| "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 | |||
| Studio | Glaser Sound (Nashville, Tennessee) | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:02 | |||
| Label | Dunhill D-4385 (US, 7") | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Jimmy Buffett | |||
| Producer(s) | Don Gant | |||
| Jimmy Buffett singles chronology | ||||
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"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". [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 was an American singer-songwriter. He was known for his tropical rock sound and persona, which often portrayed a lifestyle described as "island escapism" and promoted enjoying life and following passions. Buffett recorded many hit songs, including those known as "The Big 8": "Margaritaville" (1977), which is ranked 234th on the Recording Industry Association of America's list of "Songs of the Century"; "Come Monday" (1974); "Fins" (1979); "Volcano" (1979); "A Pirate Looks at Forty" (1974); "Cheeseburger in Paradise" (1978); "Why Don't We Get Drunk" (1973); and "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes" (1977). His other popular songs include "Son of a Son of a Sailor" (1978), "One Particular Harbour" (1983), and "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere" with Alan Jackson (2003). Buffett formed the Coral Reefer Band in 1975.
Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes is the seventh studio album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. This is his breakthrough 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 rereleased on its successor label, MCA.
Boats, Beaches, Bars & Ballads is a four 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 received Recording Industry Association of America quadruple platinum certification in 2001.
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 20, 1976, on ABC ABCD-914 and January 28, 1987, on ABC Dunhill's successor label MCA.
Son of a Son of a Sailor is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was initially released in March 1978 as ABC Dunhill AA-1046 and later re-released on its successor label, MCA.
A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was released on June 4, 1973, as his first album for Dunhill.
"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. A fan favorite, the song was almost always performed at Buffett's live concerts until 2007 Bama Breeze tour, after which it was only performed occasionally.
Living and Dying in ¾ Time is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It is the second major label album in Buffett's Don Gant-produced "Key West phase". It was initially released in February 1974 as his second album for Dunhill Records. It contains the song "Come Monday", his first top-40 hit single.
The discography of American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett consists of 32 studio albums, 11 compilations albums, 14 live albums, one soundtrack album, and 67 singles. Buffett was known for his unique style of music called "Gulf and Western", which combines elements of country, folk rock, pop, and Caribbean, with tropical lyrical themes. Buffett has sold over 20 million albums worldwide and had a net worth of $550 million.
Live at Fenway Park is a live album by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It is one of a number of Jimmy Buffett sound board live albums recorded directly from the mixing console without further editing, in this sense 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 in 1985. 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 Cheeseburger in Paradise 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 the 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 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.
"The Race Is On" is a song written by Don Rollins and made a hit on the country music charts by George Jones and on the pop and easy listening charts by the unrelated Jack Jones. George's version was the first single released from his 1965 album of the same name. Released as a single in September 1964, it peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and at number 96 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1965. Jack's version topped Billboard's Easy Listening chart and reached number 15 on the Hot 100 the same year. The two recordings combined to reach number 12 on the Cashbox charts, which combined all covers of the same song in one listing and thus gave George Jones his only top-40 hit. The song uses thoroughbred horse racing as the metaphor for the singer's romantic relationships.
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.
"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 digital download 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.
