BuffettNews.com

We all saw what Spin Magzine thinks....

I think this list is better and I feel we should have some official Buffettnews album ranking!

What do you think?

(Spin's number)

*I am ranking what I feel are front-to-back albums. Who gets the skip button the least…..

31(27). Down to Earth (1970)
30(18). High Cumberland Jubilee (1976)
29(26). Don’t Stop the Carnival (1998)
28(22). Riddles in the Sand (1984)
27(32). Somewhere Over China (1982)
26(24). ‘Tis The SeaSon (2016)
25(25). Christmas Island (1996)
24(15). Last Mango in Paris (1985)
23(31). Hot Water (1988)
22(29). Floridays (1986)
21(23). Off To See the Lizard (1989)
20(10). License To Chill (2004)
19(16). Buffet Hotel (2009)
18(13). Coconut Telegraph (1981)
17(9). One Particular Harbor (1983)
16(28). Barometer Soup (1995)
15(19). Beach House on the Moon (1999)
14(21). Far Side of the World (2002)
13(17). Life on the Flip Side (2020)
12(8). Take the Weather With You (2006)
11(3). Son of a Son of a Sailor (1978)
10(4). Havana Daydreamin’ (1976)
9(7). A1A (1974)
8(5). Volcano (1979)
7(20). Songs From St. Somewhere (2013)
6(11). Living and Dying in ¾ Time (1974)
5(12). Equal Strain on All Parts (2023)
4(30). Banana Wind (1996)
3(6). Fruitcakes (1994)
2(2). A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean (1973)
1(1). Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes (1977)

?(14). Songs You Don’t Know by Heart (2020) > Does this count? If so, so should SYKBH, the box set, and live discs. So I am leaving this out.

Sorry... but ranking Buffett albums is like playing favorites among your children!
Some days one will seem better than the other(s) only to change position the next day.
I guess it all depends upon moods - theirs and mine!

Caribbean Soul wrote: November 21, 2023 4:09 pm Sorry... but ranking Buffett albums is like playing favorites among your children!
Some days one will seem better than the other(s) only to change position the next day.
I guess it all depends upon moods - theirs and mine!

I get that point of view…but…it would be more fun if you played!

I agree it can vary, and albums are hard to pick, as sometimes a favorite song is on a weak album, etc.

BUT:

For me, there is no contest. It's A1A in the top spot. I don't have to think about it for a second.

Side B of A1A is the strongest natural lineup of Buffett songs that has ever occurred in my opinion.

This is something where everyone will have very individualized tastes, and that's okay. Love what you love, with no shame. For me, that's A1A.

One that is very high on my personal list but ranked low on the one posted on the front page is Floridays.

jedivet wrote: November 21, 2023 8:29 pm I agree it can vary, and albums are hard to pick, as sometimes a favorite song is on a weak album, etc.

BUT:

For me, there is no contest. It's A1A in the top spot. I don't have to think about it for a second.

Side B of A1A is the strongest natural lineup of Buffett songs that has ever occurred in my opinion.

This is something where everyone will have very individualized tastes, and that's okay. Love what you love, with no shame. For me, that's A1A.

One that is very high on my personal list but ranked low on the one posted on the front page is Floridays.

I was thinking maybe A1A was a bit low on my list. Your are 100% right on that B side! Massive Buffett hit after another!

Phinn wrote: November 21, 2023 8:57 pm

jedivet wrote: November 21, 2023 8:29 pm I agree it can vary, and albums are hard to pick, as sometimes a favorite song is on a weak album, etc.

BUT:

For me, there is no contest. It's A1A in the top spot. I don't have to think about it for a second.

Side B of A1A is the strongest natural lineup of Buffett songs that has ever occurred in my opinion.

This is something where everyone will have very individualized tastes, and that's okay. Love what you love, with no shame. For me, that's A1A.

One that is very high on my personal list but ranked low on the one posted on the front page is Floridays.

I was thinking maybe A1A was a bit low on my list. Your are 100% right on that B side! Massive Buffett hit after another!

I should have both A1A and 3/4 above Fruitcakes.

Caribbean Soul wrote: November 21, 2023 4:09 pm Sorry... but ranking Buffett albums is like playing favorites among your children!
Some days one will seem better than the other(s) only to change position the next day.
I guess it all depends upon moods - theirs and mine!

I absolutely agree.

I don't think it's possible that anyone can agree on how to rank the music.

Phinn wrote: November 21, 2023 9:03 pm

Phinn wrote: November 21, 2023 8:57 pm

jedivet wrote: November 21, 2023 8:29 pm I agree it can vary, and albums are hard to pick, as sometimes a favorite song is on a weak album, etc.

BUT:

For me, there is no contest. It's A1A in the top spot. I don't have to think about it for a second.

Side B of A1A is the strongest natural lineup of Buffett songs that has ever occurred in my opinion.

This is something where everyone will have very individualized tastes, and that's okay. Love what you love, with no shame. For me, that's A1A.

One that is very high on my personal list but ranked low on the one posted on the front page is Floridays.

I was thinking maybe A1A was a bit low on my list. Your are 100% right on that B side! Massive Buffett hit after another!

