Arthur Brown | Artist
Arthur Brown is an English rock singer and band leader born 1942 in Whitby, Yorkshire. Brown led bands The Crazy World of Arthur Brown and Kingdom Come, and had a big hit with the song "Fire" in 1968. He is best known for his flamboyant and theatrical performances, eclectic and experimental work and his powerful, wide-ranging operatic voice, in particular his high pitched banshee screams. He is also notable for his unique stage persona, featuring extreme facepaint and a burning helmet. In the late 1960s, the Crazy World of Arthur Brown's popularity was such that they shared bills with the Who, Jimi Hendrix, the Mothers of Invention, the Doors, Small Faces and Joe Cocker, among others. Brown was born in Whitby where his parents ran a guest house. After attending Roundhay Grammar School in Leeds, he attended the University of London and the University of Reading studying philosophy and law, but he gravitated to music instead, forming his first band, Blues and Brown, while at Reading. After a spell fronting a number of bands in London, Brown moved to Paris in 1966, where he worked on his theatrical skills. Returning to London he joined R&B group the Ramong Sound that would soon become the hit-making soul group the Foundations. By the time the Foundations found success Brown had already left to form his band, the Crazy World of Arthur Brown. The band included organist Vincent Crane who later went on to form Atomic Rooster, and bassist Nick Greenwood who later formed Khan with Steve Hillage. Future ELP drummer Carl Palmer was also a band member early on. Brown quickly earned a reputation for outlandish performances, which included the use of a burning metal helmet, that led to occasional mishaps, such as during an early appearance at the Windsor Festival in 1967, where he wore a colander on his head soaked in methanol. With The Crazy World of Arthur Brown and later band Kingdom Come, Brown produced a unique blend of Prog-Psych which influenced many UK progressive rock acts to follow. Standout albums include The Crazy World of Arthur Brown (1968), Galactic Zoo Dossier (1971), Kingdom Come (1972) and Journey (1973). Although Brown has had limited commercial success and has never repeated the commercial success of "Fire", he has remained a significant influence on musicians in numerous genres because of his operatic vocal style, wild stage persona and often experimental concepts; he is considered to be a pioneer of shock rock and progressive rock and has had an influence on both electronic and heavy metal music. In 1975, Arthur Brown appeared in the Who's rock opera movie Tommy as "The Priest".
Artist Website: arthur-brown.com
Featured Albums: Arthur Brown
Related Artists: The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Kingdom Come, Atomic Rooster
