Jackson Browne
Encyclopedia
Jackson Browne is an American singer-songwriter
and musician
who has sold over 17 million albums in the United States alone.
Coming to prominence in the 1970s, Browne has written and recorded several notable tracks throughout his career including "These Days
", "The Pretender
", "Running On Empty
", "Lawyers in Love
", "Doctor My Eyes
", "Take It Easy
", "For a Rocker
", and "Somebody's Baby
". In 2004, he was both inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
in Cleveland, Ohio
, and bestowed an Honorary Doctorate of Music by Occidental College
in Los Angeles
, California
.
, Germany
, where his father, an American serviceman, was stationed. Browne's mother, Beatrice Amanda (née
Dahl), was a Minnesota native of Norwegian ancestry. Browne has three siblings: Roberta "Berbie" Browne who was born in 1946 in Nuernberg, Germany (Nuernberg) and Edward Severin Browne who was born in 1949 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. His younger sister, Gracie Browne, was born a number of years later. Browne moved to the Highland Park
district of Los Angeles, California
, at the age of 3 and in his teens began singing folk music
in local venues like the Ash Grove
and The Troubador Club. He attended Sunny Hills High School
in Fullerton, California
, graduating in 1966.
, New York, in early 1966, Browne joined the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
, performing at the Golden Bear
(Huntington Beach, California) where they opened for The Lovin' Spoonful
. The band later recorded a number of Browne's songs, including "These Days", "Holding", and "Shadow Dream Song". Browne also spent a short amount of time in his friend Pamela Polland's band, Gentle Soul. Before Browne's 18th birthday, he became a staff writer for Elektra Records' publishing company, Nina Music, reporting on musical events in New York City with his friends Greg Copeland and Adam Saylor. He spent the remainder of 1967 and 1968 in Greenwich Village, New York, where he backed Tim Buckley and German singer Nico
of the Velvet Underground. In 1967 Browne and Nico were romantically linked and he became a significant contributor to her debut album, Chelsea Girl
, writing and playing guitar on several of the songs (including "These Days
"). After leaving New York City, Browne formed a folk band with Ned Doheny
and Jack Wilce, and settled in Southern California
.
Browne's first songs, such as "Shadow Dream Song" and "These Days", were recorded by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
, Tom Rush
, Nico
, Steve Noonan, Gregg Allman
, Joan Baez
, the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt
, the Byrds
, and others. Browne did not release his own version of many of these early songs himself until years later.
and released Jackson Browne
(1972), which included the piano-driven "Doctor My Eyes
", which entered the Top Ten in the US singles chart
. "Rock Me on the Water", from the same album, also gained considerable radio airplay
, while "Jamaica Say You Will" and "Song for Adam
" helped establish Browne's reputation. Touring to promote the album, he shared the bill with Linda Ronstadt
and Joni Mitchell
.
His next album, For Everyman
(1973) — while considered of high quality — was less successful than his debut album, although it still sold a million copies. The upbeat "Take It Easy
", co-written with The Eagles' Glenn Frey
, had already been a major success for that group, while his own recording of "These Days
" reflected a sound representing Browne's angst.
Late for the Sky
(1974) consolidated Browne's fan base. Browne's work began to demonstrate a reputation for memorable melody, insightful (and often very personal) lyrics, and a talent for his arrangement
s in composition.
It featured a Magritte-inspired cover. Highlights included the title song, the elegiac
"For a Dancer," "Before the Deluge" and the often-covered "Fountain of Sorrow." The arrangements featured the violin
and guitar
of David Lindley
, Jai Winding's piano, and the harmonies of Doug Haywood. The title track was also featured in Martin Scorsese
's film Taxi Driver
. During this period, Browne began his fractious but lifelong professional relationship with singer-songwriter
Warren Zevon
, mentoring Zevon's first two Asylum albums through the studio as a producer (working closely with Waddy Wachtel
and Jorge Calderón
).
Browne's character was even more apparent in his next album, The Pretender
. It was released during 1976, after the suicide of his first wife, Phyllis Major. The album features production by Jon Landau
and a mixture of styles, ranging from the Mariachi
-inspired "Linda Paloma" to the country
-driven "Your Bright Baby Blues" to the downbeat "Sleep's Dark and Silent Gate". "Here Come Those Tears Again" was cowritten with Nancy Farnsworth, the mother of Browne's wife, after the untimely death of her daughter.
Browne began recording his next LP while on tour, and Running on Empty
(1977) became his biggest commercial success. Breaking the usual conventions for a live album
, Browne used new material and combined live concert performances with recordings made on buses, in hotel rooms, and back stage. Running on Empty
contains many of his most popular songs, such as the title track
, "The Road" (written and recorded in 1972 by Danny O'Keefe
), "Rosie", and "The Load-Out
/Stay
" (Browne's send-off to his concert audiences and roadies) although none had been recorded previously.
Soon after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident
, during March 1979, Browne joined with several musician friends to found the anti-nuclear
organization Musicians United for Safe Energy
. He was arrested protesting the Diablo Canyon Power Plant
near San Luis Obispo. His next album, Hold Out
(1980), was commercially successful — his only Number 1 record on the U.S. pop albums chart
. The next year he released the single "Somebody's Baby
" from the Fast Times at Ridgemont High
soundtrack, which became his biggest hit, peaking at Number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100
. The 1983 Lawyers in Love
followed, signaling a discernible change from the personal to the political in his lyrics.
Political protest came to the fore in Browne's music in the 1986 album, Lives in the Balance
, an explicit condemnation of Reaganism
and U.S. policy in Central America. Flavored with new instrumental textures, it was a huge success with many Browne fans, though not with mainstream audiences. The title track, "Lives in the Balance", with its Andean
pan pipes
— and lines like, "There's a shadow on the faces / Of the men who fan the flames / Of the wars that are fought in places / Where we can't even say the names" — was an outcry against U.S.-backed wars in Nicaragua
, El Salvador
, and Guatemala
. The song was used at several points in the award-winning 1987 PBS documentary
, The Secret Government: The Constitution in Crisis, by journalist Bill Moyers
, and was part of the soundtrack of Stone's War, a 1986 Miami Vice
episode focusing on American involvement in Central America.
During the 1980s, Browne performed frequently at benefit concerts for leftist causes he believed in, including Farm Aid
; Amnesty International
(making several appearances on the 1986 A Conspiracy of Hope Tour
); post-Somoza
, revolution
ary Nicaragua; and the Christic Institute
. The album World in Motion
, released during 1989, contains a cover of Steve Van Zandt's "I am a Patriot," a song which he has performed at numerous concerts.
Browne also performed alongside Roy Orbison
in A Black and White Night
in 1988 along with Bruce Springsteen
, k.d. lang
and many others. Originally airing on Cinemax
, a live album and video recordings were also released.
Friends
. In 1994, Browne collaborated with Kathy Mattea
to contribute "Rock Me on the Water" to the AIDS
benefit album Red Hot + Country
produced by the Red Hot Organization
.
During 1995, he performed in The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
a musical performance of the popular story at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund
. The performance was originally broadcast on Turner Network Television (TNT), and issued on CD and video in 1996. He sang a duet with Jann Arden
, "Unloved", on her 1995 album Living Under June
. Browne's own album, Looking East
(1996), was released soon after, but was not as successful commercially.
in 2002, with a performance on Austin City Limits
, featuring the recording with older familiar songs.
