Degrees of cheese: What The B-52s can learn from the Jimmy Buffett school of showmanship
Joseph Cultice
The B-52s have much to learn from Jimmy Buffett in marketing their quirkiness.
The B-52s, who are playing the House Of Blues tonight, are tacky. That's not an insult: The New Wave jesters are simply overrun by a self-aware, John Waters level of camp. But despite having produced huge hits like "Love Shack" and "Rock Lobster," they don't command the cult following of arena-dominating giants. But there's at least one indication that tackiness and superstardom can still mix. Enter Jimmy Buffett, who recently played two shows at Toyota Park. Everything about Buffett reeks of tackiness: the Parrothead uniform, the cheeseburger and margarita chain restaurants, and the obligatory marijuana references. Despite building his success on what millions would easily agree are turn-offs, Jimmy Buffett is a mogul—nay, a subculture unto himself—to judge by the kind of tailgating that occurred before his show at Toyota Park on Aug. 8:
Clearly, The B-52s have yet to inspire fans to humiliate themselves on such a grand scale. Perhaps they're going about it all wrong. So, B-52s, before you play the House Of Blues tonight, here are a few tips you can take away from Buffett to gain an ocean of followers:
1. Hire a huge band and name them after marijuana. Not only does the name "Coral Reefer Band" make Buffett's audience giggle, but the band slathers the sound in elevator-music horns. It doesn't sound good, but hey, a following is a following, right? The A.V. Club suggests The B-420s, but you don't have to give us credit if you wind up using it. We're just here to support the cause.
2. Get the audience to do a dance, and then refer to them by a cute nickname. During "Fins," Buffett calls for his "land sharks" to sway to the left and the right. How about you get everybody in the audience to dance along to "Channel Z?" They can form a "Z" with their arms "Safety Dance"-style.
3. Name your tour something awful. Buffett is the king of christening his tours with terrible puns and topical humor. He's done it almost every year since 1976 (sample tour name: Rece$$ion Rece$$ Tour). How about Where's My Umbrella: No, Seriously, Fred Has Lost His Parasol Tour? That one's on us. If you don't like that, the Are You Ready To Rock Lobster Tour would work great for next year.
4. Appease the locals. In Buffett's most recent concert, he made a reference to Lollapalooza, saying, "If you're looking for Depeche Mode, that's downtown." He's also been known to play special songs depending on where he is, like when he played "Werewolves Of London" when he was in London. The easiest way to get control over the crowd is to remind them that you know where they are.
5. Start a restaurant chain. There are dozens of Buffett techniques that could gain you an army of parrotheads...er...B-52-ites (come up with a better one, Fred Schneider). Where he really gets the money is through his two restaurant chains: Margaritaville Cafe and Cheeseburger In Paradise. If you really want that Buffett-style following, open a Rock Lobster across the street from every Red Lobster in the country, and you've got a built in crowd in every town. At any rate, if The B-52s put in the time and study in the art of Buffett for a few years, here's what they can look forward to:
