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Mention singer Jimmy Buffett and most music critics will gag.
Let's face it, he doesn't sing very well. His songs, such as "If the Phone Doesn't Ring It's Me," "Cheeseburger in Paradise" and "Why Don't We Get Drunk," aren't models of good songwriting.
Then why is he so popular? "Hell if I know," Buffett replied recently. He was just being modest. Buffett knows very well that he's the guru of the "Animal House" crowd. His party-time music is great background for frat parties. Beer-drinkers and rowdies love him.
"Jimmy Buffett-Live by the Bay" (MCA, $29.95) features 87 minutes of Buffett at his best. It was filmed in a unique setting-Miami's seaside Marine Stadium-before thousands of fans, most of whom seem to have had one too many.
"I wanted to make the audience part of the show," he said. "You really feel the craziness of the audience. It makes you want to join in."
He explained why he made this cassette, which is strictly for the home-video audience: "This is for my fans. They're very loyal, like Deadheads (the fans of the rock band the Grateful Dead). I wanted them to have something they could watch until I come back to town. I'm not looking for new fans that much. I just want to satisfy my old ones."
Under that boozy bravado, Buffett wounds easily. "Some people say I'm over the hill and I can't be contemporary. I don't like to hear that. It makes me mad. I want people to see that I have a following. Watch the video. You'll see that people can still have a good time with me."
POP MUSIC: There's not too much available on the home-video market for...