#108 – It’s My Job
#108 – It’s My Job
-by Stacy Garwood-
“Keep the party going” is a quote that’s been rolling through my mind the last several days, and it’s been in relation to my blog posts about Jimmy Buffett’s music. At the beginning of the year, I planned on a song post every Monday, keeping the song sharing going, that I started last year, as a tribute after Jimmy’s passing.
Every Monday seemed doable, and Jimmy has plenty of songs that I would love to write about, but life shifted on me quite suddenly and seriously in July. And afterwards, I didn’t know when I might manage to write another post.
But as the anniversary of Jimmy’s passing approached, I knew I needed to choose a song and write something for Labor Day Monday, and writing that post felt good. Jimmy’s music has always felt part like an oasis, part like therapy. It’s definitely healing for me, and I really enjoy researching the song and diving into the details about the music.
But life has been no less challenging since that last post on the song Grapefruit – Juicy Fruit, and I wasn’t sure if I had another post in me until my life normalized.
But honestly, who knows what that even means anymore, “normal” might be something completely different than it was before July, and that pesky quote, “keep the party going” just kept playing on repeat.
“He said, “It’s my job to be cleaning up this mess, And that’s enough reason to go for me, It’s my job to be better than the rest, And that makes the day for me…”
And so I decided, well, if I don’t have an every Monday post in me right now, I should be able to manage one Monday a month, right?
Since the Labor Day post was the first Monday of the month, that seems like a good monthly goal to finish this year. First Monday of the month is the new goal to finish this year.
So last night, I talked to the universe and spun the RadioMargaritaville Wheel of Fate and decided the next song of Jimmy’s that played (if I hadn’t already shared it) would be the song I shared.
And what was playing, right in the introductory notes, was It’s My Job. And I knew it was the absolutely perfect song to share at this time.
Not that Stacy Loves Buffett Blog is my job, but it’s certainly something I take pride in and enjoy, whether it’s flashy or glamorous (it isn’t), and no matter what audience might read this post or listen to this song, it felt right because Jimmy took pride in his work, always did a great job of whatever project he set his mind to, and carried through. That was probably the double Capricorn in him, although that is not what is driving me (double Leo here!)
“It’s my job to be better than the best, and that makes the day for me…”
It’s My Job was released on JB’s 1981 album Coconut Telegraph, and it happens to be one of two songs on that album that Jimmy did not have any part of writing. It was written by Lyman Corbitt McAnally Jr. Yes, that’s Mac’s full name, the incomparable Mac McAnally, long-time friend, writing partner, bandmate, and stage side kick of Jimmy Buffett.
Mac has also referred to Jimmy and his relationship as big brother and little brother, although neither of them had a biological brother in this lifetime. A good friend, especially over the course of many years, can absolutely feel like a sibling relationship.
Of course, the entire Coral Reefer Band is full of absolutely talented musicians, songwriters and performers, and Jimmy was smart enough to surround himself with talent. He also supported and promoted the talent of his band as individuals, Mac McAnally included.
Jimmy was about a decade older than Mac, and a decade deeper into the music industry than Mac, but they had some things in common. They were both singer-songwriters from Mississippi and they both had a record company and producer in common for their first records, which was RCA Dunhill.
So Mac recorded his first album in 1977, and had moved to California to pursue his dreams. But he admitted it was hard, it was scary, and he didn’t really know what he was doing.
Jimmy had been given Mac’s first record and listened to it several times. Then he reached out to the younger singer-songwriter with a note that, per Mac, said something along the lines of “we’re going to be friends, and we’re both storytellers and we’re both from Mississippi, and, you know, I’m going to be an advocate for your songs, and we’re gonna write music together.” Mac also said about Jimmy, “He went way beyond the call” of having heard somebody’s first record. Mac also referred to Jimmy as a “sincere guy“, who meant what he said.
So, a little song on Mac’s third solo album, which happened to be released in 1980, was called It’s My Job, and Jimmy proceeded not only to record it for his Coconut Telegraph album, which would be released in 1981, he also made it the first single he released on that album, with Little Miss Magic on the singles B-side. Talk about being an “advocate,” as Jimmy’s note had promised Mac. Mac would go on to say how important Jimmy recording one of his songs was, not only for Mac’s career, but also his morale. Jimmy also invited Mac into the studio to record background vocals for It’s My Job.
“That says, “It’s my job to be worried half to death, And that’s the thing people respect in me, It’s a job but without it I’d be less, Than what I expect from me…”
A couple years later, on 1984’s Riddles In The Sand, Jimmy covered another song of Mac’s, a song called She’s Going Out Of My Mind. Mac also supplied background vocals on this album, furthering the work relationship between Jimmy and Mac.
And, because Jimmy was a “sincere guy“, the two eventually got together and starting writing songs together, although it took a couple of years. 1986’s Floridays is the JB album that introduced two things, one of which is a song cowritten with Mac McAnally, a beautiful, poignant song about the end of summer called When The Coast Is Clear. Floridays also introduced Jimmy Buffett without the mustache, which I always feel is worth mentioning.
