocal collaborations that are on the album, including multiple duets, including artists Clint Black, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, Toby Keith, George Strait, Martina McBride, Bill Withers and Nanci Griffith. It is also Jimmy Buffett’s first album to go to number one on the record charts, both on the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts.
The first single released from this album was the vocal compilation hit Hey, Good Lookin’, written by Hank Williams and it also went to #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. The album was a smash success for Buffett, and it really put him mainstream country music industry, something he had skirted around the edges of his entire career.
“Well there ain’t nothing wrong with the way she moves, Scarlet begonias or a touch of the blues, And there’s nothing wrong with the look that’s in her eyes, I had to learn the hard way to let her pass by, let her pass by…”
Scarlet Begonias was a solo vocal effort by Jimmy on this album, but it was certainly a well-known cover song of the band The Grateful Dead. Although, I believe the spirit of Jerry Garcia was probably around in the studio for this one, enjoying the vibration of the music he so eloquently made for over thirty years.
The Grateful Dead was a band that officially formed in 1965 in the San Fransisco Bay area, although they had originally been known as The Warlocks before this. The five founding members of The Grateful Dead were Jerry Garcia on lead guitar, Bob Weir on rhythm guitar, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan on keyboards and harmonica, Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on drums. All members are credited with vocals but singing lead vocals were usually Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir although multiple members took lead vocals at times. By 1972, Keith Godchaux and his then wife, Donna Jean Godchaux had joined the band, staying with the band until 1979. There were a few members that came and went, and McKernan died in 1973, but the majority of the band remained together for thirty years, officially disbanding at the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995.
One could say that The Grateful Dead either fit so many genre’s it’s hard to name them all, or they really created their own genre of music, but they have been tied to rock, blues, folk, rock and roll, bluegrass, jazz, Americana, rhythm and blues, reggae and psychedelic rock to name a few. Again, to me, The Grateful Dead have their own individual sound and vibration and are really their own genre.
“Well, I ain’t always right but I’ve never been wrong, Seldom turns out the way it does in a song, Once in a while you get shown the light, In the strangest places if you look at it right…”
Jerry Garcia was a guitar wizard, playing lead guitar, pedal steel guitar and banjo, and with a flair and style that has become iconic. Not only did his work with The Grateful Dead last for thirty years, but he also had multiple side projects and bands, including The Jerry Garcia Band, New Riders Of The Purple Sage, Old & In The Way, Legion Of Mary, and he had several solo projects. He was a man who was always making music, although he admitted that improvisational music was his favorite and he used that as a form of exploration for his music.
He also inspired a flavor of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream called Cherry Garcia. Ironically, Jerry Garcia struggled with his health in later years, including weight issues and diabetes, and he was in diabetic coma’s several times in his life. He also struggled with alcohol and drugs, and unfortunately died of a heart attack while in a rebab facility in California in 1995. He left a long list of wives and lovers and four children, and fabulous music that will last for multiple generations. One year after his death, half his ashes were placed into the Ganges River in Rishikesh, India and the other half was placed in San Fransisco Bay.
One thing that The Grateful Dead did for music, besides gifting us with thirty years of fabulous albums and live performances, is that they spawned a fan base that early in the seventies earned the nickname the Deadheads. Deadheads are loyal and dedicated fans who traveled to music festivals and live performances like a gypsy caravan, becoming a literal family on the road. They are stereotypically thought of as tie-died wearing, pot-smoking hippies (and while much of that is true) they are also doctors and lawyers and schoolteachers and politicians who have the music of a great band to tie them together.
And The Grateful Dead really appreciated their fans, and encouraged them to follow from concert to concert, because each and every set list was different. They also encouraged their fan base to record their shows, even creating “taping” sections for people to set up. Of course, now this is a fabulous archive of music that helps The Grateful Dead and their music live on, thanks in great part to their devoted fan base, the Deadheads.
I am not sure if Jimmy Buffett considered himself a Deadhead or not, but I think it’s a safe bet to say he liked and admired the music of The Grateful Dead. He was also making music at the same time as The Grateful Dead and was a savvy businessman who could see how a supportive fan base could really help your outreach and sales and longevity.
Jimmy Buffett was also gathering a collection of diverse fans of his own, fans that dressed like pirates, brought blenders to their tailgate parties, and wore parrots on their shoulders and feathers in their hair. Timothy B Schmit, one time member of The Eagles, was a member of the Coral Reefer Band for about three years, and in the early eighties, he made the connection between Jimmy’s fan base and the Grateful Dead’s fan base, and playing off the keyword Deadhead, he named Jimmy’s fan base the Parrotheads. The name not only stuck, but it was also embraced by Jimmy Buffett fans around the country, even the world, connecting several generations of people wearing tropical themed shirts and flip-flops all trying to make the world’s best Boat Drinks while flying pirate and Conch Republic flags in the crowd.
