‘Margaritaville’ singer Jimmy Buffett, who turned beach-bum life into an empire, dies at 76

Singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, who popularized beach bum soft rock with the escapist Caribbean-flavored song “Margaritaville” and turned that celebration of loafing into an empire of restaurants, resorts and frozen concoctions, has died. “Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs,” a statement posted to Buffett's official website and social media pages said late Friday. The statement did not say where Buffett died or give a cause of death.