During 2003, Browne guest-starred as himself in The Simpsons
episode "Brake My Wife, Please
", performing a parody of his song "Rosie" with lyrics altered to reference the plot involving Homer and Marge.
In 2004, Browne was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
. Bruce Springsteen
gave the induction speech, commenting to Browne that although the Eagles were inducted first, he said, "You wrote the songs they wished they had written". Browne had written an uncounted number of hit songs that many artists, including the Eagles and Springsteen himself, had recorded over the span of his career. The previous year, three of Browne's albums — For Everyman
, Late for the Sky
, and The Pretender
— had been selected by Rolling Stone
magazine as among its choices for the 500 best albums of all time.
A liberal Democrat, Browne appeared in several rallies for presidential candidate Ralph Nader
in 2000, singing "I Am a Patriot" and other songs. He participated in the Vote for Change
tour during October 2004, playing a series of concerts in American swing states. These concerts were organized by MoveOn.org to mobilize people to vote for John Kerry
in the presidential election
. Browne appeared with Bonnie Raitt
and Keb' Mo'
, and once with Bruce Springsteen
. During late 2006, Browne performed with Michael Stanley
and J. D. Souther
at a fundraiser for Democratic candidates in Ohio
. For the 2008 Presidential Election, he endorsed John Edwards
for the Democratic Presidential Nomination and performed at some of Edwards' appearances. After Barack Obama
won the Democratic nomination, Browne endorsed him. Browne also performed briefly at the Occupy Wall Street presence at Zuccotti Park in Lower Manhattan on December 1, 2011, to show his support for their cause.
Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1
, was released in 2005 on Inside Recordings
. The album consists of live recordings of 11 previously released tracks and "The Birds of St. Marks
", a song that does not appear on any of Browne's studio albums. This album was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2007 in the category of Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. A live followup album, Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2
, was released on March 4, 2008.
Browne is part of the No Nukes group which is against the expansion of nuclear power
. During 2007, the group recorded a music video
of a new version of the Buffalo Springfield
song "For What It's Worth".
Browne cameoed
in the 2007 film, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
.
Browne's studio album, Time the Conqueror
, was released September 23, 2008 via Inside Recordings
. The album reached the Billboard 200 album chart at #20, which was his first top 20 record since releasing Lawyers in Love
in 1983. In addition, the album peaked at #2 on the Billboard Independent Album chart.
During August 2008, Browne sued John McCain
, the Ohio Republican Party
, and the Republican National Committee
for using his 1977 hit, "Running on Empty
", in an attack advertisement against Barack Obama
without his permission. In July 2009, the matter was settled under an undisclosed financial agreement with an apology from the McCain campaign and other parties.
During August 2008, he appeared on the ALMA Awards in a taped interview honoring Trailblazer Award recipient and long-time friend, Linda Ronstadt
.
On 31 May 2008, Jackson Browne performed at the Artist for the Arts Foundation benefit at Barnum Hall, Santa Monica High School, Santa Monica, California. Performing live, alongside Heart, Venice ("Crazy On You") and over 70 members of the Santa Monica High School (SaMoHi) Orchestra and Girls Choir ("Bohemian Rhapsody"), the benefit helped to provide funds for the continuation of music education in public schools. The event was filmed and recorded by Touring Video and Post by On the WAVE Productions. Browne again performed there with Heart and other musician guest stars in 2009.
In January 2011, Browne won the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards in the Best Live Performance Album category for Love is Strange, performed by himself and David Lindley.
Browne contributed a cover of Buddy Holly's "True Love Ways
" for a 2011 tribute album, Listen to Me: Buddy Holly.
Browne has been married twice and has two children. His first wife was actress/model Phyllis Major (1946–1976). The two began their relationship around 1971, and married in late 1975, as memorialized in the song "Ready or Not". Their son, model/actor Ethan Zane Browne was born in 1973 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and grew up in Los Angeles, CA. Jackson and six month old Ethan appeared together on the cover of "Rolling Stone" magazine in May 1974. Ethan Browne has worked as a model and had small parts in two movies: Raising Helen
and Hackers
. Browne was devastated when Major committed suicide by consuming an overdose of sleeping pills just a few months after they married, in March 1976, at the age of 30.
Browne was married in January 1981 to Australian model Lynne Sweeney with whom he had a second son, Ryan Browne, born on January 28, 1982, who has been a bass player and singer in the band Sonny and the Sunsets since 2007. Browne and Sweeney were divorced in 1983, when he began dating actress Daryl Hannah
. The relationship with Hannah ended in 1992. It has been said that the song "Not to Blame", by Joni Mitchell, was written about the relationship between Browne and Hannah or, perhaps more likely, inspired by Mitchell's understanding of Browne's relationship with Major, Hannah, and others. He has been with artist and environmental activist Dianna Cohen, and a co-founding member of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, since the mid 1990s.
with Bonnie Raitt
in 1979. He was also an active member of the Abalone Alliance
and the Alliance for Survival. According to environmental activist Ed Begley, Jr.
, “He’s got this big wind turbine, and his ranch is completely off the [power] grid”, Begley said. “He’s done all of it himself.”
Browne campaigns against the unnecessary use of water in plastic bottles and takes steps to reduce usage on his tours. He is part of the movement "Plastic Free Backstage".
In April 2008, the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) gave Browne the honor of "Environmentalist of the Year".
Browne received the Duke LEAF Award for Lifetime Environmental Achievement in the Fine Arts in 2010 for his environmental activism and efforts to make his tours more "green".
Save Our Shores (SOS), an ocean advocacy group in California, honored Browne with their Ocean Hero Award on February 23, 2011. SOS and Santa Cruz mayor, Ryan Coonerty, proclaimed the date "Jackson Browne Day" in the City of Santa Cruz to honor Browne's social, environmental and anti-plastic activism, and as a founding member of the Plastic Pollution and an initiator of the REFUSE Disposable Plastics Campaign.
Browne also attended the TEDx Great Pacific Garbage Patch conference, performing a new song, "If I Could Be Anywhere", which laments mankind's destruction of the earth and giving hope to activism.
Tenzin Gyatso, and to publicize the human rights
situation in Tibet
. The album was issued on August 5 via iTunes
and on August 19 in music stores around the world.
Browne covered John Lennon
's "Oh My Love" to benefit Amnesty International's campaign to alleviate the crisis in Darfur
. The song appears on the album Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur
, which was released on June 12, 2007 and features many other prominent artists performing other John Lennon
covers, such as R.E.M.
, Jack Johnson
, U2
, Avril Lavigne
, Green Day
, and The Black Eyed Peas
.
Browne performed live and recorded The Beatles
song medley "Golden Slumbers
/Carry That Weight" in 1991 with Jennifer Warnes
for the charity album For Our Children to benefit the Pediatrics AIDS Foundation. Browne and Warnes again performed it live for the Tucson, AZ benefit concert.
Browne performed and sang the role of the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
, a 1995 musical performance for charity alongside Roger Daltrey, Natalie Cole, Tim Allen, and other stars. The celebrity cast performed a reader's theatre and songs styled performance of the MGM film The Wizard of Oz"" at the Lincoln Center as a benefit for the Children's Defense Fund. VHS and CD recordings were released of the concert in 1996 by Rhino Records.
Browne covered Lowen & Navarro
's "Weight of the World" on Keep The Light Alive: Celebrating The Music of Lowen & Navarro. The proceeds of the album benefit The Eric Lowen Trust, ALS Association Greater Los Angeles
, and Augie's Quest.
Browne also held a benefit concert for the Rory David Deutsch Foundation which is dedicated to providing funding for brain tumor research and treatment.
In October 2010 Browne performed at both days of the 24th Annual Bridge School Benefit
Concert, a yearly fundraiser established by Neil Young
. The Bridge School assists children with severe physical impairments and complex communication needs. Browne also appeared at the 2010 NAMM Conference in Anaheim, California
with Yoko Ono
and Quincy Jones in support of the John Lennon
Educational Tour Bus.
On March 10, 2011 Jackson Browne with David Crosby
, Graham Nash
, Alice Cooper
, and others performed a benefit concert in Tucson, Arizona benefiting The Fund For Civility, Respect, and Understanding, a foundation that raises awareness about and provides medical prevention and treatment services to people with mental disorders. The concert also benefited victims of the January 8, 2011 shootings in Tucson, AZ.
Browne has continued to provide exclusive music tracks for various charity and benefit albums including Safety Harbor Kids Holiday Collection (where he sang the Johnny Marks holiday song "Silver and Gold" with longtime friend Lowell George
's daughter, Inara George). Browne provided a live version of "Drums of War" for The People Speak Soundtrack. Other charity albums he has contributed to include: Acordes Con Leonard Cohen
(song: "A Thousand Kisses Deep"), From Wharf Rats to Lords of the Docks Soundtrack (song: "Step By Step"), Shrink
(the Kevin Spacey film Soundtrack) (song: "Here"), Keep the Light Alive: Celebrating the Music of Eric Lowen and Dan Navarro (song: "Weight of the World"), and 1% For The Planet: The Music, Vol. 1 (a live version of "About My Imagination"), as well as many benefit concert and other appearances.
, and on June 7, 2007 Jackson Browne was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
.
In 2004, Jackson was named an honorary Doctorate of Music by Occidental College in Los Angeles, for "a remarkable musical career that has successfully combined an intensely personal artistry with a broader vision of social justice."
For "promoting peace and justice through his music and his unrelenting support for that which promotes nonviolent solutions to problems both nationally and internationally", Browne received the Courage of Conscience Awards from The Peace Abbey in Sherborn, Massachusetts.
In 2007, he was awarded the Chapin-World Hunger Year Harry Chapin
Humanitarian Award.
In 2008, Browne received the NARM Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award.
In 2002, Browne was given the John Steinbeck
Award, given to artists who are an example of the environmental and social values that Steinbeck believed in.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
and musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
who has sold over 17 million albums in the United States alone.
Coming to prominence in the 1970s, Browne has written and recorded several notable tracks throughout his career including "These Days
These Days (Jackson Browne song)
"These Days" is a song written by Jackson Browne and principally recorded by Nico, Gregg Allman, and Browne himself in three distinctly different musical styles...
", "The Pretender
The Pretender (Jackson Browne song)
"The Pretender" is a song by American rock performer, Jackson Browne and featured on his 1976 album The Pretender.- History :"The Pretender" was composed in a number of locations; Los Angeles, within a rented store-front in North Hollywood and a "tacky" hotel in Hawaii being two of them...
", "Running On Empty
Running on Empty (song)
"Running on Empty" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. It is the title track to his 1977 live Running on Empty album, recorded at a concert at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland, on August 27, 1977...
", "Lawyers in Love
Lawyers in Love (song)
"Lawyers in Love" is the first single and title track of Jackson Browne's 1983 album of the same name, Lawyers in Love. Though not as successful as Browne's previous single "Somebody's Baby", it nonetheless peaked at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 US charts, making it one of Browne's highest...
", "Doctor My Eyes
Doctor My Eyes
"Doctor My Eyes" is a 1972 song written and performed by Jackson Browne and included on his debut album Jackson Browne. Featuring a combination of an upbeat piano riff coupled, somewhat ironically, with lyric about feeling world-weary, the song was a surprise hit, reaching number 8 on the...
", "Take It Easy
Take It Easy
"Take It Easy" is the title of a song written by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey, and most famously recorded by the Eagles . It was the band's first single, released on May 1, 1972. It also was the opening track on the band's debut album Eagles and it has become one of their signature songs, included...
", "For a Rocker
For a Rocker
"For a Rocker" is a 1983 single by Jackson Browne. It charted at number eight on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The third single released from his seventh album, Lawyers in Love, it's also the eighth and last track on it....
", and "Somebody's Baby
Somebody's Baby
"Somebody's Baby" is a 1982 song written and recorded by Jackson Browne for the 1982 Fast Times at Ridgemont High movie soundtrack. Reaching #7 on 1982's Billboard Hot 100, the track would be Browne's last top ten song as well as the highest-charting single of his career...
". In 2004, he was both inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, and bestowed an Honorary Doctorate of Music by Occidental College
Occidental College
Occidental College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887, Occidental College, or "Oxy" as it is called by students and alumni, is one of the oldest liberal arts colleges on the West Coast...
in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Early life
Browne was born in HeidelbergHeidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, where his father, an American serviceman, was stationed. Browne's mother, Beatrice Amanda (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Dahl), was a Minnesota native of Norwegian ancestry. Browne has three siblings: Roberta "Berbie" Browne who was born in 1946 in Nuernberg, Germany (Nuernberg) and Edward Severin Browne who was born in 1949 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. His younger sister, Gracie Browne, was born a number of years later. Browne moved to the Highland Park
Highland Park, Los Angeles, California
Highland Park is a neighborhood in Northeast Los Angeles.-Geography:Highland Park is located along the Arroyo Seco. It is situated within what was once Rancho San Rafael of the Spanish / Mexican era...
district of Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, at the age of 3 and in his teens began singing folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
in local venues like the Ash Grove
Ash Grove (music club)
The Ash Grove was a folk music club located at 8162 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, founded in 1958 by Ed Pearl and named after the Welsh folk song, "The Ash Grove."...
and The Troubador Club. He attended Sunny Hills High School
Sunny Hills High School
Sunny Hills High School is a public high school located in Fullerton, California, USA. Established in 1959, it is part of the Fullerton Joint Union High School District....
in Fullerton, California
Fullerton, California
Fullerton is a city located in northern Orange County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 135,161.It was founded in 1887 by George and Edward Amerige and named for George H. Fullerton, who secured the land on behalf of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway...
, graduating in 1966.
Songwriter for others
After moving to Greenwich VillageGreenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
, New York, in early 1966, Browne joined the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country-folk-rock band that has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California in 1966. The group's membership has had at least a dozen changes over the years, including a period from 1976 to 1981 when the band performed and recorded...
, performing at the Golden Bear
Golden Bear (nightclub)
The Golden Bear was a nightclub in Huntington Beach, California from 1923 to 1986. It was located on Pacific Coast Highway just south of Main Street...
(Huntington Beach, California) where they opened for The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is an American pop rock band of the 1960s, named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. When asked about his band, leader John Sebastian said it sounded like a combination of "Mississippi John Hurt and Chuck Berry," prompting his friend, Fritz Richmond, to suggest the name...
. The band later recorded a number of Browne's songs, including "These Days", "Holding", and "Shadow Dream Song". Browne also spent a short amount of time in his friend Pamela Polland's band, Gentle Soul. Before Browne's 18th birthday, he became a staff writer for Elektra Records' publishing company, Nina Music, reporting on musical events in New York City with his friends Greg Copeland and Adam Saylor. He spent the remainder of 1967 and 1968 in Greenwich Village, New York, where he backed Tim Buckley and German singer Nico
Nico
Nico was a German singer, lyricist, composer, musician, fashion model, and actress, who initially rose to fame as a Warhol Superstar in the 1960s...
of the Velvet Underground. In 1967 Browne and Nico were romantically linked and he became a significant contributor to her debut album, Chelsea Girl
Chelsea Girl (album)
Chelsea Girl is the debut solo album by Nico. It was released in October 1967 by Verve Records, also home to The Velvet Underground. The name of the album is a reference to Andy Warhol's 1966 film Chelsea Girls, which Nico starred in...
, writing and playing guitar on several of the songs (including "These Days
These Days (Jackson Browne song)
"These Days" is a song written by Jackson Browne and principally recorded by Nico, Gregg Allman, and Browne himself in three distinctly different musical styles...
"). After leaving New York City, Browne formed a folk band with Ned Doheny
Ned Doheny
Ned Doheny is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist from Malibu, California who has recorded five albums as well as performing on many albums by other artists including Don Henley and Glenn Frey of the Eagles, J.D...
and Jack Wilce, and settled in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
.
Browne's first songs, such as "Shadow Dream Song" and "These Days", were recorded by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country-folk-rock band that has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California in 1966. The group's membership has had at least a dozen changes over the years, including a period from 1976 to 1981 when the band performed and recorded...
, Tom Rush
Tom Rush
Tom Rush is an American folk and blues singer, songwriter, musician and recording artist.- Life and career :Rush was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. His father was a teacher at St. Paul's School, in Concord, New Hampshire. Tom began performing in 1961 while studying at Harvard University after...
, Nico
Nico
Nico was a German singer, lyricist, composer, musician, fashion model, and actress, who initially rose to fame as a Warhol Superstar in the 1960s...
, Steve Noonan, Gregg Allman
Gregg Allman
Gregory Lenoir Allman , known as Gregg Allman, is a rock and blues singer, keyboardist, guitarist and songwriter, and a founding member of The Allman Brothers Band. He was inducted with the band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Georgia...
, Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
, the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
, the Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
, and others. Browne did not release his own version of many of these early songs himself until years later.
Classic period
In 1971, Browne signed with Asylum RecordsAsylum Records
Asylum Records is an American record label founded in 1971 by David Geffen, and partner Elliot Roberts, who had previously worked as agents at the William Morris Agency. Founded specifically to provide a record contract for Jackson Browne, the label signed Tom Waits, Linda Ronstadt, Joni Mitchell...
and released Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne (album)
Jackson Browne is the self-titled debut album of singer Jackson Browne released in 1972. It peaked on the Billboard 200 chart at number 53. Two singles were released with "Doctor My Eyes" peaking at number 8 on the Pop Singles chart and "Rock Me on the Water" reaching number 48.-History:Browne had...
(1972), which included the piano-driven "Doctor My Eyes
Doctor My Eyes
"Doctor My Eyes" is a 1972 song written and performed by Jackson Browne and included on his debut album Jackson Browne. Featuring a combination of an upbeat piano riff coupled, somewhat ironically, with lyric about feeling world-weary, the song was a surprise hit, reaching number 8 on the...
", which entered the Top Ten in the US singles chart
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. "Rock Me on the Water", from the same album, also gained considerable radio airplay
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
, while "Jamaica Say You Will" and "Song for Adam
Song for Adam
"Song for Adam" is a song by Jackson Browne from this 1972 debut album Jackson Browne. On the surface it tells of the mournful memory of a long lost friend Jackson had known, who committed suicide. "Though Adam was a friend of mine, he ..." is the vocal motif. Instrumentally, it contains a soft...
" helped establish Browne's reputation. Touring to promote the album, he shared the bill with Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
and Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
.
His next album, For Everyman
For Everyman
For Everyman is the second album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1973 . The album peaked at number 43 on the Billboard 200 chart and the single "Redneck Friend" reached number 85 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart...
(1973) — while considered of high quality — was less successful than his debut album, although it still sold a million copies. The upbeat "Take It Easy
Take It Easy
"Take It Easy" is the title of a song written by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey, and most famously recorded by the Eagles . It was the band's first single, released on May 1, 1972. It also was the opening track on the band's debut album Eagles and it has become one of their signature songs, included...
", co-written with The Eagles' Glenn Frey
Glenn Frey
Glenn Lewis Frey is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as a founding member of the Eagles. Frey formed the Eagles after he met drummer Don Henley in 1970 and the two eventually joined Linda Ronstadt's backup band for her summer tour. The Eagles formed in 1971 and...
, had already been a major success for that group, while his own recording of "These Days
These Days (Jackson Browne song)
"These Days" is a song written by Jackson Browne and principally recorded by Nico, Gregg Allman, and Browne himself in three distinctly different musical styles...
" reflected a sound representing Browne's angst.
Late for the Sky
Late for the Sky
Late for the Sky is the third album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1974 . It was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1975. It peaked at #14 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart...
(1974) consolidated Browne's fan base. Browne's work began to demonstrate a reputation for memorable melody, insightful (and often very personal) lyrics, and a talent for his arrangement
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
s in composition.
It featured a Magritte-inspired cover. Highlights included the title song, the elegiac
Elegy
In literature, an elegy is a mournful, melancholic or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead.-History:The Greek term elegeia originally referred to any verse written in elegiac couplets and covering a wide range of subject matter, including epitaphs for tombs...
"For a Dancer," "Before the Deluge" and the often-covered "Fountain of Sorrow." The arrangements featured the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
of David Lindley
David Lindley (musician)
David Perry Lindley is an American musician who is notable for his work with Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon, and other rock musicians. He has worked extensively in other genres as well, performing with artists as varied as Curtis Mayfield and Dolly Parton...
, Jai Winding's piano, and the harmonies of Doug Haywood. The title track was also featured in Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's film Taxi Driver
Taxi Driver
Taxi Driver is a 1976 American drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. The film is set in New York City, soon after the Vietnam War. The film stars Robert De Niro and features Jodie Foster, Harvey Keitel, and Cybill Shepherd. The film was nominated for four Academy...
. During this period, Browne began his fractious but lifelong professional relationship with singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Warren Zevon
Warren Zevon
Warren William Zevon was an American rock singer-songwriter and musician noted for including his sometimes sardonic opinions of life in his musical lyrics, composing songs that were sometimes humorous and often had political or historical themes.Zevon's work has often been praised by well-known...
, mentoring Zevon's first two Asylum albums through the studio as a producer (working closely with Waddy Wachtel
Waddy Wachtel
Robert "Waddy" Wachtel is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work...
and Jorge Calderón
Jorge Calderón
Jorge Calderón, originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer best known for his collaborations with Warren Zevon. He holds the unique distinction of having been credited on all of Zevon's post-1976 albums with the exception of My Ride's Here...
).
Browne's character was even more apparent in his next album, The Pretender
The Pretender (album)
The Pretender is the fourth album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1976 . It peaked at #5 on Billboard's album chart. The singles from the album were "Here Come Those Tears Again" which reached number 23 and "The Pretender" which peaked at number 58...
