St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture by Celia White

Founded as a British blues band in 1967, Fleetwood Mac exploded as an American rock ‘n’ roll phenomenon in 1975, when a pair of young Californian songwriters joined the group. The bewitching Stevie Nicks and guitar genius Lindsey Buckingham rounded out the band of songwriter/keyboardist Christine McVie, bassist John McVie, and drummer Mick Fleetwood. Their first album together, the eponymous Fleetwood Mac (1975), hit number one with three hit singles; but these merits were far overshadowed by the follow-up album, Rumours (1977). Songs of love, anger, heartbreak, and hope launched the band into stardom, but the drama between the grooves mirrored that raging between the members of the band: Christine and John McVie divorced after seven years of marriage, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham ended their long-time romance, and Mick Fleetwood split with his wife, Jenny Boyd.

Audiences sang along and sympathized, sending Rumours to the top of the charts and winning it the title of best selling album of all time to date. Fleetwood Mac continued to tour and make music together for the next ten years, while four of the five members also began solo careers. Of these Stevie Nicks garnered the greatest success, with her husky voice, mystical lyrics, boots and shawls, touring in support of BellaDonna, The Wild Heart, and other records, magnifying her identity as a popular culture icon. (New York City holds a Night of 1000 Stevies each year, when thousands of men and women pay tribute to the woman and her style by emulating her dress and gestures.) Lindsey Buckingham self-produced two albums, Law and Order and Go Insane, during this period as well, and Christine McVie made a self-titled LP.

Continuing tensions and creative dissention caused Buckingham to leave after 1987’s Tango in the Night album, and Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie followed not long after. As he had in the past, Mick Fleetwood again scouted out new talent to keep the band going: Bekka Bramlett, Billy Burnette, and Rick Vito toured and recorded with the band’s founders, but the Rumours line-up re-joined to perform at President Bill Clinton’s inauguration in 1993, and continued to flirt with group projects, culminating in a CD, tour, and video, called The Dance, in 1998. After several road dates, the band disbanded once again, citing old difficulties, both personal and creative. Nonetheless, Fleetwood Mac not only remains synonymous with the 1970s, but their musical and pop cultural influence endures.

Bibliography for ” Fleetwood Mac”

Celia White “ Fleetwood Mac“. St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture. FindArticles.com. 19 Dec. 2006.

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture by Randy Duncan

Devoted fans–affectionately dubbed Parrot Heads–find escapism in Jimmy Buffett’s ballads, vicariously experiencing through his strongly autobiographical songs Buffett’s life of beaches, bars, and boats. Yet Buffett’s life has been far more than rum-soaked nights and afternoon naps in beachside hammocks. Even though Buffett relishes his image of “the professional misfit,” this millionaire “beach bum” is actually an ambitious and clever entrepreneur.

Born on Christmas Day, 1946 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, Jimmy Buffett spent most of his youth in the Catholic school system in Mobile, Alabama. During college he learned to play the guitar and started singing in clubs. While attending the University of Southern Mississippi, about 80 miles from New Orleans, Buffett played regularly at the Bayou Room on Bourbon Street. Once he had a taste of performing, his life course was set. Even though he married and took a job at the Mobile shipyards after college, Buffett continued to spend his nights playing at hotel cocktail lounges.

Lacking the money to move to Los Angeles, where Jimmy had a job offer at a club, the Buffetts moved instead to Nashville. Buffett made a living by writing for Billboard magazine, but he also continued to write new songs. The first of these songs to get recorded was “The Christian?” on Columbia Records’ Barnaby Label. In 1970, Buffett recorded an album, Down to Earth, for the Barnaby label. Sales were so disappointing that Barnaby did not release Buffett’s next album, High Cumberland Jubilee, recorded in 1971, until 1977. Buffett hired a band and toured in an attempt to promote his first album, but within a few months he ran out of money. Career frustrations took a toll on his marriage.

In his mid-twenties, Buffett found himself broke, divorced, and hating Nashville. Then in 1971, Jimmy Buffett took a trip that changed his life and his music. Fellow struggling singer Jerry Jeff Walker invited Buffett down to his home in Summerland Key, just 25 miles from Key West. It was the beginning of Key West’s “decade of decadence,” and Buffett quickly immersed himself in the Conch subculture’s nonstop party that they referred to as the “full-tilt boogie.” To maintain the freedom of his new lifestyle Buffett ran up bar tabs, literally played for his supper, and got involved in the local cottage industry–drug smuggling.

