Thank you for such a perceptive commentary. Duncan Browne was a genius. No doubt about it. But, as you say, music is about the making, not the reward (the reward IS in the making!). I had a friend, now sadly passed, who always said "music should be free, like the air"... That's how I feel about Duncan Browne. Maybe Next Time Around... Love and Blessings
Thank you for this bio on such a rare and beautiful artist, you did a great job here. I adore those first 2 albums, which are testament to his talent and beautiful spirit. Duncans' music transcends time and truly exists in a place of its own awaiting new generations of fans to discover it.
Me alegra saber que hay mas gente en el mundo que disfruta de Browne. Mi cancion favorita es "The journey" cuyo final me sigue pareciendo lo mas bonito que la musica puede ofrecer.
I bought the single "Journey/In a Mist" in 1972, and "Journey" became one of my favourite songs of all time. Browne was a contemporary of fellow British singer-songwriters Nick Drake and Clifford T. Ward, all of whom made beautiful music and none of whom made old bones. So sad.
I was only a child when,,journey was released but being a great song I recalled this by sing ING the lyrics to my brother who in turn sang to his friend who identified song artist 😂 I play it cause it's wonderful ❤
A very nice tribute to this sadly underlooked artist. Well done. John Giblin who played with Browne on his two lps for Sire Records once told me that Browne had more integrity and talent than just about anyone he had ever worked with, high praise indeed. Cheers!
My husband was his manager but alas Duncan was not to become a worldwide hit. He should have been as his talent was incredible and he deserved to be known throughout the universe!
He was popular in the netherlands and had some top 40 hits for several weeks there in the late 70s and he often appears on the dutch music channel 192TV.
@ happy new year to you as well! I had not been aware of Duncan Browne until moments ago, and was quite instantly struck by his voice, lyrics, guitar style. I will continue to explore his music, and have a listen to your music as well! My first new discoveries of 2025! Best regards!
I once talked to Duncan Browne about producing an album for me. The project never went any further and I was shocked to find out a few years later that Duncan had died of cancer. I believe it was pancreatic cancer, probably associated with his drinking. IMHO two best Metro ballads are One Way Night and Flame.
That's a lovely tribute to an artist I only discovered today. From what I have heard so far I am mightily impressed. What strikes me first of is that he is writing songs from a classical music perspective, very professional. He is about as far removed from a RAF Commodore as you could imagine, he also looked like a girl.
The song that popped into my head a few days ago was "Cast No Shadow". Couldn't think whose song it was at first, then remembered Duncan Browne who I'm afraid I had completely forgotten about. Now the song keeps haunting me. Had written out list of songs for my funeral and wake (cheerful) but may have to add Duncan
Thanks for making this excellent tribute! Love Duncan--he's one of my all-time biggest musical influences. How did you discover his music? I wanna say Robin Pecknold from FF first turned me on to him, but that was years ago when the internet was still a viable place where intergenerational communities could share/recommend music. Not sure that exists as much these days, unfortunately.
Thanks for sharing your discovery story of him! It's always a pleasure receiving such a comment. There's a last.fm feauture that allows you to see similiar artists as someone, and I believe I discovered Duncan under his close friend Colin Blunstone's profile
I'm 22, like a lot of shoegaze, modern indie, but I randomly discovered Duncan after Spotify shuffled me into 'I was you weren't' and I dug into his other tracks. 'Death of Neil' us a baller as heck of a folk song. I kept feeling he was meant for more :((
There are a number of acetate recordings that were auctioned off a few years ago. There are previews of these on TH-cam, though the full recordings have not surfaced. He was a magnificent artist.