. It was released during 1976, after the suicide of his first wife, Phyllis Major. The album features production by Jon Landau
Jon Landau
Jon Landau is an American music critic, manager and record producer, most known for his association in all three capacities with Bruce Springsteen.He is currently the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....
and a mixture of styles, ranging from the Mariachi
Mariachi
Mariachi is a genre of music that originated in the State of Jalisco, in Mexico. It is an integration of stringed instruments highly influenced by the cultural impacts of the historical development of Western Mexico. Throughout the history of mariachi, musicians have experimented with brass, wind,...
-inspired "Linda Paloma" to the country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
-driven "Your Bright Baby Blues" to the downbeat "Sleep's Dark and Silent Gate". "Here Come Those Tears Again" was cowritten with Nancy Farnsworth, the mother of Browne's wife, after the untimely death of her daughter.
Browne began recording his next LP while on tour, and Running on Empty
Running on Empty (album)
Running on Empty is the fifth album by American singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. Released in 1977, the album reached #3 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart in 1978 and stayed on the charts for 65 weeks...
(1977) became his biggest commercial success. Breaking the usual conventions for a live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
, Browne used new material and combined live concert performances with recordings made on buses, in hotel rooms, and back stage. Running on Empty
Running on Empty (album)
Running on Empty is the fifth album by American singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. Released in 1977, the album reached #3 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart in 1978 and stayed on the charts for 65 weeks...
contains many of his most popular songs, such as the title track
Running on Empty (song)
"Running on Empty" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. It is the title track to his 1977 live Running on Empty album, recorded at a concert at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland, on August 27, 1977...
, "The Road" (written and recorded in 1972 by Danny O'Keefe
Danny O'Keefe
Danny O'Keefe is a U.S. based singer-songwriter, born in Spokane, Washington, in 1943. O'Keefe's musical career has spanned four decades from his early days playing in the Minnesota coffee houses to his present station in the Seattle area...
), "Rosie", and "The Load-Out
The Load-Out
"The Load-Out" is a song by Jackson Browne from his 1977 album Running on Empty. It is a tribute to his roadies and fans. The song was recorded live at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland....
/Stay
Stay (Maurice Williams song)
"Stay" is a doo-wop song recorded by Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs. The song was written by Williams in 1953 when he was 15 years old. He had been trying to convince his date not to go home at 10 o'clock as she was supposed to...
" (Browne's send-off to his concert audiences and roadies) although none had been recorded previously.
Activism and music
In spring of 1978 Browne appeared at the site of the Barnwell, South Carolina nuclear reprocessing plant to perform a free concert the night before a civil disobedience action. He did not participate in the action.Soon after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident
Three Mile Island accident
The Three Mile Island accident was a core meltdown in Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania near Harrisburg, United States in 1979....
, during March 1979, Browne joined with several musician friends to found the anti-nuclear
Anti-nuclear
The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes the use of nuclear technologies. Many direct action groups, environmental groups, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, national, and international level...
organization Musicians United for Safe Energy
Musicians United for Safe Energy
Musicians United for Safe Energy, or MUSE, is an activist group founded in 1979 by Jackson Browne, Graham Nash, Bonnie Raitt, and John Hall. The group advocates against the use of nuclear energy, forming shortly after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in March 1979...
. He was arrested protesting the Diablo Canyon Power Plant
Diablo Canyon Power Plant
Diablo Canyon Power Plant is an electricity-generating nuclear power plant at Avila Beach in San Luis Obispo County, California. The plant has two Westinghouse-designed 4-loop pressurized-water nuclear reactors operated by Pacific Gas & Electric. The facility is located on about in Avila Beach,...
near San Luis Obispo. His next album, Hold Out
Hold Out
Hold Out is the sixth album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1980 . Although critically the album has not been as well received as other Browne recordings, it remains his only album to date to reach #1 on the Billboard chart.-History:Hold Out contains the fewest tracks of...
(1980), was commercially successful — his only Number 1 record on the U.S. pop albums chart
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. The next year he released the single "Somebody's Baby
Somebody's Baby
"Somebody's Baby" is a 1982 song written and recorded by Jackson Browne for the 1982 Fast Times at Ridgemont High movie soundtrack. Reaching #7 on 1982's Billboard Hot 100, the track would be Browne's last top ten song as well as the highest-charting single of his career...
" from the Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe and adapted from his 1981 book of the same name...
soundtrack, which became his biggest hit, peaking at Number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. The 1983 Lawyers in Love
Lawyers in Love
Lawyers in Love is the seventh album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1983 . It reached number 8 on the Billboard Pop album chart and number 30 on the Billboard 200. It was Browne's fourth straight Top 10 album and stayed on the charts for 33 weeks. Out of eight tracks,...
followed, signaling a discernible change from the personal to the political in his lyrics.
Political protest came to the fore in Browne's music in the 1986 album, Lives in the Balance
Lives in the Balance
Critical press focused on the political direction of Lives in the Balance. Music critic William Rulhmann wrote "...if Browne sounded more involved in his music than he had in some time, the specificity of its approach inevitably limited its appeal and its long-term significance." Critic Robert...
, an explicit condemnation of Reaganism
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and U.S. policy in Central America. Flavored with new instrumental textures, it was a huge success with many Browne fans, though not with mainstream audiences. The title track, "Lives in the Balance", with its Andean
Andean music
Andean music comes from the general area inhabited by Quechuas, Aymaras and other peoples that lived roughly in the area of the Inca Empire prior to European contact. It includes folklore music of parts of Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela...
pan pipes
Pan flute
The pan flute or pan pipe is an ancient musical instrument based on the principle of the closed tube, consisting usually of five or more pipes of gradually increasing length...
— and lines like, "There's a shadow on the faces / Of the men who fan the flames / Of the wars that are fought in places / Where we can't even say the names" — was an outcry against U.S.-backed wars in Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, and Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. The song was used at several points in the award-winning 1987 PBS documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
, The Secret Government: The Constitution in Crisis, by journalist Bill Moyers
Bill Moyers
Bill Moyers is an American journalist and public commentator. He served as White House Press Secretary in the United States President Lyndon B. Johnson Administration from 1965 to 1967. He worked as a news commentator on television for ten years. Moyers has had an extensive involvement with public...
, and was part of the soundtrack of Stone's War, a 1986 Miami Vice
Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
episode focusing on American involvement in Central America.
During the 1980s, Browne performed frequently at benefit concerts for leftist causes he believed in, including Farm Aid
Farm Aid
Farm Aid started as a benefit concert on September 22, 1985, in Champaign, Illinois, held to raise money for family farmers in the United States...
; Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
(making several appearances on the 1986 A Conspiracy of Hope Tour
A Conspiracy of Hope Tour
A Conspiracy of Hope was a short tour of six benefit concerts on behalf of Amnesty International that took place in the United States during June 1986. The purpose of the tour was not to raise funds but rather to increase awareness of human rights and of Amnesty's work on its 25th anniversary, and...
); post-Somoza
Somoza
The Somoza family was an influential political dynasty who ruled Nicaragua as an hereditary dictatorship. Their influence exceeded their combined 43 years in the de facto presidency, as they were the power behind the other presidents of the time through their control of the National Guard...
, revolution
Revolution
A revolution is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time.Aristotle described two types of political revolution:...
ary Nicaragua; and the Christic Institute
Christic Institute
The Christic Institute was a public interest law firm founded in 1980 by Daniel Sheehan, his wife, Sara Nelson and their partner, William J. Davis, who was a Jesuit priest. Its headquarters were based in Washington, D.C. with several offices in other major United States cities, such as San...
