Jackson Browne - C or D?

I've nothing against Browne -- seems to be a nice enough guy. But his music is a little too bland, too Southern California-Seventies for my taste. So I'll just shut up now.

Yes, the music is bland, but that somehow appealed to me today, it was easy, and sweet, and sad. Does this mean I'm getting old ?

"Lawyers in Love": thoroughly underrated anti-Reagan screed with absurd falsetto parts. I think only Dave Marsh takes it seriously, but don't let that put you off.

I'm not that familiar with Jackson Browne beyond the hits, but I think some of the hits are pretty good.

but "The Load Out/Stay" off the Running on Empty album is simply one of the best things I have ever heard, as well as the ultimate "drive home after a long night of drinking" song in my lifetime.

"A thousand miles away from here, people stay just a little bit longer..."

His taking personal offense at Punk and continuing to disparage it is very dud, however.

He dated Nico at age 17 (or thereabouts), you know.

ok wait i think the lines were "you've heard that hollow sound/of your own steps in flight." what a precious-precious line.

my mom has a lot of jackson browne records.. guessing by this thread, i should steal "running on empty." which others are worthwhile?

i am not drunk, unless one can get drunk on turkey and peach cobbler.

Ah, the gang: I knew it well. I'd had an encounter with one of its thugs, see, and in the process got tossed by said mag for telling what was it?, oh yes, the truth. This was '72. After several false starts, Jackson Browne finally had an album out, which seemed a good occasion to bring to light some interesting hokum from his past--I'd known the mutha since '67. So I did the first feature on him for Rolling Stone or anywhere else--a rave, for crying out loud, and he freaking hated it, thought it made him look "too punk." And what might be so wrong with that? Before twelve people knew who the fuck he was, he was like some weird-isn't-the-word cross between the Young Marble Giants, say--or from a later universe: Cat Power--and Byron or Shelley. On his first visit to New York, he backed up (and horizontal-danced with) the fabulous NICO, had a connection to Lou Reed and the Warhol crowd, blah blah blooey. So I talked all this stuff up--what the hey--it was what I thought would make him MOST APPEALING. And he's so upset he gets Asylum Records prez David Geffen to call the Stone and have me booted, good riddance, don't come back.

Four years later, I was eating at South Town Soul Food in L.A. when Jackson walked in with gang-sister number one Linda Ronstadt. Not wanting her exposed to my cooties, he motions for her to stay put, struts over, sits down, and in less than a minute explains to me how it is. "We singer-songwriters"--he always relished being part of something (but imagine calling yourself such hogwipe)--"feel we get a better shake from this Cameron kid...he never challenges us...accepts our side of the story...we don't have to worry what he'll say...no offense, but..." I.e., writers exist to write-about-musicians, bub...so go wash dishes or something.

poor thing.

Lots of comments here on the Jackson songs recorded by Nico on Chelsea Girls, plus Meltzer's comments on Jackson's early songs. There was a double LP acetate album produced in '67 as a songwriting demo album. Jackson has never released the stuff, but it has been bootlegged as the Nina Demos. I think Meltzer's comments are a little over the top--there's a saccharine element to some of these songs--but I swear there are like fifteen or more songs on the thing that are as good as those three songs on Chelsea Girls.

Steve Noonan's Elektra album is worth hearing. Meltzer has some things about it in Aesthetics of Rock.

ok wait i think the lines were "you've heard that hollow sound/of your own steps in flight." what a precious-precious line.

quoting this v v old post to say i think this is an incredible lyric

― insufficiently familiar with xgau's work to comment intelligently (BradNelson), Thursday, February 26, 2015 2:49 AM (1 year ago)

an ilxor mentioned this line on his FB page recently and yes this is a devastating piece of writing imo

I love this song, but I don't see the full magic in any one line in particular. It takes a lot of words for him to get at what he's describing, but it's the whole analysis of his experience that I love:

But when you see through love's illusions, there lies the danger
And your perfect lover just looks like a perfect fool
So you go running off in search of a perfect stranger
While the loneliness seems to spring from your life
Like a fountain from a pool

Maybe I'll try again. His voice tends me to vague me out pretty quickly. But always loved Bonnie Raitt's versions of "Under The Falling Sky" and "I Thought I Was A Child"---did she do any more of his? A whole album of Bonnie Sings Jackson would be a definitive Boomer move, but/and I'd buy it (maybe not even wait for the NPR pledge drive). Equally definitive: Nico, "These Days."

Oh yeah, and his own performance of the epic "You Know The Night" on Note of Hope, where various artists provide new music for words from W.Guthrie's notebooks, diaries, letters, telephone pads etc---this is a 14 minute setting (there's also ace 4-minute "Radio Edit") of G.'s note to self after meeting Marjorie, his next wife and mother of Nora, Arlo etc. Browne said he wrote out the whole thing on loose pages and set them up around the room while he was recording, maybe writing too. Another artist's inspired verbosity rang a bell!