Thanks Spiroid, I collected a lot of Duncan Browne's music. I am including them here as a guide for people on what to search for, and even with info on where I managed to purchase many items. Duncan Browne CD Give Me Take You (re-released on CD by 1968 Sony; purchased by mail from BOSE records, arrived 5/11/92). Duncan Browne Duncan Browne 1973 Duncan Browne Self-titled CD with bonus tracks is still on order with CD-NOW - expected soon ALC 4/12/99 - arrived Nov 99 - see below. Metro Metro 1977 Duncan Browne The Wild Places 1978 The Wild Places 12"Single33RPM 1978 The Wild Places 7" Single 45RPM (from 1978 Record City Collectables, Frankston 1997) Streets Of Fire 1979 Streets Of Fire - again (P-PRF - 14/10/01) 1979 Metro New Love 1979 New Love (P-Halmstad 18/1/2001) 1979 Future Imperfect 1980 Peter Godwin Emotional DisguiseExtended Version 1982 /French Emotions 12" 45RPM Single Images of Heaven (USA release) 1982 /Torch Song For The Heroine and Emotional Disguise (vocal & instrumental 33RPM 12"EP) Corresondence (2 Copies) 1983 The Art of Love - New York Remix 1983 and New York Dubmix 45RPM 12"Single (from Correspondence) Duncan Browne Songs Of Love & War (with bonus tracks) 1993 (CD Now - arrived late November 99)
His first two albums were acoustic. Then he made one album as member of Metro, which was a sort of glam-rock music (of which David Bowie later covered "Criminal World"), and then he made two rock-albums, quite different from his acoustic albums. You might start there with "The Wild Places, though both albums are equally good. And when he died he was working on an album that was later finished by (among others) Colin Blunstone, "Songs of Love and War", which was again different. I suggest you try them all, they are all worth listening to 😀. And thanks for the video, there can't be enough of this man 👍
I appreciate your effort, but as a matter of fact this man apparently had more "success" as a musician than 90% of the people who would want to be musicians. That he died at a young age from a disease, is actually not really all that relevant. That would have been sad, no matter what his ambitions or level of success had been.
yeah I get that depends on how one defines "success" really. I guess in my eyes it requires a whole lot, to the point of him being instantly recognizable by general public. So that's fair to point out! Also yes, dying is obviously also very sad no matter who it happens to. The point of the video was really just to spread the message "if you really care about making music, then you shouldn't let the performance of that music dishearten you from making it". I guess Duncan became a gateway for me to make that video, as he's somewhat obscure, and also has a music catalog I really enjoy.
Releasing 4 or 5 solo albums in a 25-year span has a lot to do with his obscurity. In an era where artists routinely issued 1 album per year (and oftentimes 2) to keep pace with the competition, Browne's output was severely lacking. Three solo albums during the decade of the seventies simply won't cut it for an under-the-radar artist. His music wasn't loud nor were his shows visual. And he certainly wasn't brash. Quite honestly, Browne was a fish out of water. The Wild Places LP was my intro to him in '78. I thought he was a new artist at that time when in fact he was already 10 years along. I don't mind the obscurity in which he resides. His meager discography and modest personality simply add to the mystique of D. Browne.
Holy-smoke, what a beautiful performance.
MY OLD FRIENDS.
One of my favorite all time artists. He was magnificent!
This beautiful man had a great hit song in the Netherlands. It's named THE WILD PLACES...what a great song...only a hit song in the Netherlands
Thank you for this video production of a sad story of unfulfilled promise. His single Journey will remain a masterpiece.
Thanks for this... his time will still come I think
He remains forever young..His songs will live forever more.
Great to hear a true advocate for Duncan - a truly unique talent - thanks for your video.
A wonderful telling of his story; thank you.
I am in tears watching this.
The Duncan Browne catalogue is wildly diverse, magnificent and timeless. Always incredible and underrated across his entire, too short career.
Thank you for such a perceptive commentary. Duncan Browne was a genius. No doubt about it. But, as you say, music is about the making, not the reward (the reward IS in the making!). I had a friend, now sadly passed, who always said "music should be free, like the air"... That's how I feel about Duncan Browne. Maybe Next Time Around... Love and Blessings
Alfred Bell is such a hauntingly beautiful song. Lovely essay on an underrated artist.
I agree. Thank you very much!
Thank you for this bio on such a rare and beautiful artist, you did a great job here.
I adore those first 2 albums, which are testament to his talent and beautiful spirit.
Duncans' music transcends time and truly exists in a place of its own awaiting new generations of fans to discover it.
Me alegra saber que hay mas gente en el mundo que disfruta de Browne. Mi cancion favorita es "The journey" cuyo final me sigue pareciendo lo mas bonito que la musica puede ofrecer.
this is such a good video, i've always wondered this myself...thank you !!
I'm so glad you think that!
