A celebration in song for Pascagoula native Jimmy Buffett will take place Sunday at The Grand Magnolia Ballroom.
Several area musicians with connections to the legendary singer/songwriter/entrepreneur will converge in Pascagoula for “The Pascagoula Run: A Hometown Tribute in Song to Jimmy Buffett”. The show is a Grand Mag Music production and starts at 6 p.m. There is no admission charge but donations are strongly encouraged as the event was organized to raise funds for the Dixie Adoptable Animal Rescue’s Transport Project.
Buffett died at his home in Sag Harbour, N.Y., late Friday night surrounded by his family, friends, music and his four dogs, according to his website.
“We just thought it would be the perfect place to do this type of celebration of Jimmy’s music,” Grand Magnolia owner Richard Chenoweth, also a longtime friend of the singers, said. “I mean he stood on that stage and played almost two hours several years back, and he used the Grand Magnolia as a sort of headquarters in 2015 when he and Mac came down to play about an hour on the beach for the Buffett Bridge dedication. There aren’t many places that can say that in a city our size.”
The show will feature Matt Hoggatt, Johnny Mire, Double Dee (Darwin and Dana Nelson) and Taylor Craven. All of the musicians are South Mississippi residents and all jumped at the chance to be a part of this event.
In fact, Hoggatt was not only at one point a featured DJ on Buffett’s worldwide Radio Margaritaville on Sirius/XM Radio be he also was able to play on stage a few times with the “Mayor of Margaritaville”.
“I started out as a fan at 13 years old, and became a student of his songwriting and work ethic as a performer” Hoggatt, a Gautier resident, said. “Jimmy knew how to reach people’s hearts as an entertainer. His sole focus was having fun, and making sure everyone else had fun alongside him”
Hoggatt, a former law enforcement officer and now an instructor at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, has enjoyed a musical career as a side job for almost two decades now. He became semi-famous when his original song “Dear Jimmy Buffett”, which tongue-in-cheekily asks the famous Pascagoula native for a record deal, won the American Songwriter Magazine national songwriting contest a few years ago.
Buffett heard about the song and set up a meeting with Hoggatt, where he invited him to perform the song on stage at a January 2012 show in Birmingham. Hoggatt sang the song on stage with Buffett in front of almost 15,000 Parrottheads. Buffett returned the favor, singing a song he wrote called “Dear Matt Hoggatt.”
The song also earned him a record deal on Buffett’s Margaritaville Record label and opened up other exciting opportunities for him as well.
“I got the chance to film a video with Jimmy in New Orleans and we spent several hours just riding around in my van. It was fascinating to hear him talk about his time in New Orleans, and how it molded him as an entertainer.” “Jimmy shared his audience with me by allowing me to work with him. That opportunity allowed me to see the entire country, and create a host of friends I still have today”
On Sunday, the quintet will be sharing songs, stories and memories of Buffett and what he meant to their musical journeys as well.
“For anyone from a small town like Pascagoula who dreams of changing the world, Jimmy Buffett is a prime example of the possibilities that exist out there,” Hoggatt concluded.
Dixie Adoptables is the charity of choice for all Grand Mag Music shows. If you can’t attend Sunday’s show but still want to help, donations to the organization can be made on their website at dixie adoptables.org or on their Facebook Page.
