For a few days each year, Jimmy Buffett turned Cincinnati into 'Margaritaville'

Cincinnati isn't "Margaritaville," but for the few days each year Jimmy Buffett came to town, it was.

Walking through a pre-show tailgate, fans, affectionately nicknamed "Parrotheads," could be seen wearing grass skirts, Hawaiian shirts, coconut bras, leis and other tiki or beachy attire. They set up bars and swimming pools and crafted hats that featured parrots, flamingos and whatever else would fit.

Buffett played his last concert in Cincinnati in July 2022; he cancelled his 2023 show. He died Friday at 76.

But his connection to Cincinnati and his fans here will live on.

Buffett coined the term “Parrothead” while performing at a 1985 Cincinnati concert. During the show at Timberwolf Ampitheater, Timothy Schmit, a former member of Buffett's Coral Reefer Band, noticed fans wearing parrot hats and Hawaiian shirts. He called them Parrotheads, a nod to the Grateful Dead fans' moniker: Deadheads.

His song "Fins" is about a woman who "came down from Cincinnati … lookin' for some peace and quiet" who finds herself surrounded by guys at the bar – "land sharks."

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Buffett was a mainstay at Cincinnati’s Riverbend Music Center, playing 54 shows in 35 years. Prior to that Buffett performed at Timberwolf Amphitheater at King’s Island.

In 1993, he performed five consecutive nights here, drawing 92,000 fans, according to a Cincinnati Post article at the time. Cincinnati was a "Parrothead petri dish," the article said, and other cities couldn't match its enthusiasm for the musician.

“Jimmy Buffett became synonymous with summer in Cincinnati,” said Rosemarie Moehring, director of marking for Music & Event Management, Inc., which runs Riverbend. “It was something people looked forward to every year.”

Moehring said there was nothing surprising about "Parrothead" originating in Cincinnati.

“People looked forward to and planned for concerts,” Moehring said. “He brought people together. His music made you feel good.”

2014 tour: Jimmy Buffett tosses Riverbend crowd a few curveballs

The only year Buffett missed playing Riverbend was during COVID in 2020. But Buffett was the first show back in 2021.

“2021 was really special,” Moehring said. “You could tell he was just as happy to be on the stage again as the audience was to be seeing him again. It was extra special.”

Moehring had the opportunity to meet Buffett once 10 years ago.

“He was as kind and as funny as you would imagine him to be,” she said.

Earlier this year, Newport officials announced a Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville Resort would anchor the Newport on the Levee development. The hotel is expected to open in 2026.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What Jimmy Buffett meant to Cincinnati