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Fins back in River Rock pool

Before his death, Jimmy Buffett encouraged his family, friends and fans to keep the party going.

His Coral Reefer Band and the Buffett tribute act Fins to the Left are doing just that.

The full Coral Reefer Band has performed shows this year honoring Buffett — who died Sept. 1, 2023, from Merkel cell carcinoma at age 75 — at the Hollywood Bowl and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Fest, and it has three shows scheduled in August.

Fins to the Left, which played its “last” concert in 2022, is reuniting for a show July 13 at the Warren Community Amphitheatre as part of the River Rock at the Amp concert series, and the group will be joined by several of Buffett’s band members for the performance.

That Fins / Coral Reefers pairing was a frequent attraction on the River Rock schedule, and Fins frontman Shawn Lawless said it wasn’t long after Buffett’s death when he and River Rock promoter Ken Haidaris talked about another appearance.

“Jimmy said keep the party going, so there wasn’t much choice,” Lawless said. “This has been a labor of love. I got the guys back together, and everyone was willing to get back on board and give it another shot.”

Joining Fins — Lawless, lead vocals; Doug Smith, piano and acoustic guitar; Chris Rossvanes, drums; Craig Peppy, drums and percussion; Chuck Hall, lead guitar; Bill Ebie, 12-string guitar; Jeff Spencer, harmonica; Robert Calhoun, bass; and Brent Bregar, acoustic guitar — next week will be the largest contingent of Coral Reefer players ever.

Percussionist Eric Darken, backing vocalists Tina Gullickson and Nadirah Shakoor and keyboard player Mick Utley (son of longtime Buffett sideman Michael Utley) will be returning for the concert. Trumpet player John Lovell will make his first appearance with Fins. Steel drum player Robert Greenidge had a prior commitment and is unable to perform, but his brother Roger Greenidge will be behind the steel drums on July 13.

Instead of an opening act, Fins will play a double-length show starting at 6 p.m.

“We’ll be doing several songs we haven’t done before,” Lawless said. “That was the biggest thing. We wanted to do as many as we could.”

Gullickson, who started singing with Buffett in 1995, said she’s impressed by how well Lawless and the band know the music.

“One of the things that’s really remarkable is Shawn Lawless being able to remember all of Jimmy’s lyrics,” she said. “He does a great job, He gets up there, gets the crowd going . We always say, wow, considering they don’t play much except when we’re here, their rehearsal time has to be pretty intense and Shawn has a lot to remember.”

Darken, who played with Buffett for 13 years and has worked with a wide range of artists in multiple genres, said he enjoys playing with Fins.

“What I love about this band is they know Jimmy’s music and rehearse it,” Darken said. “Shawn knows the catalog so well. He loves Jimmy’s music, and that’s why he’s up there singing it. He’s not trying to be Jimmy. It’s like, ‘Hey, man, these are the songs, and we’re going to play as many as we can …’

“I always tell people this is easy. When we play with them, we just slide into our position and play along. They do a great job putting forward a whole evening of Jimmy Buffett’s music.”

If you go …

WHAT: River Rock at the Amp — Fins to the Left (Jimmy Buffett tribute) with Coral Reefer Band members Eric Darken, percussion; Tina Gullickson and Nadirah Shakoor, backing vocals; John Lovell, trumpet; Mick Utley, keyboards; and Roger Greenidge, steel drums.

WHEN: 6 p.m. July 13.

WHERE: Warren Community Amphitheatre, 321 Mahoning Ave. NW, Warren.

HOW MUCH: $15 with children ages 12 and younger admitted free with a paying adult. For more information, go to riverrockattheamp.com.

Starting at $2.99/week.

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