The lifestyle and the local characters became the substance of Buffett’s songs. The first of the Key West-inspired songs appeared in 1973 when he landed a record deal with ABC/Dunhill and recorded A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean. The tongue-in-cheek “The Great Filling Station Holdup” made it to number 58 on Billboard’s country charts. The most infamous song from the album, “Why Don’t We Get Drunk (and Screw),” became a popular jukebox selection and the favorite Buffett concert sing-along song.

ABC’s rising star, Jim Croce, died in 1973, and the record company looked to Jimmy Buffett to fill his shoes. They even promoted Buffett’s next album, 1974’s Living and Dying in 3/4 Time, with a fifteen-minute promotional film that showed in ABC-owned theaters. “Come Monday” made it all the way to number 30 on the billboard pop charts. For years, Buffett had been making reference to, even introducing, his mythical Coral Reefer Band. In the summer of 1975 he put together an actual Coral Reefer Band to tour and promote his third ABC/Dunhill album, A1A. The album contains “A Pirate Looks at Forty,” which became a central tale in the mythos Buffett was spinning, and a virtual theme song for every Buffett fan as they neared middle age. 1976’s Havana Daydreamin’ got good reviews and fed the frenzy of his growing cult following; but it was 1977’s Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude that was the defining moment of his career. The album’s hit single, “Margaritaville,” stayed in the Billboard Top 40 charts for fifteen weeks, peaking at number eight. That summer “Margaritaville” permeated the radio and Buffett opened for the Eagles tour. The exposure helped Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude go platinum.

The song “Margaritaville” gave a name to the place fans escaped when they listened to Jimmy Buffett’s music. And Margaritaville was wherever Jimmy Buffett was playing his music, be that Key West, Atlanta, or Cincinnati. Supposedly it was at a concert in Cincinnati in the early 1980s that Eagles bassist Timothy B. Schmidt looked out at the fans in wild Hawaiian shirts and shark fin hats and dubbed them Parrot Heads. By the late 1980s the Parrot Head subculture had grown to the point that Buffett had become one of the top summer concert draws. The concerts were giant parties with colorful costumes, plentiful beer, and almost everyone singing along out of key with the songs they knew by heart. The concerts were more about the experience than about hearing Jimmy Buffett sing.

Buffett soon found ways to extend the experience beyond the concerts. Although he continued to average an album a year, he also began to develop diverse outlets for his creativity, and aggressively marketed the Margaritaville mythos. The Caribbean Soul line of clothing appeared in 1984, and in 1985 he opened Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville store in Key West. A few months after opening the store, he sent out a 650 copy initial mailing of Coconut Telegraph, a combination fan newsletter and advertising flyer for Buffett paraphernalia. It was in the April 1985 issue that the term Parrot Head was first officially used to refer to Buffett’s fans. By the end of the decade, the newsletter had 20,000 subscribers.

Buffet reasoned that anyone who wanted to read his newsletter would buy a book with his name on it. His first literary effort, in 1988, was Jolly Mon, a children’s book he co-wrote with his daughter Savannah Jane. The following year, Buffett’s collection of short stories, Tales from Margaritaville, became a bestseller. His first novel, Where is Joe Merchant?, warranted a six figure advance and became a bestseller in 1992. By this time Buffett had opened a Margaritaville cafe next to the store in Key West. Eventually, he opened Margaritaville clubs and gift shops in New Orleans, Charleston, and Universal Studios in Florida.

More than anything else, Jimmy Buffett is a lifestyle artist. Whether it be a Caribbean meal, a brightly colored shirt, a CD, or a live performance, Buffett transports his fans to the state of mind that is Margaritaville.

Bibliography for ” Jimmy Buffett”

By Stefan Smith

To anyone who did not grow up in the U.S. states of North or South Carolina, or perhaps Virginia or Georgia, Carolina beach music takes some explaining.

Even a southerner such as I, growing up in Alabama, did not realize that there was something called beach music that had little resemblance to, or connection with, the California sound of the Beach Boys or Jan and Dean.

