Browne’s Blues – Part 1

One of my favorite artists from the golden age of ‘70s singer-songwriters is Jackson Browne who is still writing, recording, and performing today more than 50 years after he first started out as a professional musician (that’s Browne playing guitar on Nico’s 1967 recording of “These Days” which he wrote at the age of 16.) While I’ve struggled to find a Jackson Browne studio album I can enjoy from start to finish, I have dug and collected many of Browne’s songs over the years and a few of them can still make me cry (that’s hard to do and a testament to Browne’s powers as an artist and a human being).

I’m a real fan of Browne’s live stuff especially the more recent concerts where it’s just the artist and his guitar- or the piano- connecting with fans in an intimate setting where every now and then he’s still able to demonstrate his singer-songwriter wizardry, cast a spell upon the audience, and hit one out of the park. A good songwriter lets the songs speak for themselves and while I know Browne’s had some pain in his life- suicides, including his wife- I don’t need to know the backstory to each and every song (and Browne is too smart to box himself- or the audience- in). 50 years later and Jackson Browne- one of the few masters we have left from the blue jean rock poet era- can still breathe life into old songs (old spells) and I celebrate and am grateful for his many gifts. Here are some of my favorite JB songs. Enjoy!  

01. Jackson Browne – “Linda Paloma” (1977)

02. Jackson Browne – “Song for Adam” (1972)

03. Jackson Browne – “Running on Empty (Live) (1977)

04. Jackson Browne – “Love Minus Zero/No Limit” (2012)

05. Jackson Browne – “Sky Blue and Black (Live)” (2008)

06. Jackson Browne – “The Pretender” (1977)

07. Jackson Browne – “I Am a Patriot” (1989)

08. Jackson Browne feat. Los Cenzontles– “The Dreamer” (2017)

09. Jackson Browne – “Jamaica Say You Will” (1972)

10. Jackson Browne – “All Good Things (Live)” (2008)

Listen to the playlist on Spotify...

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End of an Era