GOLDEN BROWNE – Jackson Browne hits 70

[email protected] October 26, 2018

Despite a recording career that so far stretches back forty six years, for most of that time Jackson Browne has looked a perennial thirty year-old.

It is therefore almost hard to believe the foremost singer-songwriter of his era has this month turned 70.

Since 1972 the astonishing consistency of his work makes Jackson Browne the standout lyricist of the past five decades, Bonnie Raitt labelling him, ‘a seminal artist of our times.’

Political commentator, social activist and environmental campaigner, his songs have covered the spectrum from politics to parenthood, protest to problematic relationships, personal to global fate – right through to the interaction between one person and another.

He has often held those in government to account and rallied against injustice and complicity, but at the same time made many of the most telling observations on the nature of being human – very few others capable of condensing so much emotion and cautionary detail into the words of a song.

In all his years of searching Jackson Browne may not have found all the answers – but has never stopped asking questions.

Emerging at the same time as fellow Asylum Records label mates Linda Ronstadt and the Eagles, with whom he was instrumental in creating the soft rock sound of 70s California (unlike Ronstadt and the founding members of the Eagles, Browne grew up a Los Angeles) – both of the aforementioned acts covering his songs before he had recorded in his own right.

Indeed, The Byrds, Joan Baez, Joe Cocker, The Jackson Five and most notably Nico of The Velvet Underground had seized upon his growing catalogue of first rate material, Nico recording three Browne compositions on her 1967 solo album ‘Chelsea Girl‘ – one of which (‘These Days‘) not only emphasised a precocious talent, but was written with a maturity way beyond his 16 years.

Thus his first two albums contain several tracks made familiar by other artists, a welter of the most accomplished songs to be heard anywhere running through ‘Jackson Browne’ (1972) and ‘For Everyman’ (1973).

The debut LP boasts such gems as ‘Song For Adam,’ ‘Doctor My Eyes,’ and ‘Rock Me On The Water,’ while the follow up contains the wonderfully witty ‘Ready Or Not,’ his own exceptional take on ‘These Days‘ and a monumental title track that stands as a good-tempered riposte to ‘Wooden Ships‘ by Crosby, Stills and Nash –  written on behalf of all those without the means, let alone inclination to sail away from the highs and lows of everyday life.

‘For Everyman‘ also contains his version of ‘Take It Easy‘ a song co-written with Eagle Glenn Frey that had given the Eagles their debut hit the year before.

If ‘Jackson Browne‘ and ‘For Everyman‘ launched his reputation then ‘Late For The Sky’ (1974) enhanced it further. Acclaimed by some as his finest work, song writing excellence once again abounds – the sweeping title song, ‘Fountain Of Sorrow,’ ‘Before The Deluge,’ ‘The Road And The Sky,’ and ‘For A Dancer‘, the latter being the most evocative depiction of death ever recorded. 

Released into an America floundering with uncertainty and disillusionment in the wake of the Vietnam war, ‘Late For The Sky,’ is essential listening with regard to understanding the complexities of the time – an era when the hopes of the 60s counter-culture were all but spent.

Or as Bruce Springsteen once put it: ‘With ‘Pet Sounds’ Brian Wilson gave us California as paradise – on ‘Late For The Sky, Jackson presented California as paradise lost.’ It really is that good.

If looking for a flaw in this trio of otherwise very fine albums it can be found in a tendency for the songs to be under produced, which occasionally makes his blend of folk and country rock sound in need of refinement. But as a lyricist he had already left most of the field behind, the clarity and honesty of his best work marking him as a talent apart.

By the end of 1975 he was working as producer on the debut album of close friend Warren Zevon. But his own recording intentions were thrown into disarray by the suicide of first wife Phyllis Major in March 1976, Browne responding to the distress by completing work on his fourth album.

On ‘The Pretender’ (1976) he deals with the trauma by writing eight astounding songs, each one deeply moving and superbly constructed. With Jon Landau brought in as producer the music finally flourishes, Browne finding the perfect platform to not only express his grief, but reflect on relationships with his young son and own father, a wish for the planet to be a more sympathetic place – and if a stand needs to be taken do so with hope and humility.

While ‘The Pretender‘ does contain some harrowing moments it is an authentic masterpiece, the work of a considerable artist.

After the album deservedly went gold Browne eschewed the obvious next step so favoured by his contemporaries of a double ‘live’ album, electing instead for the most audacious live album project ever attempted.

‘Running On Empty’ is almost an ‘anti’ live album as he recorded none of his existing material, choosing instead new songs and specifically selected covers that fit the concept of being on tour.

