Singer Jimmy Buffet added to the Jazz Fest lineup

[April 12, 2012]  NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Jimmy Buffett will replace Pearl Jam singer and guitarist Eddie Vedder in the May 3 lineup at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

Vedder canceled when he postponed his 15-city U.S. solo tour because of nerve damage in his right arm stemming from a back injury earlier this year.

Buffett is a Jazz Fest veteran who has built an empire based largely on such Caribbean-flavored rock hits as " Margaritaville." He first performed at Jazz fest in 1989.

This time, Buffett will leave his rock band behind and sing and play acoustic guitar with Mac McAnally, a Mississippi native named the Country Music Association's Musician of the Year for the past four years in a row.

Jazz Fest spans two weekends, April 27-29 and May 3-6.

[Associated Press; By STACEY PLAISANCE]

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