Day #25 – The Wino And I Know
Day #25 – The Wino And I Know
This is one of those songs that speaks for itself. It has a charm that completely carries you away with the lyrics, and you are left feeling like you had a wild weekend that will take at least a week to recover from, and you enjoyed every darn minute of it!
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Original post from 9/26/2023
Day #25 – The Wino And I Know
“Strange situation, wild occupation, livin’ my life like a song”.
The Wino And I Know was released on JB’s 1974 album Living And Dying In 3/4 Time, and from the first moment I heard this song, I was in love. I wasn’t sure just what the heck was going on, but I knew that I loved it.
According to Jimmy, this song was written in the late 60’s, probably 1967 in his very early years in New Orleans; before Nashville, before Key West, although the song didn’t make an album until the Key West years. Placed on the album with the cover of a long sunken boat named Good Luck. God bless Jimmy’s sense of humor!
He also mentions his first big job playing on Bourbon Street, at a place called the Bayou Room, where he was making $150 a week playing, pretty good money for the time. He was also allowed a tab and ended up spending more money on drinks that first week than he made. He just laughed and said “that’s a true story” in his totally laid back and charming way.
On this video talking about this song with his daughter Delaney, Jimmy recalls his love of New Orleans and the characters he put into his song, and about street life in the Quarter. He mentions how much he adored the city for its history of great writers and musicians. There are mentions of Bourbon Street and coffee and donuts at Cafe du Monde, fist fights and rusted trucks. At the end of his acoustic recital, he says “I love that song!” Me too, Jimmy, me too!
I hope you enjoy The Wino And I Know, an absolutely whimsical, lighthearted, fun song full of colorful rhymes and even more colorful people and places! I’ve included the link in the comments below.
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From The Parrothead Handbook that came with Boats, Beaches, Bars and Ballads, Jimmy made an excellent note on this song. He said, “This was a song I wrote after listening to Gordon Lightfoot, who has been a great influence on my style. Gordon takes uncommon subject matter and turns it into lyrics that make you listen to what the singer is saying. With all the passing trends of the last two decades, I still haven’t changed my style of writing. A good story is never out of fashion. Thanks, God.”
Thank you, Jimmy for giving this insight to us about many of your songs. I also am a huge fan of Gordon Lightfoot and have listened to Gord’s Gold and Gord’s Gold, Vol. 2 countless times. Great music never gets old! And that is why I will never stop listening to the music of Jimmy Buffett.
Stacy
Please enjoy The Wino And I Know. I have included the link below. Enjoy!
The link is from Jimmy’s official YouTube channel, which I have no personal affiliation with.