The performances are recorded not only on stage, but in hotel rooms, backstage, even the tour bus. The rocking, autobiographical title track is the most exhilarating thing he has ever recorded while ‘The Load Out‘ (which segues into ‘Stay‘ a rendition of the Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs hit) is arguably the finest song ever written about touring.

Proving his final release of the 1970s, he finished the decade with a return of five shots/five goals and recorded output that was an embarrassment of riches.

After taking such a firm step forward with each previous release, the 80s  began with something of a slip. ‘Hold Out’ (1980) brought Browne the only number one album of his career, but for the first time the material sounds somewhat perfunctory and only ‘Call It A Loan‘ and the Springsteen-affected hit single ‘Boulevard‘ come close to previous standards.

For the rest of the decade his focus switches primarily to political concerns, the forthcoming trio commencing with ‘Lawyers In Love’ (1983) whose title track is a well drawn state of the (US) nation address. Embracing the musical styling and production techniques of the early-80s, the album has its moments, but not quite enough to stand with his finest work.

Much the same can be said of ‘Lives In The Balance’ (1986) where Browne skewers the Reagan administration and US foreign policy in Central America on such fine songs as ‘For America,’ and ‘Lives In The Balance.’ The minor hit single ‘In The Shape Of A Heart,’ shows he still had a sure touch when switching attention to matters within the four walls of home. ‘World In Motion’ (1989) is the least accessible of the three and at times fails to engage, a cover of Steve Van Zandt’s ‘I Am A Patriot,’ edging out the title track as the most politically astute song on the record.

After a four year hiatus Browne resumed his career with ‘I’m Alive’ (1993) and to the joy of his devoted following, it was the long hoped for return to peak form. Not that joy was anywhere to be found on a compelling ten song cycle that chronicles the break-up of a relationship with unerring poignancy. Beautifully sequenced, the second side in particular contains song writing of the highest order and builds to a climax with the sad, serene beauty of ‘Sky Blue and Black.’ The exquisite ‘All Good Things‘ then brings this absorbing collection to a resigned, yet philosophical end.

‘Looking East’ (1996) takes a pace back, the tone  less intense. The songs have an air of lessons that have been well learned, its messages and hooks taking a little longer to hit home, but none the worse for that. In many respects ‘Looking East‘ set the tone for the three Jackson Browne studio albums which have followed and in retrospect, now sounds the least assured.

Six years went by before ‘The Naked Ride Home’ (2002), Browne now working so painstakingly the gaps between releases became ever wider. Not that his recent offerings lack spontaneity (he has turned sounding spontaneous once every six years or so into an art form), and throughout ‘The Naked Ride Home‘ and ‘Time The Conqueror’ (2008) he sounds as campaigning and vital as ever.

Leading up to ‘Time The Conqueror‘ he released the live sets ‘Solo Acoustic Volume One‘ (2005) and ‘Volume Two‘ (2008), both of which are enjoyable listens, while ‘Love Is Strange,’ (2011) treads similar ground with equally satisfying results. His most recent album of new material ‘Standing In The Breach’ (2014), brought Browne his most positive reviews for twenty years and emphasised once again just how enthralling he can be, irrespective of whether his glance is cast on personal interactions or the world at large.

As far as can be told Jackson Browne has never produced music for mercenary reasons, preferring instead to protect a hard won reputation for creative integrity – restricting his releases only to when he feels the time is right to offer his opinions and insights.

Whether or not his trenchant views on the world and deft ruminations on the human condition meet widespread unanimity is to miss the point – since the early-70s nobody else has been able to articulate their examinations of life with quite the same skill, making him a wordsmith without equal.

Indeed, when inducting Browne to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, Bruce Springsteen commented that although the Eagles had been inducted a few years before, ‘Jackson Browne wrote the songs they wished they had written. Hell, I wish I’d written them.’

So happy birthday Jackson – to this listener alone you made a difference.

JACKSON BROWNE (Studio albums 1972-2018):

Jackson Browne (1972) A-; For Everyman (1973) A-; Late for the Sky (1974) A-; The Pretender (1976) A; Running On Empty (1977); A; Hold Out (1980) B; Lawyers in Love (1983) B+; Lives in the Balance (1986) B+; World In Motion (1989) B; I’m Alive (1993) A; Looking East (1996) B; The Naked Ride Home (2002) B+; Time the Conqueror (2008) A-; Standing in the Breach (2014) A-; 

This article was first published on 26/10/2018.

CHILDREN OF THE REVOLUTION – Twenty great albums from 1976………..

NEIL SAMBROOK is the author of MONTY’S DOUBLE – an acclaimed thriller now available as an Amazon Kindle Book.