For nearly 30 years, musician Mac McAnally toured with Jimmy Buffett as an integral member of the Coral Reefer Band as well as a musical co-writer, while maintaining a huge and award-winning career on his own.
McAnally has won a record-setting 10 Musician of the Year trophies from the Country Music Association and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007.
McAnally performed four sold-out shows at Key West Theater Jan. 25-28, playing many songs from his latest compilation album “Once in a Lifetime” and songs he wrote with Buffett.
The shows included moving tributes to the late Buffett, who died in September 2023.
According to his website, McAnally typically sees three kinds of people at his shows: Those who have followed his career since his 1977 debut album; those who recognize him as the guitarist in Buffett’s band; and those who remember his credits in country music, which include songs cut by Alabama (“Old Flame”), Kenny Chesney (“Back Where I Come From”), Shenandoah (“Two Dozen Roses”) and others.
“I’m interested in all kinds of music,” McAnally says on his site. “There’s obviously some Buffett influence on a few of the things and I’ve been playing country music and gospel music all my life, so there’s that influence, too.”