But when you see through love's illusions, there lies the danger

I'm surprised this fusspot didn't write "therein."

ha, alfred, your take on Jackson itt completely baffles me!

It baffles me too.

Three songs are all I need for my Browne fix: "Lawyers in Love" on the political end, "In the Shape of a Heart" for L-O-V-E, and "Running on Empty" for '70s angst.
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Tuesday, January 24, 2006 12:27 PM (10 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i mean you are completely right that these are the best songs ever

it's possible i mentioned in some other jb thread that i saw him live in orlando last year and "in the shape of a heart" was particularly incredible

People speak of love don't know what they're thinking of

xxp they are good songs, but I'd take the first 4 albums over them

gotta do what you can to keep your love alive

I know "These Days" has been mentioned a number of times but I really love his original

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcJDI7a_1lk

The '67 demo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtZ04BxrYf0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzCD8YzDFD4

beautiful '67 demo

can't believe he came up with (most of?) it at age 16

i think browne was a better melodist than a lyricist, actually

most of his lyrics from his 'confessional' period -- the ones that sing well -- don't really add up to much IMO. they are often either needlessly vague or just break down into banalities. he did hit a few out of the park, though.

this song's pretty flawless

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6pT_BDpnog

I love the electric strummin'.

never heard the demo! nice

Somebody's Baby is anything I could want in a song, so good

it's from Fast Times at Ridgemont High OST iirc, always liked it, after getting to know Jackson from the Pretender I was happy to find out this was his song

highlight of the album

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeM6pX2kCtc

um, so 'The Pretender' the song - I always thought of it as a personal song of, I dunno, existential ambivalence... but according to this 'article' "Browne is writing about a guy who could easily be described as a yuppie"

https://americansongwriter.com/2012/05/the-pretender-by-jackson-browne/

can we all agree this is bullshit or should I change my view on this song?

well, I'm glad Jackson himself is well aware of the complexity of the songs protagonist

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNKT_tfWx6w

It's a beautiful and complex song.

love these two dudes in the audience as Browne starts the piano riff:

https://media.giphy.com/media/pl9Y1c82F2wWQ/giphy.gif

also, thx MFB :)

in the intro to this one he 'dedicates' it to a session player

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76uSiz6fQh0

(not a v good video apart from that, sry 4 embed)

can we all agree this is bullshit or should I change my view on this song?

it's a very complex song and you should probably change your view

with every listen

yuppies are very complex people!

He's poet laureate of yuppies, don't forget.

http://www.asburyrecords.com/public/cover/3137_1.jpg

Prescient!

Last night I watched the news from Washington, the capital
The Russians escaped while we weren't watching them, like Russians will
Now we've got all this room
We've even got the moon
And I hear the USSR will be open soon
As vacation land for lawyers in love

I was about to say!

this morning's Times:

"When Professor Jackson-Brown began teaching in the 1990s, most students respected her authority. But in recent years, that deference has waned (she blames the informality of social media). “I go out of my way now to not give them access to my first name,” she said. “On every syllabus, it states clearly: ‘Please address me as Professor Jackson-Brown.’ ”"

Late For Class

I'll never love him, but I came up with a decent list, I think.

Running on empty is still getting AirPlay somehow and it’s the sound of 70s exhaustion. I’m sitting in a bar in ‘76 and yeah, I’m just gonna give up ok

Lindley’s amazing on it tho

Something Fine is a gorgeous wistful tune from his first disc.

Working with musicians from Haiti for his new album, according to Afropop Worldwide!

I do my best.

p sure “I’m Alive” was a single, no?

Tested positive :(

mild symptoms! he did a really wonderful interview with rolling stone

Agreed. Rather charming and chipper.

FWIW:

https://t.co/evhB3Tm5aS pic.twitter.com/goLjDSvgpJ

— Jackson Browne (@SongsofJBrowne) March 25, 2020

Thankfully the symptoms are very mild. If it's been this long, he's probably close to a full recovery, but he makes an excellent point about how easily it has and will spread in group settings in close quarters, even when individuals are exercising a lot of caution like swabbing mics and avoiding physical contact like handshakes.

Re: his music, first three albums have his best songwriting. The following two albums have better singing and arguably a better sound/production. After that, the albums get really spotty, but the singles are still generally good, all the way up to "The Shape of a Heart" and Little Steven's "I Am a Patriot" (which lyrically is corny, but Browne sings it with great conviction). Still wrote the occasional gem after that, like "Sky Blue and Black."

Beginning with 'Running on Empty' (where much of the material was co-written or written by someone else), his strengths as a performer (and by extension an interpreter) really began to show while his songwriting became more inconsistent and weaker.

booming and largely accurate post. I think the super-political stuff of the 80s has sometimes aged well -- and his gift for delivering JUST the right vocal take on even a middling song ("I'm the Cat") ascended into some ascended-master level stuff