When I woke up to the sad news that Jimmy Buffett died, I was reminded about the story of how he was inspired to write the song ‘Margaritaville’ while in Austin, Texas.

Here’s the tea on how Jimmy Buffett wrote Margaritaville in Austin, Texas!

Buffett told the Austin Chronicle that the tune was written in 1976 in about five minutes on a hot day in Austin with a marg and a beautiful woman. Apparently, he was inspired by a drink he was served at Lung’s Cocina del Sur on Anderson Lane. High 5 is now located in that spot. Buffett and his band returned to their pal’s house on Shadow Valley Drive, wrote the chords and then finished the song later in Key West.

A second article published by the New York Post says that once the singer arrived at the airport for his flight back to Key West he broke out his guitar and found the hook and chorus for the song. “I was going to call it ‘Wasting Away Again in Austin, Texasville,’” Buffett told The Post. He came up with a far better title after he got on the plane.

Whether it happened at the airport or the pal’s house, we do know the tune was conceived in Austin and that’s pretty darn cool

Sadly, Buffett passed away on September 1. No cause of death was given but concerts have had to be cancelled recently due to illness. This is the statement posted on his official website.

“Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs. He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.”

– Statement posted on Jimmy Buffett’s website and social media.

Rest in peace, Jimmy. And thanks for all the good times.

Should you ever plan a stay at the Margaritaville Resort in Orlando, Florida, here are some cool things to do while there.

Featured photo credit: U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Michael W. Pendergrass. As a work of the U.S. federal government, it is in the public domain in the United States.