. The album World in Motion
World in Motion (album)
World in Motion is the ninth album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1989 . It peaked at number 45 on The Billboard 200 and was Browne's first album to obtain neither Gold nor Platinum status...
, released during 1989, contains a cover of Steve Van Zandt's "I am a Patriot," a song which he has performed at numerous concerts.
Browne also performed alongside Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
in A Black and White Night
Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night
Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night is a 1988 Cinemax television special originally broadcast on January 3, 1988 starring Hall of Fame singer/songwriter Roy Orbison. The special was filmed entirely in black and white...
in 1988 along with Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
, k.d. lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
and many others. Originally airing on Cinemax
Cinemax
Cinemax, sometimes abbreviated as simply "Max", is a collection of premium television networks that broadcasts primarily feature films, along with softcore erotica, original action series, documentaries and special behind-the-scenes features. Cinemax is operated by Home Box Office, Inc., a...
, a live album and video recordings were also released.
1990s
In 1993, four years after his previous album, Browne returned with I'm Alive, a critically acclaimed album with a more personal style that did not have any successful singles but still sold respectably — indeed, the ninth track from the album, "Sky Blue and Black", was used during the pilot episode of the situation comedySituation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Friends
Friends
Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
. In 1994, Browne collaborated with Kathy Mattea
Kathy Mattea
Kathleen Alice "Kathy" Mattea is an American country music and bluegrass performer who often brings folk, Celtic and traditional country sounds to her music. Active since 1983 as a recording artist, she has recorded seventeen albums and has charted more than thirty singles on the Billboard Hot...
to contribute "Rock Me on the Water" to the AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
benefit album Red Hot + Country
Red Hot + Country
Red Hot + Country was the follow-up to No Alternative in the Red Hot Series of compilation albums, a series produced to raise awareness and money to fight AIDS/HIV and related health and social issues...
produced by the Red Hot Organization
Red Hot Organization
Red Hot Organization is a not-for-profit, 501 3, international organization dedicated to fighting AIDS through pop culture.Since its inception in 1989, over 400 artists, producers and directors have contributed to over 15 compilation albums, related television programs and media events to raise...
.
During 1995, he performed in The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True was a 1995 musical performance based on the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz . The book and score of the film were performed on stage at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund...
a musical performance of the popular story at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund
Children's Defense Fund
The Children's Defense Fund is an American child advocacy and research group, founded in 1973 by Marian Wright Edelman. Its motto Leave No Child Behind reflects its mission to advocate on behalf of children...
. The performance was originally broadcast on Turner Network Television (TNT), and issued on CD and video in 1996. He sang a duet with Jann Arden
Jann Arden
Jann Arden is a Canadian singer-songwriter.-Life and career:Arden was born and raised near Calgary in Springbank, Alberta and attended Springbank Community High School. Her breakthrough came with her critically acclaimed 1993 debut album Time for Mercy and her first single "I Would Die For You"...
, "Unloved", on her 1995 album Living Under June
Living Under June
Living Under June is the second album by Canadian singer/songwriter Jann Arden, released in August 1994 . Outside of Canada, the album was released in the spring of 1995....
. Browne's own album, Looking East
Looking East
Looking East was considered somewhat of a letdown after the success of I'm Alive even after reaching the Top 40 of The Billboard 200. Critic William Ruhlman agreed, writing that the album "is a highly referential work from an artist who started where most end and has been earnestly seeking the...
(1996), was released soon after, but was not as successful commercially.
2000 to the present
Browne released his album The Naked Ride HomeThe Naked Ride Home
The Naked Ride Home is the twelfth album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 2002 . It peaked at number 36 on The Billboard 200 chart...
in 2002, with a performance on Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits is an American public television music program recorded live in Austin, Texas by Public Broadcasting Service Public television member station KLRU, and broadcast on many PBS stations around the United States...
, featuring the recording with older familiar songs.
During 2003, Browne guest-starred as himself in The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Brake My Wife, Please
Brake My Wife, Please
"Brake My Wife, Please" is the twentieth episode of the fourteenth season of The Simpsons. It first aired on May 11, 2003.-Plot:On a school field trip to the Springfield Aquarium, Principal Skinner pronounces two giant "yellow pearls" in a clam, only to find that it is actually Bart mooning...
", performing a parody of his song "Rosie" with lyrics altered to reference the plot involving Homer and Marge.
In 2004, Browne was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
. Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
gave the induction speech, commenting to Browne that although the Eagles were inducted first, he said, "You wrote the songs they wished they had written". Browne had written an uncounted number of hit songs that many artists, including the Eagles and Springsteen himself, had recorded over the span of his career. The previous year, three of Browne's albums — For Everyman
For Everyman
For Everyman is the second album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1973 . The album peaked at number 43 on the Billboard 200 chart and the single "Redneck Friend" reached number 85 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart...
, Late for the Sky
Late for the Sky
Late for the Sky is the third album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1974 . It was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1975. It peaked at #14 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart...
, and The Pretender
The Pretender (album)
The Pretender is the fourth album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1976 . It peaked at #5 on Billboard's album chart. The singles from the album were "Here Come Those Tears Again" which reached number 23 and "The Pretender" which peaked at number 58...
— had been selected by Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine as among its choices for the 500 best albums of all time.
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader is an American political activist, as well as an author, lecturer, and attorney. Areas of particular concern to Nader include consumer protection, humanitarianism, environmentalism, and democratic government....
in 2000, singing "I Am a Patriot" and other songs. He participated in the Vote for Change
Vote for Change
The Vote for Change tour was a politically-motivated American popular music concert tour that took place in October 2004. The tour was presented by MoveOn.org to benefit America Coming Together. The tour was held in swing states and was designed to encourage people to register and vote...
tour during October 2004, playing a series of concerts in American swing states. These concerts were organized by MoveOn.org to mobilize people to vote for John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
in the presidential election
United States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...
. Browne appeared with Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...
and Keb' Mo'
Keb' Mo'
Keb' Mo is an American blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee, United States.-Early life:From early on he had an appreciation for the blues and gospel music...
, and once with Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
. During late 2006, Browne performed with Michael Stanley
Michael Stanley
Michael Stanley is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and disc jockey. Both as a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band, his brand of heartland rock was popular in Cleveland and around the American Midwest in the 1970s and 1980s.-Biography:Michael Stanley Gee graduated from Rocky...
and J. D. Souther
J. D. Souther
John David Souther is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and actor. He has written and co-written numerous hits songs recorded by artists such as Linda Ronstadt and Glenn Frey of the Eagles.-Singing career:...
at a fundraiser for Democratic candidates in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. For the 2008 Presidential Election, he endorsed John Edwards
John Edwards
Johnny Reid "John" Edwards is an American politician, who served as a U.S. Senator from North Carolina. He was the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 2004, and was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004 and 2008.He defeated incumbent Republican Lauch Faircloth in...
for the Democratic Presidential Nomination and performed at some of Edwards' appearances. After Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
won the Democratic nomination, Browne endorsed him. Browne also performed briefly at the Occupy Wall Street presence at Zuccotti Park in Lower Manhattan on December 1, 2011, to show his support for their cause.
Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1
Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1
Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1 is a live album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 2005 . It reached number 4 on the Top Independent Albums chart and number 8 on the Top Internet Albums chart.-History:...
