Jimmy Buffett - Banana Wind [2LP]

Banana Wind finds Jimmy Buffett in reflective, island-hopping form, a 1996 album that pairs his trademark escapism with some of the most grown-up songs he ever wrote, spread here across two LPs.

By the mid-1990s Buffett was a full-blown institution, with a devoted Parrothead following and a parallel career as a bestselling author. Rather than coast, he made a record steeped in Caribbean rhythms, wandering characters and quiet reflections on age, love and the passing of time, the work of a writer who had seen a lot of sunsets and still found something new to say about them.

Jamaica Mistaica tells the true story of his seaplane coming under fire in Jamaica, turning a frightening misunderstanding into a breezy, defiant romp. Only Time Will Tell opens the album on a gentle, thoughtful note, and Desdemona's Building A Rocket Ship spins one of his most whimsical character sketches, full of oddball charm and affection.

The band plays with the easy confidence of longtime road warriors, all warm guitars and island percussion, never rushing a single groove.

It is a record for long afternoons and slow evenings, the sound of an artist comfortable in his own skin and in no hurry to leave the dock.