Jimmy Buffett’s wife, Jane Slagsvol, shared a touching tribute to her late husband, who passed away September 1 at the age of 76.
“As Jimmy said a few months ago, ‘growing old is not for sissies.’ These last few years have been unimaginably challenging for Jimmy and me, and we’re definitely not sissies,” she wrote on his website. “One thing we both knew and experienced, through every difficult moment, was the feeling of being buoyed up by all the people in our lives,” she continued, noting they felt “surrounded by love.”
Jane thanked Jimmy’s fans, who she described as a “big, boisterous family.” “The smile that Jimmy beamed at you from the stage was sparked by your spirit, she wrote. “He was so grateful to the community you built around him.”
Jane also thanked all the people who cared for Jimmy during his battle with Merkel cell skin cancer as well as their friends and all those who worked for the rocker.
“Jimmy was love. Every cell in his body was filled with joy. He smiled all the time, even when he was deeply ill,” she wrote. “And his sense of humor never wavered. Jimmy was always the optimist, always twinkling, always making us laugh.”
After quoting his new song “Bubbles Up,” she concluded, “Jimmy knew he was loved. Right until the end, he looked for the light. Thank you for giving joy to him and to me.”
Meanwhile, fans are showing their love for Jimmy by rediscovering his music. Billboard reports that Songs You Know by Heart: Jimmy Buffett’s Greatest Hit(s) is back on the Billboard 200 at #4, a new high for the record. It’s also the first time the album’s made not only the Top 10, but the Top 40.
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