Carolina beach music isn’t about surfing or drag racing. It’s about dancing at the pavilion in Myrtle Beach, shagging on the sand with your best girl, holding hands and watching the moon rise over Atlantic breakers as the harmonies of The Drifters, the Embers or the Tams drift over the dunes.

Now right now I must stop and explain to my English readers–that is, the possibly shocked citizens and residents of the United Kingdom–that “shagging” as used here does not mean what it you think it does. Here, the shag is the dance that you do to beach music. Shagging means to do the shag.

Carolina beach music goes back to the 1950s. The premier exponent of the style at that time was The Drifters. I’ve long known and liked the music of The Drifters–”Up On the Roof” is one of my all-time favorite songs–but I just considered it to be rock ‘n’ roll or perhaps r&b. It took moving to North Carolina to learn that some people considered it part of a separate genre.

Carolina beach music is gentle, sweet, romantic and innocent rock ‘n’ roll. It celebrates stealing kisses in the back row of the movie theater and couples sharing a blanket in the shade of the boardwalk.

It’s no wonder that today, Myrtle Beach has clubs and entire theaters that exist just to showcase the top beach music acts, and that they do a booming business. Without doubt, many of the fans who flock there are recapturing a happy, uncomplicated youth spent cruising the strip and shagging (dance shagging) the night away. But Carolina beach music has a broad appeal, and it would not be surprising to see 20- and 30-somethings finding their way through the doors of those clubs, too.

by TOM ZART

THE AMERICAN SOLDIER

Our soldiers line up to be remembered As the best of the best at their job. They wish to be needed and depended on To save all we love from the mob.

They risk their life and limb for liberty Standing firm against evil unwilling to break. To be part of something greater than themselves They are willing to sacrifice whatever it will take.

By Tom Zart Author of “Love, War & More” Published by Publish America

FREEDOM

In their new uniforms, The young march off Not knowing who shall return. With a proud devotion, They brandish their flag Leaving loved ones to wonder and yearn.

May we all be buried By all of our children Is an ancient tribal prayer. They’re so easy to lose But so hard to forget; Such a burden for a parent to bear.

Oh, the taste of victory Shall soon be forgotten; But, never that which was lost. For those rows of white headstones In peaceful green fields, Make it easy to tally the cost.

America has survived all attempts to destroy Knowing the cruelty of war, And, we who remain Must help keep her free For those who can march no more!

WAR

As war is fought it takes charge, And events spin out of control. The madness of men can alter the soil Which nourishes the roots of their soul.

Many things will forever change, Far more then wished to be. As the wrath of war starts to destroy, Those things we fight to keep free.

War is the greatest plague of man, Religion, state, and sanity. Any scourge is more preferred, Than the one which disables humanity.

When war breaks out, boundaries change And all who die are a token, Of the rage that must run it’s course, Before words of peace are spoken.

DADS AT WAR

Where would I be without you dad? My hero of night and day I’m so glad you love my mother, And take time for us each day.

The last time we played baseball, You reached for me with your hand. I looked at you, then made a wish, That I might be just half the man.

I love my father of this earth, And I love my father of heaven. It’s a lot for me to love, you know, For I’m only eleven.

Mom and I sure miss you, Since you left to defend our flag. When others ask, where is your dad? I can’t help but boast and brag.

SOLDIERS

Every man should be a soldier, As it was with Romans and Greeks, For evil loves to steal men’s souls And strike freedom from their cheeks.

It’s not the guns or armament, Or the flags which fly in parade, But love and cooperation That stops the devil’s charade.

Always remember those who march To the roll of muffled drums. Many we know, shall not return Except to sleep beneath the mums.

OUR WORLD

Glorious is this world of ours And the way we feel within, Where sometimes love plants its seed In the hearts of women and men.

Marvelous is our beautiful world And all the heavens above. If we would just do our duty, Our world would be full of love.

Our world resembles a ruthless game, Where all are eager players. There’s smiles of joy and tears of woe With hate, lust, love and prayers.

Our world is cruel to those who feel And a joke to those who think. Like the wind blown pages of a book Our years fly by in a blink.

FOOTBALL

The stands are full of eager fans Who say, we’re paid too much money! But if they would put our suits on, They’d find football isn’t funny.

