| "The Great Filling Station Holdup" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Jimmy Buffett | ||||
| from the album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean | ||||
| A-side | "The Great Filling Station Holdup" | |||
| B-side | "Why Don't We Get Drunk" | |||
| Released | 1973 | |||
| Recorded | 1973 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:02 | |||
| Label | Dunhill D-4385 (US, 7") | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Jimmy Buffett | |||
| Producer(s) | Don Gant | |||
| Jimmy Buffett singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"The Great Filling Station Hold Up" is a song written and performed by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was first released on his 1973 album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean and was his first single from that album. The single reached No. 58 on the US Country chart in 1973.
The song appears on Live at Fenway Park , a live album that opened with an acoustic set consisting of "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes", "The Great Filling Station Holdup" and "Pencil Thin Mustache". The album also includes all songs from Songs You Know By Heart , except "He Went to Paris". [1]
The song is about two robbers holding up a filling station and the aftermath of getting caught shortly after the robbery in a honky tonk, where both robbers are drunk on beer they bought with the cash they stole. [2] Buffett got the idea to write the song after finding amusement in a newspaper article about recovered property from a holdup. [3]
Soon after the release of the single, with "Why Don't We Get Drunk" as its B-side, it was reported that it had sold over 50,000 copies just to jukebox operators, according to B.J. McElvee, country promotion manager for ABC-Dunhill Records. [4] Billboard magazine reported that only the A-side was promoted to country radio, because the word "screw" (repeatedly used in "Why Don't We Get Drunk") was not generally acceptable in country radio programming at the time; however, "Why Don't We Get Drunk" was played by some "underground" stations on FM radio. [4] "Why Don't We Get Drunk" was identified by Billboard as a "jukebox favorite" more than three years after its original release. [5] [6]
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Hot Country Songs | 58 |
James William Buffett is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, actor, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffett has recorded hit songs including "Margaritaville" and "Come Monday". He has a devoted base of fans known as "Parrotheads".
Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes is the seventh studio album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. This is his breakthrough 1977 album, which remains the best-selling studio album of Buffett's career, and contains his biggest single, "Margaritaville". It was initially released in January 1977 as ABC AB-990 and later rereleased on its successor label, MCA.
Boats, Beaches, Bars & Ballads is a four-compact disc compilation box set of Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band's greatest hits, rarities, and previously unreleased songs. Released in 1992, the collection reached quadruple platinum.
Havana Daydreamin' is the sixth studio album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett and his fourth regular major label album. It was produced by Don Gant and released on January 1, 1976, on ABC ABCD-914 and January 28, 1987, on ABC Dunhill's successor label MCA.
"Cheeseburger in Paradise" is a song written and performed by American popular music singer Jimmy Buffett. It appeared on his 1978 album Son of a Son of a Sailor and was released as a single, reaching No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Cheeseburger in Paradise" has become one of Buffett's signature songs and was selected as the first track on his greatest hits album Songs You Know by Heart.
A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett and the first major-label album in Buffett's Don Gant-produced "Key West phase", although Buffett himself frequently refers to A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean as his first album. It was initially released on June 4, 1973, as Dunhill DS-50150 and October 26, 1987, as MCA. It was the first album of his career to feature Buffett's trademark mustache, which would remain in use until Hot Water.
"Seven Bridges Road" is a song written by American musician Steve Young, recorded in 1969 for his Rock Salt & Nails album. It has since been covered by many artists, the best-known version being a five-part harmony arrangement by English musician Iain Matthews recorded by the American rock band, the Eagles in 1980.
"Why Don't We Get Drunk" is a novelty song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was a B-side to "The Great Filling Station Holdup", the first single from his 1973 album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean. The song is a fan favorite, and until the 2007 Bama Breeze tour, was almost always performed at Buffett's live concerts.
Living and Dying in ¾ Time is the fourth studio album by American popular-music singer and songwriter Jimmy Buffett and the second major-label album in Buffett's Don Gant-produced "Key West phase". It was initially released in February 1974 as Dunhill DS-50132 and later rereleased on Dunhill's successor labels ABC and MCA. It contains the song "Come Monday", his first top-40 hit single.
Live at Fenway Park is a live album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett and is one of a number of Jimmy Buffett sound board live albums recorded directly from the mixing console without further editing thus resembling bootleg recordings.
Songs You Know by Heart: Jimmy Buffett's Greatest Hit(s) is the 18th album and the first greatest hits compilation by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was released on January 2, 1985 on LP and October 17, 1990 on cassette and CD. The parenthetical "s" in the subtitle alludes to the status at the time of "Margaritaville" as Buffett's single large chart hit.
You Had to Be There is a live double album by the American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was originally released in October 1978 as ABC AK-1008/2 and later re-released on ABC's successor label MCA. It is the first of Buffett's many live albums and his tenth album overall. The original vinyl print album included a fold-out poster showing many photos taken during the 1978 tour.
Jimmy Buffett sound board live albums are a series of live albums by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett recorded directly from the sound board without further editing thus resembling bootleg recordings. The albums were recorded at various concerts throughout the United States and represent typical Buffett live shows of their era with most of the albums recorded during Buffett's 2003 Tiki Time Tour. They have been released on compact disc on Buffett's own Mailboat Records distributed by RCA.
Live in Auburn is a live album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett and is one of number of Jimmy Buffett sound board live albums recorded directly from the mixing console without further editing thus resembling bootleg recordings.
Live by the Bay is a 1986 direct-to-video concert film of American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band. It was released in 1986 by MCA Entertainment. The 87-minute film was recorded from back to back concerts in Miami, Florida on August 16 and 17, 1985, at Miami Marine Stadium and is the first concert video released by Buffett. Miami Vice star Don Johnson introduced Buffett to the crowd. A brief rain shower during the middle of the Friday night show prompted Buffett to retreat to his sailboat and caused a majority of the final video release to feature the Saturday night show. After the rain cleared on Friday, the band played Little Feat's "Dixie Chicken" to demonstrate the equipment still functioned before Buffett returned to the stage.
Off to See the Lizard is the seventeenth studio album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. Initially to be called Stranger than Fishing, it was released in June 1989 as MCA 6314 and was produced by Elliot Scheiner and Buffett. The album is the first to feature much of the current Coral Reefer Band. Following the release of this album, Buffett paused his normal output of one album every year or two and did not release another album until 1994's Fruitcakes.
Feeding Frenzy: Jimmy Buffett Live! is a live album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was initially released in October 1990 as MCA 10022. It is the second of Buffett's many live albums.
Buffett Live – Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays is a live album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was released on November 9, 1999. The album's material was culled from several concerts during the Don't Stop That Carnival Tour (1998) and Beach House on the Moon Tour (1999). It was the first live album by Buffett since Feeding Frenzy was released in October 1990 and Mailboat Records' debut release.
"I Still Miss Someone" is a song co-written by Johnny Cash and his nephew Roy Cash, Jr. and originally recorded by American country music singer Johnny Cash. He first recorded it in 1958 as the B-side to "Don't Take Your Guns to Town".
"God's Own Drunk" is a monologue by Lord Buckley that musicians have since adapted into different types of songs; most notably, Jimmy Buffett, who first recorded his rendition for Living and Dying in ¾ Time and has since released a single of a live performance in 2011. Buffett's version was a concert staple and even regarded as his theme before "Margaritaville"'s popularity, until he was forced to stop playing it after being sued by Buckley's son, Dick Buckley Jr., for copyright infringement.
