POP / ROCK

Party rock specialist Jimmy Buffett had an unexpected change in latitude Tuesday night when the chartered jet in which he and his band were flying developed landing gear problems and was forced to make an emergency landing in Bakersfield. Buffett and company, en route to Paso Robles to play at the Mid-State Fair at Paso Robles, were soon back in the air after the problem--the nose gear wouldn’t extend all the way--was fixed. Buffett’s manager, Nina Avramides, said Wednesday that the laid-back singer is fine and that he went on stage only 20 minutes later than scheduled.