Off To See The Lizard in 1989 gifted the world with the second song that Jimmy and Mac cowrote that made it to a Jimmy Buffett album, a little song called Changing Channels, which happened to be the very first song I shared on this blog. It was also the song that played in my mind after I saw the official announcement of Jimmy’s death, and which I shared on my personal Facebook page on September 2, 2023. That song and post inspired my initial tribute posts, which eventually inspired this blog.
I have heard Mac talk about sitting down to write this song with Jimmy, sitting on a front porch of a house in Georgia while Jimmy told him the story of Isabella, one of the characters that Jimmy was writing about in his book of short stories, Tales From Margaritaville. Jimmy described her as a “girl of 1000 faces”, and Mac went in with “from a long line of basket cases”, and not only was a beautiful song born, but so was a beautiful songwriting relationship.
It seems fitting, at least to myself, that the song that inspired me to start this whole crazy thing, was a song cowritten by Jimmy and Mac, and when I asked the universe to help me find a song to find my footing again with this blog, there was the song that began the beautiful relationship between Jimmy and Mac, as songwriters, performers and friends.
After Off To See The Lizard, it was Fruitcakes, the very first brand new released album of Jimmy’s that I eagerly purchased, right after I binge listened to Songs You Know By Heart and got my Parrothead card. Fruitcakes really cemented Jimmy and Mac’s songwriting relationship, featuring Delaney Talks To Statues and Love In The Library cowritten by Buffett and McAnally. The album that also had Mac playing guitar in studio as well as singing background vocals on an entire Jimmy Buffett album.
And 1994 saw Mac joining Jimmy on tour, making him officially a member of The Coral Reefers, with forward movement in Jimmy and Mac’s friendship as well as professional relationship. Mac was a part of the studio recording for Banana Wind and on official tours for Jimmy’s next several albums, including Barometer Soup, Banana Wind, and Christmas Island although no songs on either of those albums was written or cowritten by Mac.
1999’s Beach House On The Moon saw several songs with Jimmy and Mac writing together, and by 2004’s License To Chill not only was Mac writing and studio recording with Jimmy, but he also assumed a co-producer title for the album, alongside Michael Utley. Mac McAnally would produce every Jimmy Buffett album after that time, including Jimmy’s final studio album, Equal Strain On All Parts, which also happened to be named for a song cowritten by Jimmy and Mac, a gorgeous song inspired by a phrase Jimmy’s grandfather used to say before settling in for a nap in a hammock.
But Mac McAnally had been a prolific songwriter over the years, and Jimmy wasn’t the only person who noticed. He has written or cowritten hit songs such as Alabama’s Old Flame, Ricky Van Shelton’s Crime of Passion, Shenandoah’s Two Dozen Roses, Kenny Chesney’s Back Where I Come From, and several for Sawyer Brown, including Down The Road, Thank God For You, All These Years, Cafe On The Corner, and The Boys and Me.
Mac McAnally also has logged some prestigious awards, including being a ten-time County Music Association Musician of the Year, including seven years in a row, from 2011 to 2018. He has also been nominated for a Grammy in 2010 for Down The Road, a vocal collaboration with Kenny Chesney that was written by Mac. Mac McAnally was also inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007. He has also recorded seventeen solo albums, which is very impressive for a person who calls himself a nobody from nowhere.
“It’s my job to be different than the rest, and that’s enough reason to go for me, It’s my job to be better than the best, and that’s a tough break for me…”
Some connections just seem to be kismet, and I think that seems an appropriate word to describe the connection between Jimmy and Mac. Mac was one of few people who got to see Jimmy before his passing, and he played guitar and sang for Jimmy, no doubt something that was both comforting and heart-wrenching for the longtime friends.
It’s My Job was the first song of Mac’s that Jimmy chose to record, and it presented a slightly different feeling than most of Jimmy’s songs at that point in his career. It wasn’t about escaping to a beach or foreign country or into a bottle, it was about hard work and taking pride in a job well done, even if the job is dirty, hard or lacking glamour.
I think Coconut Telegraph has a little different, slightly introspective feeling, marking a turning point in Jimmy’s life. He had become a father, he was starting to shoulder the weight and responsibility of what was turning out to be a huge career, and he was just a little older than he had been in during his seventy’s music. That album feels mature in a way that makes recording Mac’s work anthem It’s My Job perfectly logical. Also, Jimmy was never far from his roots, which included hardworking people, whether they were salt of the earth or salt of the ocean.
So, I am grateful to Mac for writing such a beautiful song that touches my soul (and that of my hardworking ancestors), Jimmy for recording it so powerfully, and the lottery wheel of the universe that reminded me this was a song worth sharing.
“It’s my job to be better than the best, and that makes the day for me…”
Stacy
Please enjoy It’s My Job. I have included the links below. Enjoy!
1981 Studio Version:
2018 Live in Concert Version:
The links are from Jimmy’s official YouTube channel, which I have no personal affiliation with, and Freedom Fighter Outdoors, which I have no personal affiliation with.
Other links of interest:
Mac McAnally recalls his final visit with Jimmy Buffett | BuffettNews.com
Mac McAnally on Jimmy Buffett: ‘He saw life as a gift to enjoy’ – al.com
Jimmy Buffett’s Final Album: Inside the Making, With Mac McAnally (billboard.com)
Mac McAnally :: News – All The Latest Mac McAnally News and Appearance Information