I bought the single "Journey/In a Mist" in 1972, and "Journey" became one of my favourite songs of all time. Browne was a contemporary of fellow British singer-songwriters Nick Drake and Clifford T. Ward, all of whom made beautiful music and none of whom made old bones. So sad.
I was only a child when,,journey was released but being a great song I recalled this by sing ING the lyrics to my brother who in turn sang to his friend who identified song artist 😂 I play it cause it's wonderful ❤
A very nice tribute to this sadly underlooked artist. Well done. John Giblin who played with Browne on his two lps for Sire Records once told me that Browne had more integrity and talent than just about anyone he had ever worked with, high praise indeed. Cheers!
My husband was his manager but alas Duncan was not to become a worldwide hit. He should have been as his talent was incredible and he deserved to be known throughout the universe!
thank you for this. in the days before internet, i listened to Streets of Fire literally hundreds of times...and never knew a thing about him...
glad you enjoyed it!
He was popular in the netherlands and had some top 40 hits for several weeks there in the late 70s and he often appears on the dutch music channel 192TV.
Yeah that's true! Sad other countries didn't pick up on his talent though
Ringing in the New Year with Duncan Browne! Your narration is lovely Spiroid!
@CorpsesInRegalia thank you! Happy New year
@ happy new year to you as well! I had not been aware of Duncan Browne until moments ago, and was quite instantly struck by his voice, lyrics, guitar style. I will continue to explore his music, and have a listen to your music as well! My first new discoveries of 2025! Best regards!
I once talked to Duncan Browne about producing an album for me. The project never went any further and I was shocked to find out a few years later that Duncan had died of cancer. I believe it was pancreatic cancer, probably associated with his drinking. IMHO two best Metro ballads are One Way Night and Flame.
So cool to hear you once spoke to him, thanks for sharing that! How did it end up going with your music making? Yeah death it's always devastating
@@Spiroid I'm still making music. Just completed a musical :)
@@clivematthew-wilson7918 wow thats amazing. Where can I find it?
That's a lovely tribute to an artist I only discovered today. From what I have heard so far I am mightily impressed. What strikes me first of is that he is writing songs from a classical music perspective, very professional. He is about as far removed from a RAF Commodore as you could imagine, he also looked like a girl.
Yeah, I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
Fauvette was the song that hooked me immediately. Very soothing presentation here I loved it
Such a great song! Thank you
Thank you very much for this very overdue video.
May i say that your voice and speaking manner are so soothing and relaxing , it is close to ASMR.
@@zebonaut I'm glad you think so! Thanks for watching
Lovely video, much appreciated. Thank you.
Thank you for watching!
The song that popped into my head a few days ago was "Cast No Shadow". Couldn't think whose song it was at first, then remembered Duncan Browne who I'm afraid I had completely forgotten about. Now the song keeps haunting me. Had written out list of songs for my funeral and wake (cheerful) but may have to add Duncan
i love the narration in this clip, and the message at the end. thanks
Thanks for doing all the research to give us a concise history. I just discovered Duncan this year and he is amazing.
Thanks for making this excellent tribute! Love Duncan--he's one of my all-time biggest musical influences. How did you discover his music? I wanna say Robin Pecknold from FF first turned me on to him, but that was years ago when the internet was still a viable place where intergenerational communities could share/recommend music. Not sure that exists as much these days, unfortunately.
Thanks for sharing your discovery story of him! It's always a pleasure receiving such a comment. There's a last.fm feauture that allows you to see similiar artists as someone, and I believe I discovered Duncan under his close friend Colin Blunstone's profile
May he REST IN PEACE, such a handsome talented man. 😘😥💐🌟
Thank you ✨
Yes, so talented and magical
good analysis of an overlooked musician. perhaps try Ron Sexsmith next??
What a wonderful video
Glad you think so (:
I much enjoyed this thank you. Although a different ending this has echoes of the Nick Drake story, another wonderful musician gone way too soon. ✌
I'm 22, like a lot of shoegaze, modern indie, but I randomly discovered Duncan after Spotify shuffled me into 'I was you weren't' and I dug into his other tracks. 'Death of Neil' us a baller as heck of a folk song. I kept feeling he was meant for more :((
There are a number of acetate recordings that were auctioned off a few years ago. There are previews of these on TH-cam, though the full recordings have not surfaced. He was a magnificent artist.