, was released in 2005 on Inside Recordings
Inside Recordings
Inside Recordings is a Los Angeles, California based independent record label founded by singer-songwriter Jackson Browne in 1999. Browne has stated that the mission of the label is to "create a haven for music that might not find a home in the mainstream." In 2005, Inside Recordings signed a...
. The album consists of live recordings of 11 previously released tracks and "The Birds of St. Marks
The Birds of St. Marks
"The Birds of St. Marks" is a song by Jackson Browne. The song was originally recorded on April 6, 1970 as a demo for Criterion Music, but was not officially recorded until his 2005 album Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1. The song was originally written for guitar, as recorded in the Criterion Demos, but the...
", a song that does not appear on any of Browne's studio albums. This album was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2007 in the category of Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. A live followup album, Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2
Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2
Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2 is a live album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 2008 . It reached number 4 on Billboard's Top Independent Albums and Top Internet Albums charts.-History:...
, was released on March 4, 2008.
Browne is part of the No Nukes group which is against the expansion of nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
. During 2007, the group recorded a music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
of a new version of the Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield is a North American folk rock band renown both for its music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined...
song "For What It's Worth".
Browne cameoed
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in the 2007 film, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story is a 2007 music comedy film written and produced by Judd Apatow and Jake Kasdan, directed by Kasdan and starring John C. Reilly...
.
Browne's studio album, Time the Conqueror
Time the Conqueror
Time the Conqueror is the thirteenth studio album by rock musician Jackson Browne. It was released on September 23, 2008 by Inside Recordings and was his first album of new material in six years. It peaked at number 2 on the Top Independent Albums chart and number 20 on The Billboard...
, was released September 23, 2008 via Inside Recordings
Inside Recordings
Inside Recordings is a Los Angeles, California based independent record label founded by singer-songwriter Jackson Browne in 1999. Browne has stated that the mission of the label is to "create a haven for music that might not find a home in the mainstream." In 2005, Inside Recordings signed a...
. The album reached the Billboard 200 album chart at #20, which was his first top 20 record since releasing Lawyers in Love
Lawyers in Love
Lawyers in Love is the seventh album by American singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, released in 1983 . It reached number 8 on the Billboard Pop album chart and number 30 on the Billboard 200. It was Browne's fourth straight Top 10 album and stayed on the charts for 33 weeks. Out of eight tracks,...
in 1983. In addition, the album peaked at #2 on the Billboard Independent Album chart.
During August 2008, Browne sued John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
, the Ohio Republican Party
Ohio Republican Party
The Ohio Republican Party is the Ohio state affiliate of the United States Republican Party. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio on February 13, 1854. Kevin DeWine has been chairman of the Ohio GOP since 2009...
, and the Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
for using his 1977 hit, "Running on Empty
Running on Empty (song)
"Running on Empty" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. It is the title track to his 1977 live Running on Empty album, recorded at a concert at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland, on August 27, 1977...
", in an attack advertisement against Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
without his permission. In July 2009, the matter was settled under an undisclosed financial agreement with an apology from the McCain campaign and other parties.
During August 2008, he appeared on the ALMA Awards in a taped interview honoring Trailblazer Award recipient and long-time friend, Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
.
On 31 May 2008, Jackson Browne performed at the Artist for the Arts Foundation benefit at Barnum Hall, Santa Monica High School, Santa Monica, California. Performing live, alongside Heart, Venice ("Crazy On You") and over 70 members of the Santa Monica High School (SaMoHi) Orchestra and Girls Choir ("Bohemian Rhapsody"), the benefit helped to provide funds for the continuation of music education in public schools. The event was filmed and recorded by Touring Video and Post by On the WAVE Productions. Browne again performed there with Heart and other musician guest stars in 2009.
In January 2011, Browne won the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards in the Best Live Performance Album category for Love is Strange, performed by himself and David Lindley.
Browne contributed a cover of Buddy Holly's "True Love Ways
True Love Ways
"True Love Ways" is a song co-written by Buddy Holly and Norman Petty and recorded with the Ray Ellis orchestra in October 1958, four months before the singer's death. It was first released on the posthumous "The Buddy Holly Story, Vol. 2"...
" for a 2011 tribute album, Listen to Me: Buddy Holly.
Personal life
Raising Helen
Raising Helen is a 2004 American comedy-drama film directed by Garry Marshall and written by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler. It stars Kate Hudson, John Corbett, Joan Cusack, Hayden Panettiere, Spencer and his sister Abigail Breslin and Helen Mirren...
and Hackers
Hackers (film)
Hackers is a 1995 American thriller film directed by Iain Softley and starring Angelina Jolie, Jonny Lee Miller, Renoly Santiago, Matthew Lillard, Lorraine Bracco and Fisher Stevens...
. Browne was devastated when Major committed suicide by consuming an overdose of sleeping pills just a few months after they married, in March 1976, at the age of 30.
Browne was married in January 1981 to Australian model Lynne Sweeney with whom he had a second son, Ryan Browne, born on January 28, 1982, who has been a bass player and singer in the band Sonny and the Sunsets since 2007. Browne and Sweeney were divorced in 1983, when he began dating actress Daryl Hannah
Daryl Hannah
Daryl Christine Hannah is an American film actress. After making her screen debut in 1978, Hannah starred in a number of Hollywood films throughout the 1980s, notably Blade Runner, Splash, Wall Street and Roxanne and Kill Bill.-Early life:Hannah was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of Susan...
. The relationship with Hannah ended in 1992. It has been said that the song "Not to Blame", by Joni Mitchell, was written about the relationship between Browne and Hannah or, perhaps more likely, inspired by Mitchell's understanding of Browne's relationship with Major, Hannah, and others. He has been with artist and environmental activist Dianna Cohen, and a co-founding member of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, since the mid 1990s.
Environmental activism
Browne was one of the leaders of the anti-nuclear movement and founded Musicians United for Safe EnergyMusicians United for Safe Energy
Musicians United for Safe Energy, or MUSE, is an activist group founded in 1979 by Jackson Browne, Graham Nash, Bonnie Raitt, and John Hall. The group advocates against the use of nuclear energy, forming shortly after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in March 1979...
with Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...
in 1979. He was also an active member of the Abalone Alliance
Abalone alliance
The Abalone Alliance was a nonviolent civil disobedience group formed to shut down the Pacific Gas and Electric Company's Diablo Canyon Power Plant near San Luis Obispo on the central California coast in the United States...
and the Alliance for Survival. According to environmental activist Ed Begley, Jr.
Ed Begley, Jr.
Edward James "Ed" Begley, Jr. is an American actor and environmentalist. Begley has appeared in hundreds of films, television shows, and stage performances. He is best known for his role as Dr. Victor Ehrlich, on the television series St...
, “He’s got this big wind turbine, and his ranch is completely off the [power] grid”, Begley said. “He’s done all of it himself.”
Browne campaigns against the unnecessary use of water in plastic bottles and takes steps to reduce usage on his tours. He is part of the movement "Plastic Free Backstage".
In April 2008, the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) gave Browne the honor of "Environmentalist of the Year".
Browne received the Duke LEAF Award for Lifetime Environmental Achievement in the Fine Arts in 2010 for his environmental activism and efforts to make his tours more "green".
Save Our Shores (SOS), an ocean advocacy group in California, honored Browne with their Ocean Hero Award on February 23, 2011. SOS and Santa Cruz mayor, Ryan Coonerty, proclaimed the date "Jackson Browne Day" in the City of Santa Cruz to honor Browne's social, environmental and anti-plastic activism, and as a founding member of the Plastic Pollution and an initiator of the REFUSE Disposable Plastics Campaign.
