Latest Release
- JUL 19, 2024
- 10 Songs
- Jackson Browne (Remaster) · 1971
- The Pretender · 1976
- The Very Best of Jackson Browne · 1977
- Lawyers In Love · 1983
- The Next Voice You Hear: The Best of Jackson Browne · 1982
- For Everyman · 1973
- The Very Best of Jackson Browne · 1982
- Jackson Browne (Remaster) · 1971
- Late For the Sky · 1974
- Running on Empty (Remastered) · 1977
Essential Albums
- After spending much of the ‘80s writing songs of political consequence, Jackson Browne worked his way back to songs of love and the human soul with 1993’s I’m Alive. The material’s tone is gentler, and so are the performances. “I’m Alive” is a powerful opening number that signals his return to form. Guest performers sprinkled throughout the album add a special musicality, with David Crosby and Don Henley adding their touches to “All Good Things” and Jennifer Warnes, Ryan Browne, and longtime bandmates Valerie Carter and Doug Haywood throwing themselves behind the striking epic “Too Many Angels.” “Everywhere I Go” adds an uplifting reggae groove to a melody that bursts into the sky, while “Sky Blue and Black” sits Browne back behind the piano for the kind of song that wouldn’t be out of place on his classic Late for the Sky. Keyboardist and coproducer Scott Thurston makes his presence felt, while longtime friend and bandmate David Lindley breaks out the bouzouki and oud along with his guitars.
- Browne started the ‘80s hoping to capitalize on Running on Empty’s success. He succeeded with Hold Out, his only album to reach No. 1 on the Billboard chart. This was due partly to the FM radio presence of “Boulevard” and partly to the album being his most polished and electrified to date. Keyboardist Craig Doerge adds synthesizers to his arsenal of Fender Rhodes, pianos, and organs, while David Lindley fires up the lap steel guitar and violin for perfect accompaniment. “Disco Apocalypse” lets Browne step out into a near-dance groove, while “Hold Out,” “That Girl Could Sing,” and especially the eight-minute “Hold On Hold Out” combine the love and ambivalence and eventual surrender of the human heart with the most joyous sounds of Browne’s career. “Of Missing Persons” remembers his friend Lowell George of Little Feat. Browne sings heartbreakingly to the daughter George left behind, Inara George, who’s now a performer herself.
- The Pretender was another step in Jackson Browne’s transition from singer/songwriter to rocker. From the opening lines of “The Fuse”—his observation on the movement of time and the limits of life itself—on out, it’s clear that his wife’s suicide haunts this record. Browne worries for his son (“The Only Child") and wonders how he himself will soldier forth (“The Pretender”). In the end, his poetic lines beautify the truth, while the full band gives him a hopeful edge. The Pretender is a world of consequence—a heavy but deeply rewarding listen.
Music Videos
- 2023
- 2021
- 2021
- 2021
- 2019
- 2019
Artist Playlists
- Rock and folk favorites from an articulate, emotive, and effective troubadour.
- His catalog includes moments of profound enchantment.
- Modern strummers echo his mix of rugged and plaintive.
Appears On
More To Hear
- The singer-songwriter on his biggest hits.
- Conversation on creation and inspiration behind the music.
- The singer-songwriter talks music and tricks of the trade.
More To See
About Jackson Browne
In the ‘70s California folk music scene, Jackson Browne loomed large, helping define the sound and spirit of the era—and the West Coast itself—with his intimate, insightful songwriting and rootsy sound. Born Clyde Jackson Browne in 1948 in West Germany, he was still a toddler when his parents headed to Los Angeles, and by the time he was a teen, he was writing songs and playing folk clubs in the city. Browne didn’t make waves as a solo act until his first, self-titled record in 1972, but for nearly a decade before its release, he proved himself as a wunderkind songwriter and musician, working with artists like the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Tim Buckley, Nico, and Linda Ronstadt. Jackson Browne’s biggest song was “Doctor My Eyes,” an upbeat but world-weary, piano-driven tune. While not a huge success commercially, the album opened the floodgates on Browne’s defining decade. Songs like 1973’s country rocker “Take It Easy” (also a massive hit for the Eagles) and albums like 1977’s Running on Empty, a folk-rock opus that laid bare the trials of touring, showed the ways Browne could meld accessibility with perceptive lyrics. Taking into account his often politically charged ‘80s output and a return to his signature style of inward-looking songwriting in the ‘90s and well into the 21st century, Browne’s legacy is that of a true rock ‘n’ roll lifer.
- FROM
- Heidelberg, Germany
- BORN
- October 9, 1948
- GENRE
- Rock