Twenty-two men and five referees Chasing a pigskin, air filled ball. Mashing and bashing all the way, Till the striped shirts whistle their call.

All the generals on the sideline Are waging their athletic war. And the letters in the words they use, Never amount to more than four.

There’s no substitute for winning And no excuse for losing. Though after games; when we can’t sleep, It’s because of all the bruising.

THE COAL MINER

Coal mines in my daddy’s day, Were dug with strong hands and back They got larger and deeper, As the lungs of the miners turned black

Cave-ins, fires and explosions, Were my father’s daily fear. But what choice has a man When the wolf of hunger is near.

With three small kids and a wife, There were five stomachs to fill As we lived in poverty, In our shack below a hill.

I feel his blood within me, As the years of my life pass by, I’m proud that dad dug King Cole, For a miner so am I.

Life to me is but a rose, Though it’s thorns can make me cry. And like my dad before me, To my Lord I will not lie.

In cold earth someday I’ll sleep, With a shinny stone above. Carved in it, shall be the words, “I have known the joy of love.”

D-DAY

D-Day raised the curtain on the conflict That fore shadowed the end of Hitler’s dream. The largest joint combat landing ever, Though the blood from both sides flowed like a stream.

When their boats hit the sand, their ramps went down, And all within paid a visit to hell. They jumped out to do good for their country, And to kill the enemy without fail.

They fought the Germans, tides, winds and the waves, In conditions not easily foreseen. By night the battle was in our favor, With bravery, valor, death, and men who scream.

The corpses littered the beach for five miles, Though heroism had carried the day, With literally thousands dead or wounded, Those who were left were determined to stay.

They faced great odds and chose not to protest, And won the war that put evil to shame. Most came home, married and raised their babies, But those who could not we recall with pain.

PEARL HARBOR DAY

Sunday, December the seventh, In the year of 1941, While most of Hawaii still slept, Came the planes of the Rising Sun.

Waves of bombers and fighters flew, From the decks of the Japanese ships. While our planes were still on the ground, “Banzai” was spoken from their lips.

The winds of war had been blowing Across the oceans of our earth, Though not till Pearl had been bombed, Did we realize what freedom’s worth.

Wars are fought and won on two fronts, At home and on the battle line. Both are equally important, When war consumes our heart and mind.

The attack brought us World War II, With death, pain and separation. All who had served were well aware Of their sacrifice for nation.

THE MURDEROUS HAND OF MAN

War I hate, though not men, flags nor race, But war itself with its ugly face. When we lose faith in the brave which die, Then we’re not fit to greet those who cry.

What distinguishes war isn’t death, But that man is slain by fellow man. Crushed by cruelty and injustice, With his enemy’s murderous hand.

War tends to punish the punishers, So the losers won’t suffer alone. The essence of war is but violence, Till the survivors come marching home.

BASEBALL

A game called prison ball was enjoyed in France, while English boys played rounder in short pants. Town ball was the game that Americans played, While friends and family watched from the shade.

American baseball became alive, With Cartwright’s rules of 1845. Civil War soldiers played be behind the lines, To help pass time and soothe troubled minds.

Professional baseball got its start, When the National League performed its part. Soon after fans would pay to see the games As the players traveled by boats and trains.

From April to October, players play. Half the time at home and half away. By thirty, it’s time for most to retire, Before they’re consumed by game time desire.

GENERAL WASHINGTON

Once in command, he boxed in the British At Boston where he captured Dorchester Heights, Overlooking the Brits at his mercy As his men took aim with their cannon sites.

The British commander had but one choice, To sail to New York to renew the fight. Where the English had much greater forces, Who soon chased Washington’s men in full flight.

They continued on to Pennsylvania After crossing the Hudson in retreat, With the British forces in hot pursuit It looked as though George was doomed to defeat.

When winter seemed to have stopped the fighting That’s when Washington crossed the Delaware. On that Christmas night he captured Trenton Where Hessians were surprised and unaware.

He whipped the British at Princeton, Where in victory his men began to sing. Washington then wintered at Morristown, Training his troops for the combat of spring.

Washington fought bravely at Brandywine And again at a place called Germantown, But the British were the victorious ones As the dead of both sides covered the ground.

Americans were blessed early that spring, When the French entered the war on their side. Though most suffered frostbite at Valley Forge, With the help of the French they marched in stride.