Thanks Spiroid, I collected a lot of Duncan Browne's music. I am including them here as a guide for people on what to search for, and even with info on where I managed to purchase many items.
Duncan Browne CD Give Me Take You (re-released on CD by 1968
Sony; purchased by mail from BOSE records,
arrived 5/11/92).
Duncan Browne Duncan Browne 1973
Duncan Browne Self-titled CD with bonus tracks is still on order with CD-NOW - expected soon ALC 4/12/99 - arrived Nov 99 - see below.
Metro Metro 1977
Duncan Browne The Wild Places 1978
The Wild Places 12"Single33RPM 1978
The Wild Places 7" Single 45RPM (from 1978
Record City Collectables, Frankston 1997)
Streets Of Fire 1979
Streets Of Fire - again (P-PRF - 14/10/01) 1979
Metro New Love 1979
New Love (P-Halmstad 18/1/2001) 1979
Future Imperfect 1980
Peter Godwin Emotional DisguiseExtended Version 1982
/French Emotions 12" 45RPM Single
Images of Heaven (USA release) 1982
/Torch Song For The Heroine and
Emotional Disguise (vocal & instrumental
33RPM 12"EP)
Corresondence (2 Copies) 1983
The Art of Love - New York Remix 1983
and New York Dubmix 45RPM 12"Single
(from Correspondence)
Duncan Browne Songs Of Love & War (with bonus tracks) 1993
(CD Now - arrived late November 99)
TUENSIKAK DUNCAN BROWNE IS LIKE MY FAVORITE MUSICIAN EVER THANK YOUUUUUUU OH MYNGODFDD
Haha aw, I'm very happy you like the video!
I have all the recordings and two pieces of sheetmusic; Salve me and Theme from Travelling Man.
You are incredibly lucky!
And the sheet music, too
Great sentiment
most appreciated
¡ Thanks Spiroid !
Where do I start listening to him? Any recommendations?
My favourite album of his is the self titled one, so perhaps start there?
@@Spiroid I will do, thank you!
His first two albums were acoustic. Then he made one album as member of Metro, which was a sort of glam-rock music (of which David Bowie later covered "Criminal World"), and then he made two rock-albums, quite different from his acoustic albums. You might start there with "The Wild Places, though both albums are equally good. And when he died he was working on an album that was later finished by (among others) Colin Blunstone, "Songs of Love and War", which was again different. I suggest you try them all, they are all worth listening to 😀.
And thanks for the video, there can't be enough of this man 👍
I appreciate your effort, but as a matter of fact this man apparently had more "success" as a musician than 90% of the people who would want to be musicians. That he died at a young age from a disease, is actually not really all that relevant. That would have been sad, no matter what his ambitions or level of success had been.
yeah I get that depends on how one defines "success" really. I guess in my eyes it requires a whole lot, to the point of him being instantly recognizable by general public. So that's fair to point out! Also yes, dying is obviously also very sad no matter who it happens to. The point of the video was really just to spread the message "if you really care about making music, then you shouldn't let the performance of that music dishearten you from making it". I guess Duncan became a gateway for me to make that video, as he's somewhat obscure, and also has a music catalog I really enjoy.
You sound like if Xanax could talk. Great work tho.
Releasing 4 or 5 solo albums in a 25-year span has a lot to do with his obscurity. In an era where artists routinely issued 1 album per year (and oftentimes 2) to keep pace with the competition, Browne's output was severely lacking. Three solo albums during the decade of the seventies simply won't cut it for an under-the-radar artist. His music wasn't loud nor were his shows visual. And he certainly wasn't brash. Quite honestly, Browne was a fish out of water. The Wild Places LP was my intro to him in '78. I thought he was a new artist at that time when in fact he was already 10 years along. I don't mind the obscurity in which he resides. His meager discography and modest personality simply add to the mystique of D. Browne.
Can you give the names of the songs throughout the video?
0:00 Ragged Rain Life
0:40 In a Mist
1:48 My Old Friends
2:32 Criminal World
3:20 My Only Son
4:20 Cast No Shadow
He looks like an elf
The likes of Duncan Browne *are* elves, no doubt.
Sounds like an AI presenter
@@sevenantony7376 hahaha what!