This morning Jimmy Buffett spoke briefly and performed at a memorial service for his friend Walter Cronkite in New York City.

Before singing “Son of a Son of a Sailor”, Buffett told a quick story about Ed Bradley and Cronkite:

Buffett, recounting the anchor’s response when he asked, on behalf of pal Ed Bradley, for Walter’s blessing to wear an earring on 60 Minutes. “He said, ‘It doesn’t matter where he wears an earring as long as it was a good story,'” Buffett recalled. “But he said, ‘If I was going to wear an earring on 60 Minutes, I’d wear one of those big, long hanging ones.”

Here’s video of the performance. Jimmy was joined by Mac McAnally and Mickey Hart:

A memorial service will be held today at Lincoln Center in New York City for legendary broadcaster Walter Cronkite.

Jimmy Buffett will perform, as will Mickey Hart, drummer for the Grateful Dead.

The event will also be attended by several dignitaries, including President Obama and former President Clinton.

Buffett and Cronkite were close friends, and Jimmy even serenaded Cronkite in his final weeks.

Cronkite died July 17th at the age of 92.

You can view a live broadcast of the memorial beginning at 10:30 am at CBSNews.com, CBS.com, TV.com and ustream.com.

Politico 44 reports that Jimmy Buffett was spotted at the White House today:

DEPARTURE: President Obama walked out of the Oval Office around 1 p.m., wearing a casual jacket and khakis, waving to the press once before boarding Marine One. He is scheduled to be at Camp David through Sunday, where spokesman Robert Gibbs has said he will spend some time reviewing Gen. McChrystal’s report on Afghanistan.

PLUS: Jimmy Buffett was spotted at the White House Wednesday afternoon. But he wouldn’t speak – or sing – to reporters. — Amie Parnes (UPDATED 1:31 p.m.)

Last November, Buffett performed at a rally for Barack Obama in Tampa, Florida.

Update – Buffett was also spotted eating lunch at The Bombay Club near the White House. (h/t TheMidnightHour)

(photo by Amie Parnes)

A memorial service will be held next month in Manhattan for legendary CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite and Jimmy Buffett, a close friend of Cronkite, will perform:

President Obama has been invited to eulogize Walter Cronkite, the legendary CBS News anchorman, at a memorial service in Manhattan next month, network sources said.

Former President Bill Clinton has accepted an invitation to speak at the service, to be held at Lincoln Center at 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 9.

Also speaking at the service will be Katie Couric, anchor and managing editor of the “CBS Evening News”; Sean McManus, president of CBS News and Sports; and Leslie Moonves, CBS Corp.’s president and chief executive officer.

Performances are scheduled by Jimmy Buffett and Mickey Hart, who was a Grateful Dead drummer.

Read the full article here.

Men’s Journal has an interview with Jimmy Buffett: “Survival Skills: Jimmy Buffett”

What secrets should a man keep to himself?
I think secrets should be held for a long time, and, if you live a long and interesting life, it’s worth it to let them all out at the end. I wrote a book at 50, and I didn’t tell all the good stuff. It’s like, there are secrets to writing songs. There are secret surf spots. You keep that box of magic tricks around, and when you’re done doing your magic, then you can talk about it—purely for the showbiz aspect of the tell-all book.

What’s the handiest survival skill you have?
I’m a pretty good field medic. From my Boy Scout days I can patch people up. I can do stitches, which comes in handy in remote surf breaks.

What skill would you like to master?
I had a fleeting desire to do kitesurfing— then I saw the injury reports and the YouTube videos and I wnet, “Nah. I’m content.” Stand up paddleboarding is the last new skill I learned. Laird Hamilton gave me a lesson. It took me about an hour, and then I had it pretty good.

What do you want to do before you die?
I have four things: Learn to hang ten. Go to space. Go to Pitcairn Island, where my Buffett ancestors are from. And go to Antarctica.

What’s the secret to staying young?
For me it’s being in the water every day, whether it’s surfing or swimming. I look at these guys in Hawaii and they’re 80 years old in the surf break and look great. And that’s all they do. I want to be in that club when I’m that old.

Read the full interview here.