Browne also attended the TEDx Great Pacific Garbage Patch conference, performing a new song, "If I Could Be Anywhere", which laments mankind's destruction of the earth and giving hope to activism.
Charity
In 2008, Browne contributed to the album Songs for Tibet, an initiative to support Dalai LamaDalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
Tenzin Gyatso, and to publicize the human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
situation in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
. The album was issued on August 5 via iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
and on August 19 in music stores around the world.
Browne covered John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
's "Oh My Love" to benefit Amnesty International's campaign to alleviate the crisis in Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
. The song appears on the album Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur
Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur
Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur is a compilation album of various artists covering songs of John Lennon to benefit Amnesty International's campaign to alleviate the crisis in Darfur...
, which was released on June 12, 2007 and features many other prominent artists performing other John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
covers, such as R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
, Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson (musician)
Jack Johnson was born May 18, 1975 is an American folk rock singer-songwriter, surfer and musician known for his work in the soft rock and acoustic genres. In 2001, he achieved commercial success after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales. He has since released four more albums, a...
, U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Avril Lavigne
Avril Lavigne
Avril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She was born in Belleville, Ontario, but spent most of her youth in the small town of Napanee. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records worth more...
, Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
, and The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American pop group , formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1995. The group includes rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, and Taboo, and singer Fergie. Since the release of their third album Elephunk in 2003, the group has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide...
.
Browne performed live and recorded The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
song medley "Golden Slumbers
Golden Slumbers
"Golden Slumbers" is a song by The Beatles, part of the climactic medley on their 1969 album Abbey Road. The song begins the progression that leads to the end of the album and is followed by "Carry That Weight." The two songs were recorded together as a single piece, and both were written by Paul...
/Carry That Weight" in 1991 with Jennifer Warnes
Jennifer Warnes
Jennifer Jean Warnes is an American singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer. She is known for her interpretations of compositions written by herself and many others, as well as an extensive playlist as a vocalist on movie soundtracks.Between 1979 and 1987 Warnes surpassed Frank Sinatra as...
for the charity album For Our Children to benefit the Pediatrics AIDS Foundation. Browne and Warnes again performed it live for the Tucson, AZ benefit concert.
Browne performed and sang the role of the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True was a 1995 musical performance based on the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz . The book and score of the film were performed on stage at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund...
, a 1995 musical performance for charity alongside Roger Daltrey, Natalie Cole, Tim Allen, and other stars. The celebrity cast performed a reader's theatre and songs styled performance of the MGM film The Wizard of Oz"" at the Lincoln Center as a benefit for the Children's Defense Fund. VHS and CD recordings were released of the concert in 1996 by Rhino Records.
Browne covered Lowen & Navarro
Lowen & Navarro
Lowen & Navarro is a songwriting team composed of Eric Lowen and Dan Navarro, who met in Los Angeles, California in the 1980s. They wrote the song "We Belong", which became a major hit for Pat Benatar in 1984. Starting in 1990, they released a number of records of their own...
's "Weight of the World" on Keep The Light Alive: Celebrating The Music of Lowen & Navarro. The proceeds of the album benefit The Eric Lowen Trust, ALS Association Greater Los Angeles
ALS Association
The ALS Association is an American non profit organization that raises money for research and patient services, promotes awareness about and advocates in state and federal government on issues related to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , also known as Lou Gehrig's disease...
, and Augie's Quest.
Browne also held a benefit concert for the Rory David Deutsch Foundation which is dedicated to providing funding for brain tumor research and treatment.
In October 2010 Browne performed at both days of the 24th Annual Bridge School Benefit
Bridge School Benefit
The Bridge School Benefit is an annual non-profit charity concert held in Mountain View, California, every October at the Shoreline Amphitheatre. The concerts are all organized by musician Neil Young and his wife, Pegi....
Concert, a yearly fundraiser established by Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
. The Bridge School assists children with severe physical impairments and complex communication needs. Browne also appeared at the 2010 NAMM Conference in Anaheim, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
with Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
and Quincy Jones in support of the John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
Educational Tour Bus.
On March 10, 2011 Jackson Browne with David Crosby
David Crosby
David Van Cortlandt Crosby is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash , and CPR...
, Graham Nash
Graham Nash
Graham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
, Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
, and others performed a benefit concert in Tucson, Arizona benefiting The Fund For Civility, Respect, and Understanding, a foundation that raises awareness about and provides medical prevention and treatment services to people with mental disorders. The concert also benefited victims of the January 8, 2011 shootings in Tucson, AZ.
Browne has continued to provide exclusive music tracks for various charity and benefit albums including Safety Harbor Kids Holiday Collection (where he sang the Johnny Marks holiday song "Silver and Gold" with longtime friend Lowell George
Lowell George
Lowell Thomas George was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer, who was the main guitarist and songwriter for the rock band Little Feat.- Early years :...
's daughter, Inara George). Browne provided a live version of "Drums of War" for The People Speak Soundtrack. Other charity albums he has contributed to include: Acordes Con Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
(song: "A Thousand Kisses Deep"), From Wharf Rats to Lords of the Docks Soundtrack (song: "Step By Step"), Shrink
Shrink (film)
Shrink is a 2009 American independent film about a psychologist who treats members of the entertainment industry in Los Angeles, California. It stars an ensemble cast headed by Kevin Spacey as Dr. Henry Carter. Filming took place in Los Angeles under the direction of Jonas Pate using a script...
(the Kevin Spacey film Soundtrack) (song: "Here"), Keep the Light Alive: Celebrating the Music of Eric Lowen and Dan Navarro (song: "Weight of the World"), and 1% For The Planet: The Music, Vol. 1 (a live version of "About My Imagination"), as well as many benefit concert and other appearances.
Awards
On March 14, 2004, Browne was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Bruce SpringsteenBruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
, and on June 7, 2007 Jackson Browne was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Songwriters Hall of Fame is an arm of the National Academy of Popular Music. It was founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer and music publishers Abe Olman and Howie Richmond. The goal is to create a museum but as of April, 2008, the means do not yet exist and so instead it is an online...
.
In 2004, Jackson was named an honorary Doctorate of Music by Occidental College in Los Angeles, for "a remarkable musical career that has successfully combined an intensely personal artistry with a broader vision of social justice."
For "promoting peace and justice through his music and his unrelenting support for that which promotes nonviolent solutions to problems both nationally and internationally", Browne received the Courage of Conscience Awards from The Peace Abbey in Sherborn, Massachusetts.
In 2007, he was awarded the Chapin-World Hunger Year Harry Chapin
Harry Chapin
Harry Forster Chapin was an American singer-songwriter best known in particular for his folk rock songs including "Taxi", "W*O*L*D", and the number-one hit "Cat's in the Cradle". Chapin was also a dedicated humanitarian who fought to end world hunger; he was a key player in the creation of the...
Humanitarian Award.
In 2008, Browne received the NARM Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award.
In 2002, Browne was given the John Steinbeck
John Steinbeck
John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer. He is widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden and the novella Of Mice and Men...
Award, given to artists who are an example of the environmental and social values that Steinbeck believed in.
External links
- Wilson & Alroy's reviews of Jackson Browne recordings
- All Music Guide Overview of Jackson Browne, including album reviews