Jimmy Buffett: Somewhere Over China : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Somewhere over China finds Jimmy Buffett in a ruminative mood, turning over large questions and searching for elusive wisdom. He's still singing about the ostensible "good times" – drinking one brew too many in Key West, sailing on that slow boat to China with whomever–but his new album is fraught with a wistfulness that suggests he's having second thoughts about the sporting life.

The cover of Somewhere over China pictures Buffett standing barefoot on a map of the world (somewhere over Sudan, if my bearings are correct). On the record itself, he muses about locales as far-flung as the Himalayas and the Sea of Cortez. To Buffett's loyal listeners – that peculiarly American brotherhood of sailboat cowboys, resort-town drifters and gonzo high-lifers–these flights of fancy will undoubtedly strike a resonant chord. The question is, does he really intend to break new ground or is this simply the wanderlust of the armchair hedonist?

The answer never arrives. Instead, the singer offers clichés about dissipation ("I heard I was in town") counterpointed by a poignant longing for adventure. Jimmy Buffett's conflict between daydream and motivation is perfectly encapsulated by the lonesome-train-whistle harmonica playing that wends its way through the LP. Indeed, Somewhere over China's would-be nomad doesn't seem to want to resolve his dilemma through decisive action: the closest he gets is the title tune, in which he expresses "just a taste for something different/Perking up a boring day." Is this what it all comes down to?

Truth be told, Somewhere over China is a pleasantly accomplished set of easy-rolling rock with a taste of the tropics. The melodies are attractive, and Buffett is adroit at casual self-reflection. This latter quality is especially in evidence in "Where's the Party" and "If I Could Just Get It on Paper," which mourn the sad lot of the playboy-artiste with touching eloquence. Elsewhere, though, the singer settles for a philosophical slow simmer, flavoring his angst with predictable post-hangover reflexes of regret and wondering.

Somewhere over China may be a transitional album, with Jimmy Buffett wanting to broaden his horizons but uncertain about how hard he wants to work at it. His next record ought to provide some real answers.