“As I was walkin’ round Grosvenor square, Not a chill to the winter but a nip to the air, From the other direction, she was calling my eye, It could be an illusion, but I might as well try, might as well try…”
Scarlet Begonias was written by Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter. Robert Hunter was a songwriter that Jerry Garcia knew before The Warlocks/The Grateful Dead was a band. As a matter of fact, Jerry and Robert formed a short-term duo called Jerry and Bob in the early sixties. When The Grateful Dead released their first album in 1965, it included three songs written by Robert Hunter. Soon enough, Jerry invited Robert to join the band, not as a performer, but as its official lyricist. Robert Hunter is credited with the writing of many of the iconic songs that people connect to with The Grateful Dead.
Scarlet Begonias was placed on The Grateful Dead’s 1974 album titled From The Mars Hotel, but the band had been playing the song live for several months, with its first appearance in a set list being in March of 1974, which is well documented thanks to those dead-icated Deadhead fans.
Robert Hunter reported that the song was initially pages and pages long and called Bristol Girls. He says it was about his then girlfriend, soon to be wife, who was living in England and who he traveled to see, hence the Grosvener Square reference, and ties together a chance encounter and light flirtation with a pretty girl and uses poker references to tell the story. In the song, which is a more philosophical than actual, the man and woman flirt, play their card game, then go their separate ways. It has an almost upbeat, yet reggae flair, which would make it a great fit for a Jimmy Buffett song.
“In the thick of the evening when the dealing got rough, She was to pat to open and too cool to bluff, An I picked up my matches and was closing the door, I had one of those flashes I’d been there before, been there before…”
The Grateful Dead was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, the year before Garcia’s death, and Robert Hunter is the only person who is a “non-performer” that was inducted as a member of a band, which means he made history in his role of songwriter and lyricist for The Grateful Dead. He also had a prolific solo career, recording more than a dozen albums of his own. Robert Hunter passed away at his home in California in 2019, and he blessed the world with a multitude of songs.
Scarlet Begonias was played in concert for the rest of The Grateful Dead’s tenure, often used in a medley with Fire On The Mountain, and that combination has become known as “Scarlet Fire” to Deadheads everywhere. After The Grateful Dead disbanded after Jerry Garcia’s death, members still played together, under the band names The Dead and The Other Ones, with Scarlet Begonias and its variation of Scarlet Fire becoming a staple of their shows.
It is a beloved song, and it seems like a perfect tribute song for Jimmy to pick, both to honor Jerry Garcia as well as The Grateful Dead and all they meant for music in the world. In 2022, the day after what would have been Jerry Garcia’s 80th birthday, Jimmy and The Coral Reefer’s played Scarlet Begonia’s and Jimmy said, “So, for all you Deadheads out there and Parrotheads – I’m a little of both here – we love to do this song. Jerry, wherever you are, here you go…”. According to setlist.com, Jimmy first played Scarlet Begonia’s live in 2003, and played it over one hundred times in his live shows, so it definitely meant something to Jimmy, about how he felt about Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead, and how Jimmy felt about his own Parrothead fan base.
Jimmy put it on his studio album License To Chill and it also made several of his live albums, including a personal favorite of mine, Live At Wrigley Field, as well as Live At Fenway Park. In his live version at Wrigley Field, Jimmy says this is a place “where Deadheads meet Parrotheads” as he is introducing the song. He played it in concert as late as 2022, and always seemed to enjoy it, and say a few kind words about Jerry Garcia.
“Wind in the willows playin’ “Tea for Two”, The sky was yellow and the sun was blue, Strangers stoppin’ strangers just to shake their hand, Everybody’s playing in the heart of gold band, heart of gold band…”
I hope you enjoy Scarlet Begonias. It really is one of my favorite covers that Jimmy has done over the years. It’s a beautiful way to tie together great music and great fans and the great performers who gifted this music to us.
Stacy
Please enjoy Scarlet Begonias. I have included two links below, the first from the 2004 Studio Version and the second from the 2006 Live At Wrigley Field Album. Enjoy!
2004 Studio Version:
2006 Live at Wrigley Field Version:
The links are from Jimmy’s official YouTube channel, which I have no personal affiliation with.
Other Links that might be of interest:
Jimmy Buffett – License to Chill | Teen Ink
Jimmy Buffett – License To Chill (2004, Gatefold Digipak, CD) – Discogs
The Grateful Dead and the Dead Heads: How the Fan Culture Evolved | TIME
Jimmy Buffett’s Parrotheads v. Jerry Garcia’s Deadheads; which fan base is more devoted? – mlive.com
What is a Parrothead? – IslandJay
“Scarlet Begonias,” ‘From the Mars Hotel’ (1974) – Rolling Stone Australia
Jimmy Buffett Dedicates ‘Scarlet Begonias’ Cover To Jerry Garcia In Maine (jambase.com)
