The band Gone to Paradise pays tribute to Jimmy Buffet and his Coral Reefer Band, clearly embracing the laid-back island vibe! As a Parrothead from way back, I can honestly say that their concert at Theatre at the Center was almost as much fun as an actual Jimmy Buffet concert – and I saw many of those!
Gone to Paradise has been celebrating Jimmy Buffet for 20 years – and they’ve really “captured his essence” as they say in their bio.
Frank Paul (Lead Singer/Acoustic Guitar) has Jimmy’s enthusiasm – and he sounded a lot like him, too. Wearing island-style outfits, Mary Pasyk (Background Singer/Ukelele) did a lot of dancing. She even sounded a bit like Nadirah Shakoor when she sang solo. The band includes: Robert Bolanowski (Bass,Background Vocals), Jon Gould, Lead Guitar), Christian Rogala (Percussionist/Steel Pan), Jackson Paul (Drums) and Jeff Otto (Keyboards/Background Singer/Vocal Arranger).
Leading off with a newer song, I Will Play for Gumbo, they went on to play fan favorites like Boat Drinks, Margaritaville and Cheeseburger in Paradise. Act II opened with Alan Jackson’s hit with Jimmy, It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere and continued with Volcano, Fins, Pencil Thin Mustache and Brown-Eyed Girl. They didn’t forget Jimmy’s ballads either, with songs like Changes in Latitude, Son of a Son of a Sailor, Come Monday and One Particular Island, all important parts of Jimmy’s legacy.
Imitating Jimmy’s concerts, there were beach balls bouncing in the audience, and a balloon drop for finale, Brown-Eyed Girl. Since everyone knew the words, everyone sang along with almost every song. People were on their feet dancing too. It was so much fun!
For more about Gone to Paradise, visit www.gone2paradiseband.com. For the local parrotheads who’d like to see Gone to Paradise again, they’ll be playing July 24th at Fox Pointe in Lansing (www.foxpointe.org).
