Jimmy Buffett serves up Summerzcool at Jones Beach, remembers Ted Kennedy

A Jimmy Buffett Parrothead Courtesy USA Today

Jimmy Buffett served up a delicious mix of old and new music last night at Jones Beach Theater in Wantaugh, perhaps one of the best venues to see his set of beach-laden, sea-loving odes. While Buffett brings his own stage backdrop of the wave-crashing ocean and is backed by a 10-piece band and two backup singers on a stage filled with palm trees and an overall beach theme, it's not really needed for the Long Island show. That's because the Jones Beach outdoor ampitheater sits on the Atlantic Ocean and along three sides of the stage boats bob in the bay and the salty sea mist envelopes the enthusiastic crowd.

The Wednesday night show was especially poignant given that sailing aficionado and fellow Democrat Senator Ted Kennedy had passed away the previous night. Buffett concluded his song "Son of a Sailor" with a few photos of Kennedy on his favorite wooden sailing schooner "Mya" off the Massachusetts coast with the saying, "Sail on, Teddy."

Buffett also paid homage to another dear old friend, Captain Tony Taracino, who passed away this past December. Taracino, who had been the mayor of Key West and owned and operated his Captain Tony's Saloon in this beguiling town, is forever immortalized in Buffett's song Last Mango in Paris, in which he sings wistfully about learning from the older man. While he sang, photos of Buffett with Taracino were shown on the screens.

While the most fervor from the crowd was reserved for Buffett hits (where the hula- and lei-wearing crowd knew every word), he did introduce a new member to his sturdy Coral Reefer band. Ilo Ferreira, a young singer from Cape Verde in Africa, joined Buffett for several songs and even sang the lead in one new number called Let Me Love Again. Another new song, Conky Tonkin', was sung with his back-up singer Nadirah Shakoor. Before the beginning of intermission, Buffett and Mac McAnally sang a new topical song about the recession called A Lot to Drink About, where Buffett ruminates about the war, the recession, and other current news.

When Buffett plays Long Island, it is with a loving touch where he adds local flavor to his verses. Since he resides part-time in Sag Harbor, Buffett mixes local beaches, bays, and bar hang-outs into his verses. The crowd would shout in glee every time he mentioned surfing in Montauk and awaiting the next big waves from Hurricane Danny due this weekend.

Keeping the beach theme alive, Buffett introduced a new song called I Feel Like Going Surfin in a Hurricane that will be part of a compilation released in November. While he played, the big back screen showed Buffet surfing the waves in Hawaii and other choice spots. One encore produced a rollicking new version of the Beatles' Yellow Submarine complete with a colorful aquarium behind Buffett on the large stage screen and a small yellow submarine sailing through.

Even a brief rain storm, that Buffett referred to as a passing beach shower, could not dampen the enthusiasm of Buffett or his flock. In the end, though, the night belonged to Buffett and his amazing musicianship. All alone on the stage, Buffett performed an exquisite version of He Went to Paris where he had the crowd completely captivated with the words and melody and especially his delicate guitar playing.

www.margaritaville.com