Ten Great Jackson Browne Songs by Ten Different Piano Players

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I am a fan of piano so I decided to write an article of great Jackson Browne songs featuring piano with each piano player being different. Jackson has musical similarities with my two favourite singers Elton John & Bob Seger. Also, Elton played piano on one of Jackson’s songs which is on this list. This is the Jackson Browne version of my Bob Seger article “Ten Great Bob Seger Songs by Ten Different Piano Players”. Two of the piano players are the same in both articles. I’ve previously featured Jackson Browne songs in my articles about piano rock songs, non-relationship rock songs and songs David Paich played on. I’m using the same song from my David Paich article with an added sentence. The first song comes from Jackson’s self-titled debut album.

Jamaica Say You Will - Jackson Browne (1972)  

This is a melodic and gentle ballad featuring piano played by Jackson himself. This song sounds like Elton John. This is a piano driven song whose guitar part is only a little acoustic guitar. David Crosby’s harmony vocals mix well with Jackson’s voice. Jackson’s piano sounds full and powerful giving the best kind of playing for a ballad.

These Days - David Paich (1973)

This song begins with just Jackson and his acoustic guitar with some slide guitar parts. It continues that way until just before the chorus when David Paich’s piano comes in at just under a minute. David’s piano is a welcome addition that makes the song whole. He gives good accompaniment including being a good match for David Lindley’s slide guitar. This song is a piano and guitar driven rock ballad.

Red Neck Friend - Elton John (1973) 

We’re now increasing the pace to a full on rock song. It opens with David Lindley’s slide guitar which is soon joined by the piano. The piano is played by none other than Elton John. This slide guitar is prominent. Elton’s piano goes very well with David’s guitar playing. Eagle Glenn Frey provides noticeable harmony vocals during the chorus. The piano is most prominent in the chorus. Elton plays incredible rock & roll piano in the chorus featuring four glissandos in a row. In the final chorus he gives an instance of eight glissandos in a row. His piano playing is reminiscent of the piano in Bob Seger’s “Katmandu” (1975). I’m pleased that the Jackson Browne song Elton John played on is an intense rock song as that enabled him to feature his great rock & roll piano playing.

Fountain of Sorrow - Jai Winding (1974) 

This is the first epic long song on this list. It opens with Jai’s piano which is soon joined by Jackson’s soothing vocals. The piano is supported by David Lindley’s guitar which provides interesting subtle accompaniment. The harmony vocals by Don Henley, Dan Fogelberg & J.D. Souther are gentle which match well with Jackson’s singing. At the five minute mark, there’s a short section with only the piano. It’s great how Jai plays the piano in a slow way while giving a clear rock vibe. 

Your Bright Baby Blues - Roy Bittan (1976) 

The song is initially driven by acoustic guitar and organ. About forty eight seconds into the song, the piano comes in. The piano gives off a gentle pop rock vibe. At three minutes and seventeen seconds, we get a slide guitar played by Lowell George that comes in via a solo. The slide guitar comes back in a subtle way in the last chorus before closing with another guitar solo. Roy Bittan’s piano playing is warm. This song reminds me of Bob Seger’s “Like A Rock” (1986) as they are both six minute rock ballads having acoustic guitar and organ in the first verse before the piano comes in and two slide guitar solos. Bill Payne who played the piano on “Like A Rock” (1986) plays the organ on this song and piano on the next one. 

Here Come Those Tears Again - Bill Payne (1976)

We are now going to a shorter song after two long ones. This song starts with the song title being sung. The only instrument we hear is the piano for the first eighteen seconds. It’s interesting how the piano does sudden jumps in places. Mike Utley’s organ is featured prominently in parts of the song. It’s interesting that Jackson sings “You might look like a friend of mine” as he would later have a hit duet “You’re a Friend of Mine” with Clarence Clemons in 1985. Bonnie Raitt and Rosemary Butler sing powerful harmony vocals. This is a mid-tempo rocker with a full band sound. This song is driven by Bill’s melodic piano. 

Running on Empty - Craig Doerge (1977) 

This is one of Jackson Browne’s big hits. It opens with Craig’s piano notes. His piano notes in the song are iconic and instantly recognisable. This is a live song as no studio recording has been released. It rocks very well. Craig plays his piano fast and delivers good accompaniment to David Lindley’s two incredible slide guitar solos. While this song is more guitar driven, the piano has a good prominent place.

My Problem Is You - David Garfield (1995)  

This is from an album by Cuban percussionist Luis Conte. It was recorded by Jackson a few years earlier which Luis played on. The original version has a pop rock sound whereas this version has a latin jazz sound. Luis plays congas and maracas on this. David Garfield’s latin piano playing gives off a relaxed lounge vibe. His playing is warm. A saxophone is featured. Parts of the song are sung in Spanish which wasn’t in the original version. The next two songs also have a latin vibe.

Lausoa Kristalean - Mikel Azpiroz (2011) 

This is a duet with Basque singer Jabier Muguruza, who along with pianist Mikel Azpiroz are from Basque Country, an autonomous community in Northern Spain. It’s the only song on this list not written or co-written by Jackson. It’s an unusual collaboration which isn’t widely known. I hope this song is a nice surprise for Jackson Browne fans, finding a duet of his which they didn’t know existed. It opens with Mikel’s piano which is soon joined by Jabier’s singing in the Basque language Euskara. After the first verse, there is an accordion played by Jabier. 

Jackson then sings a verse in English. His English singing offers a good contrast to Jabier’s singing in Euskara. We have another verse from Jabier with accordion before and after it. This is a slow ballad with few instruments that works very well. It has a good melody. Mikel and Jabier do a good job to make this song captivating with mainly the two instruments of piano and accordion. As the piano is my favourite instrument, I enjoy discovering a new style of music featuring piano. Special thanks to Mikel for answering my questions about this song via email.

A Song For Barcelona - Jeff Young (2021) 

This is a new song which Jackson co-wrote with the five musicians in his band who play on it alongside Spanish musician Raúl Rodriguez who plays palmas (a Flamenco form of hand clapping). This song has a great beat. This is an epic eight and a half minute long latin rocker bringing back rock to this list. This is a very musical song with a great melody. It’s interesting to hear Jackson make reference to the “ninety-nine words for snow”. I wonder what that means. 

Jeff fuses the latin and rock styles in his piano playing very well. The two guitarists Greg Leisz & Val McCallum provide great guitar playing. I like how Jackson refers to many different places in the world where people visit Barcelona from. Places he mentions include the US, Canada, Norway & China. Close to the seven minute mark, the song stops seemingly concluding especially by the specific piano notes. Four seconds later the song comes back powerfully with Jeff’s piano notes. It’s soon joined by Catalan singing by Jackson and the backing vocalists. The band gradually comes back, has a brief instrumental section followed by places in or near Barcelona sung solely by Jackson. This song is not only a celebration of Barcelona, but also a celebration of humanity. 

While the first song “Jamaica Say You Will” is referring to a girl’s name, I am interested in different countries so I’m pleased how we’re both beginning and ending with an international destination in this list. This list went into rock and beyond. The rock songs covered rock ballads, soft rock, pop rock, mid-tempo rockers, intense 70s rock & roll and heartland rock. The latin flavoured songs cover jazz, Basque music and a latin rocker. The latin rocker “A Song For Barcelona” comes full circle fusing the two styles thus going back to rock, the primary genre of this article. Jackson Browne is known for being a rock artist. Jackson used piano less over the years and I’d like to see him make an album with a lot of piano again. Even though his debut album which opens this list was released in 1972, it was recorded in 1971 so these songs cover a 50 year period from 1971 to 2021.