We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Tommy Bahama

from The Stories I Can Tell by Gary Snead

/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more. Paying supporters also get unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app.
    Purchasable with gift card

      name your price

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    If you're like me, and still want to feel the physical record in your hands, and read the dedication, and track listings with times, and all those other "old timey" tactile experiences, then this package is for you! The CD is complete with a full color printed face, and is gently enclosed in an eco-friendly full color printed sleeve, and protected from the elements with full coverage shrink wrap.

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Stories I Can Tell via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $15 USD

     

  • Full Digital Discography

    7
    releases

    Get all 7 Gary Snead releases available on Bandcamp.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of The Gift, An Island Twelve Days, Beneath The Mistletoe "The Reboot", A Little While Longer, Nights I Can't Remember, The Stories I Can Tell, and Beneath The Mistletoe. , and , .

    Purchasable with gift card

      $5 USD or more

     

about

In about March of 2009, Tracy, John and Kim from the local Tommy Bahama store adopted me as their "house band" for special events at their location. It seems that John and his lady, had seen Ronnie and I as we performed at the Grand Opening of a new Whole Foods Market in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and decided that the music was in every way a perfect fit for their store. While on vacation in the Carolina Keys with my wife and kids later that year, as I sat in the second floor deck swing with a beverage in hand, I remembered the story of how the founders of Tommy Bahama created the character for their marketing. I thought I'd write something to show them it worked... Yeah, like they don't already know!

lyrics

Tommy Bahama
Words and Music by Gary Snead
Copyright © 2009

Well I went down to the mall
To try and buy myself some beachwear
I passed Hawaiian prints that didn’t match
And clerks who seemed to not care
Then I remembered seeing a store ad
With this guy down in the Leewards
Who never seemed to have a care
While he was gazing seaward
You couldn’t see what he was watching
But it really didn’t matter
‘Cause he was dressed in Island Casual
And was looking pretty dapper


He’s just a fictional character
From an island near St Somewhere
Who resides in an oceanfront cabana
Out front’s an umbrella and a beachchair
He likes to frequent tiki bars
And flirts with every pretty mama
I wanna live the lifestyle
Of that guy Tommy Bahama


At his store I bought a hat that said Relax
With a recipe for hangovers
I got a silk shirt with a palm tree
A brand new watch with a sailfish logo
Some cargo shorts in olive drab
And a pair of slacks in khakhi
By the time I finished shopping
I surely wasn’t tourist tacky
For me it’s time to hit a beach bar
So I can try out my new persona
‘Cause I’ll have a dose of Island Attitude
And a lime in my Corona


He’s just a fictional character
From an island near St Somewhere
Who resides in a beach cabana
Out front’s an umbrella and a beachchair
He likes to frequent tiki bars
And flirts with all the pretty mama’s
I wanna live the lifestyle
Of that guy Tommy Bahama

Yeah, I’m gonna live the lifestyle
Of that guy Tommy Bahama

credits

from The Stories I Can Tell, released October 20, 2010
Written, performed, recorded and produced by Gary Snead

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Gary Snead image

Gary Snead Richmond, Virginia

I'm a singer, songwriter, and acoustic performer, specializing in Tropical Americana music.

contact / help

Contact Gary Snead

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this track or account

If you like Gary Snead, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Beans joins the show to discuss his album release, "ZWAARD".

listen now