“Geranium Jam” Band Preview: A1A Let’s Get Tropical

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Lead vocalist Jeff Pike, along with Eric Baumgartner, Rick Meeder, Chris Blackwell, Wayne Viar, Scotty Sells, Vance Kelly, Tom Morfoot, and Foe Davis, will be performing at the Geranium Jam 2016, following the Geranium Festival this Saturday, May 21. 

The A1A band—the official and original Jimmy Buffet Tribute band—formed over their absolute love of Jimmy Buffet, his music and the laid-back lifestyle his music describes AND provides. 

According to Pike, “In 1991 I asked Atlanta Parrot Head Club Founder, Scott Nickerson to join me  in my already successful one-man tribute to Jimmy Buffett.”

“In 1992, we won a Jimmy Buffett Sound-Alike Contest for Margaritaville Records, and the A1A ball started rolling—a ball that is still rolling 25 years later,” he said.

As the band grew, they were instrumental in the fundamental building and growth of the International Parrot Head Club community—the official fan club of Jimmy Buffet—as well the Trop Rock Music genre as it is today. They’ve released 3 original Trop Rock albums, in addition to their tributes. 

“Jimmy Buffet and other members from his band, Greg “Fingers” Taylor, Mac McAnally, Michael Utley, Robert Greenidge, Peter Mayer, Nadirah Shakoor and Tina Gullickson have all performed with us over the years,” Pike said. 

In 2009 Nadirah Shakoor chose A1A to be her back up band to help promote her Mailboat Records release, ‘Nod To The Story Teller.’  Not only has the band been surfing the music scene, but the big screen as well. Jimmy Buffett was instrumental in landing A1A in the Lions Gate Major Motion Picture Release, ‘What to Expect When You’re Expecting,’ where they recorded the classic “Why Don’t We Get Drunk,” which was included in the movie and on the soundtrack released by Capitol Records.
 
A1A is so awesome, they were even asked to be Jimmy’s band for a private performance for The World Surf League at The Master’s Open. “Not surprisingly, we were very proud to be Jimmy’s ‘Coral Reefer Band’ for a day,” Pike said.

Pike said his favorite song to play is “Come Monday,” and this week he’s been listening to a lot of Al Green, Daryl Hall, Hall and Oates, George Strait and Thin Lizzy, proving that they are well-rounded musicians and are not one-trick ponies.  Additionally, all the musicians in the band have a broad background in music, which attributes to them putting on one heck of a good show. 

“I could write a book on the accomplishments of the esteemed members of my band,” Pike said. “They are all career musicians and have been involved in many successful projects and bands, from bars to theaters, arenas, stadiums, Broadway and back again,” he said. 

“I am blessed to have some of the best musicians in the state of Georgia and I do not take it lightly. I am very blessed and humbled.” 

Be sure to attend the Geranium Jam JailHouse Beach Party outdoor concert at 55 Harkins Street on May 21, from 6 p.m.–10 p.m. to check out  A1A Let’s Get Tropical, The Georgia Flood, and the McDonough Rhythm Section!
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If you can’t make the event, blend yourself a margarita, lay back in a beach chair and check out the A1A’s Facebook, Twitter, and music pages.