I should have both A1A and 3/4 above Fruitcakes.

I didn't have time or inclination to try to rank them all. Like has been said, that's impossible. (I do applaud your efforts!) But yes. For Come Monday alone, Living and Dying in 3/4 Time should rank high. Plus, what a great title. But that's like Changes being so high in the original list. That's because of Margaritaville, which I could never listen to again and be perfectly happy. It's a skipped song for me. CILCIA (the song) is also strong, but no more so than other standouts on other albums. But yeah. It's impossible to rank them.

That said, I'm sticking with A1A.

And Fruitcakes is solid. Love in the Library, Lone Palm, Quietly Making Noise - solid. Though I skip Sunny Afternoon. Every album has one.

This may sound a little weird, but I think that Don't Stop the Carnival is one of the best examples of his writing ability. If you never read the book you really should. He made each of those characters come alive. It is impressive.

And Barometer Soup is also extremely well written.

He was a story teller.

God I miss him.

jbfins wrote: November 22, 2023 1:41 pm This may sound a little weird, but I think that Don't Stop the Carnival is one of the best examples of his writing ability. If you never read the book you really should. He made each of those characters come alive. It is impressive.

And Barometer Soup is also extremely well written.

He was a story teller.

God I miss him.

It is not weird at all... for your criteria of picking a "listen straight through" album this was the first one that came to mind!
And FTR, as I said above, I can switch the order up a lot depending upon my mood... but honestly, anytime I do, I think A1A comes out on top.

jbfins wrote: November 22, 2023 1:41 pm This may sound a little weird, but I think that Don't Stop the Carnival is one of the best examples of his writing ability. If you never read the book you really should. He made each of those characters come alive. It is impressive.

And Barometer Soup is also extremely well written.

He was a story teller.

God I miss him.

Not weird at all. It's a story, so...yeah. And Jimmy was a lyrical storyteller, first and foremost. The music was fine, but it was the words that did it for me. Oof. Past tense there just hit me a bit.

Caribbean Soul wrote: November 22, 2023 2:09 pm It is not weird at all... for your criteria of picking a "listen straight through" album this was the first one that came to mind!
And FTR, as I said above, I can switch the order up a lot depending upon my mood... but honestly, anytime I do, I think A1A comes out on top.

Yup. Agreed on the not weird, as I said above. And that's me too. Others can change, but A1A is constant as the northern star.

Caribbean Soul wrote: November 21, 2023 4:09 pm Sorry... but ranking Buffett albums is like playing favorites among your children!
Some days one will seem better than the other(s) only to change position the next day.
I guess it all depends upon moods - theirs and mine!

Exactly! I 100% agree.

Caribbean Soul wrote: November 21, 2023 4:09 pm Sorry... but ranking Buffett albums is like playing favorites among your children!
Some days one will seem better than the other(s) only to change position the next day.
I guess it all depends upon moods - theirs and mine!

Amen!

Although SONGS YOU DON'T KNOW BY HEART is officially a studio album, none of it is original, so I excluded it. It would rank extremely low.

31. Don’t Stop The Carnival (1998)
30. Last Mango In Paris (1985)
29. ‘Tis The SeaSon (2016)
28. Riddles In The Sand (1984)
27. Buffet Hotel (2009)
26. High Cumberland Jubilee (1976)
25. Christmas Island (1996)
24. Down To Earth (1970)
23. Songs From St. Somewhere (2013)
22. Take The Weather With You (2006)
21. Beach House On The Moon (1999)
20. Equal Strain On All Parts (2023)
19. Coconut Telegraph (1981)
18. One Particular Harbor (1983)
17. Off To See The Lizard (1989)
16. Floridays (1986)
15. License To Chill (2004)
14. Hot Water (1988)
13. Banana Wind (1996)
12. Fruitcakes (1994)
11. Far Side Of The World (2002)
10. Volcano (1979)
9. Life On The Flip Side (2020)
8. Barometer Soup (1995)
7. Somewhere Over China (1982)
6. Son Of A Son Of A Sailor (1978)
5. A White Sport Coat And A Pink Crustacean (1973)
4. Havana Daydreamin’ (1976)
3. Living And Dying In ¾ Time (1974)
2. Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes (1977)
1. A1A (1974)

Live albums:
1. You Had To Be There
2. Fin City
3. Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays
4. Live From Hawaii
5. Feeding Frenzy
6. Anguilla

The rest are a wash. Hell, the bootlegs of 1978 (Los Angeles) and 1980 (NYC) would arguably be 1 and 2. The 1978 one has a few more songs on it than YHTBT, which is all from the first show in Atlanta - no other shows were used. If YHTBT was to ever be reissued hopefully the missing songs would be added (Manana, Livingston Saturday Night, Banana Republics, Coast Of Marseilles, Cheeseburger and The Last Line).

In regard to listening, since 2020 I've only listened to LIFE ON THE FLIP SIDE, which is really good, for me one of his best albums, and EQUAL STRAIN. Haven't paid attention to anything prior with exception to whatever playlists I've made and played since, although the Mailboat Years playlist is really nice.