The battles raged on, in the North and South As the King’s soldiers laid waste to the land. Washington himself was in great despair, Pleading for aid for his weakened command.

His prayers were answered by 5000 troops, And a French fleet who took Chesapeake Bay. They bottled up Cornwallis at Yorktown, Who surrendered to victory drums at play.

Yorktown was really the end of the war Though not many quite realized that fact yet. But the British soon grew tired of the fight And the terms for its end were signed and set.

Washington yearned to retire at home, But his country chose him first president. Cheering crowds waved flags of love and support, For they believed that “he,” by God, was sent.

LIBERTY

Liberty is to be free and independent Without slavery, imprisonment, or loss of right. Though bit-by-bit many try to steal it away, For if they were to take it all at once, we’d fight.

So protect your liberty that others don’t have, For beside life, there’s nothing more precious on earth. Too many have yearned, fought, suffered, and died for it. And we must never lose sight of what liberty’s worth.

Evil loves to strike liberty from the cheeks of men, And it’s been that way since the beginning of time. For a mind that’s not allowed to have a free thought. Becomes but a slave to the masters of mankind.

By Tom Zart Author of “Love, War & More” Published by Publish America

Keep our Loggerheads safe! It is our obligation to share the beach with our sea turtles. Only 1 in 10,000 hatchlings will survive to adulthood. The loggerhead was listed in 1978 as a threatened species and it is considered “vulnerable” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Recent population studies have concluded that the number of females that nest in the U.S. is continuing to decline.

Some of the reasons why they continually decline are their loss or disturbance of nesting habitat from coastal development, beachfront lighting, nest predators, marine pollution and debris, boats, channel dredging and trawling, and fishing nets.

In nature, sea turtles face a host of life and death obstacles to their survival. So as humans, we must look at our actions.

Visit the Turtle Trails project at The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher where they are using satellite transmitters to follow the loggerheads’ release after rehabilitation. We all need to be diligent in our conservation to our sea turtles.

The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher is located on US 421 approximately 15 miles south of Wilmington, just beyond Kure Beach.

Wow! The Fort Fisher State Recreation Park has several hiking trails including The Hermit Trail (.4miles), The Basin Trail (1mile), and The Marsh Trail (.6miles), for a total distance of 1.1 miles.

The price is time, and it’s less than an hour. No appointments necessary, open January thru December, 7 days a week, even on holidays. Young and old will find the trails equally enjoyable and the view is amazing!
The trailhead starts out at the south end of Fort Fisher State Recreation Area Visitor’s Center (maps are available at the center).

Whether you’re apt to take a power walk or a relaxing stroll, this well marked trail covers a diverse terrain with equally entertaining wildlife. Nature is always evolving here. From the groundsel tree and yaupon, an occasional fox or rabbit, to the endangered piping plover that is easily camouflaged in the sand dunes and salt marsh, you are always bound to see something new.

Along the way discover the WWII Bunker that the Fort Fisher Hermit called home over 30 years ago. Here is a picture of the Bunker and a memorial plaque.

Not more than ½ mile further down the trail you’ll reach a wooden observation deck where the view over the estuary reminds you of why you call North Carolina home.

MarkM: Here is a 360º panorama I shot while at the Basin Overlook

Now we’re not talking about any Hermit, but our own locally infamous, philosopher, moutainman, Robert Harrill, The Fort Fisher Hermit. “He made people think” is written on his headstone. Is this why we are so fascinated with his life, or is it the eerie questions surrounding his untimely death?

No matter how you feel you are not alone. With the countless newspaper articles, documentaries, short stories, books, and now a movie, “The Fort Fisher Hermit: The Life and Death of Robert E. Harrill”, we can all get an insight to his life.

And if you get a chance, take some time out to follow a hermit’s path along the Fort Fisher area of Kure Beach, through the marshes and to the hermit’s bunker. With a little imagination, everyone can think like a Hermit for a couple hours.
Robert Harrill once explained his popularity in the New Hanover Sun in 1968, “Everybody ought to be a hermit a few minutes to an hour or so every 24 hours, to study, meditate, and commune with their creator…millions of people want to do just what I’m doing, but since it is much easier thought of than done, they subconsciously elect me to represent them, that’s why I’m successful…”.

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