Len Brown
Born in the Scottish borders, Len escaped from the head-banging hairy-backed rock scene of Newcastle in the ‘70s. He sub-edited and wrote for NME and Vox in the ‘80s and early ‘90s – chiefly chasing and championing the Smiths, Gil-Scott Heron and myriad World Music masters such as Youssou N'Dour – before stumbling into an ongoing television career.
His patchy history of TV music documentary credits (as producer, director or executive producer) includes the My Generation series for Channel Four (The Animals, The Kinks, The Troggs, The Yardbirds, The Small Faces and Herman's Hermits), The Brit Girls for Channel Four (Cilla, Sandie, Marianne and Lulu), It's Slade, Wild Boys: Duran Duran, A Fine Romance: The New Romantics, Rod Stewart & The Faces: Wine Women & Song (all for BBC1) plus Close To You: The Carpenters for ITV. Len also produced the definitive television documentary about Marc Bolan – T.Rex: Dandy In The Underworld.
Married with two daughters and marooned in the Midlands, he's now trying to re-invent himself as a screenwriter but still dreams of making documentaries about Kate Bush and Sandy Denny. (Whatever happened to The Weather Prophets?) Len's Meetings With Morrissey is published by Omnibus Press.
106 articles
List of articles in the library
Gasper Lawal Band: Cricketers, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 13 August 1983
IN THE TROPICAL heatwave of Afro-beat addiction it is unjust that Gasper Lawal should remain in the shade. ...
The Associates, Mathilde Santing: St. James' Church, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 3 August 1985
ALTAR EGOS ...
Alan Hull: Hull's Teeth: An Interview with Alan Hull
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 14 December 1985
HARD TIMES on Tyneside. So what's new, pussycats? There's snow storms, there's no jobs (30% unemployment), and worst of all, the by-election bigwigs – Brittan, ...
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 4 January 1986
BOXING CLEVER ...
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 1 February 1986
SCENES OF decay and destruction: cracked streets, derelict warehouses, disused railways, a forsaken synagogue and – cloaked by walls of racist graffiti – the burnt-out ...
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 8 March 1986
ONLY A HEARTLESS bastard would knock old John. I mean. 20 years of love-drugged poetry, dedicated to ideal earth mothers, cossetted in an Arcadian atmosphere ...
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 15 March 1986
A WORKING-CLASS hero is something to be; it gets more difficult by the day. Under a Government that puts Profit and Progress before People (don't ...
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 5 July 1986
"...walk straight and look the world right in the eye." Giant-sized babythings THE WOODENTOPS have given birth, at last, to their first bouncy, long-playing offspring. ...
Gil Scott-Heron: Word War Fighter
Report by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 19 July 1986
Prophet, poet and rap pioneer GIL SCOTT-HERON was calling for sanctions against South Africa a decade ago in his hit ‘Johannesburg’. Currently due to appear ...
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 2 August 1986
WE'RE HUDDLED together (2000 of us) in the home of heavy metal, witnessing the early disturbed sound of 'Bigmouth'. But thankfully they're just warming up; ...
Review and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 9 August 1986
NICK DRAKE was one of Britain's finest folksingers. Now Hannibal Records have re-released his complete works – and included some previously unavailable songs. LEN BROWN ...
Tom Robinson Band: Tom Robinson: Rising Cramp
Report and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 6 September 1986
TOM ROBINSON enters stage left to add his musical and emotional weight to John Godber's Cramp. LEN BROWN meets the DJ, anti-coke campaigner and gay ...
The Mighty Lemon Drops: Happy Head
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 27 September 1986
THEY'VE GOT to give it to us now. They can't hold on anymore. The first of the Class of '86 to really go the distance, ...
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark: Orchestral Manouevres In The Dark: The Pacific Age
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 4 October 1986
OH TO put aside the racehorses, to forget Morley's G-Mex intro ("two rich bastards from LA") to ignore the cobalt-coated doughboys who adorn the inner ...
Fela Kuti: The Great Pretender: Fela Kuti
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 25 October 1986
So, who is this FELA KUTI? An African musician just out of jail and now threatening to run for President of Nigeria? A polygamist in ...
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 8 November 1986
SWEET HONEY IN THE R**K ...
The Weather Prophets: Diesel River
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 8 November 1986
I'M TOLD Diesel River is designed specifically for our teutonic friends. But considering that many of our "biggest record stores in the world" are hotching ...
The Fall Play Hey! Luciani: Riverside Studios, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, December 1986
THERE'S A PLAY in every one of us, even Ernie Wise. And perhaps Mark E. Smith. In fact, most of the ingredients are here, maybe ...
Lindisfarne: Dance Your Life Away
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 13 December 1986
IT'S PHENOMENAL. Soon a whole city will be swinging together. Every Christmas, like clockwork, a bunch of hairy, balding middle-aged men take the stage and ...
The Housemartins: If You Love Jesus
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 20 December 1986
FOR GOD'S SAKE, stop and think. When Christmas Day first strikes again – when you're reeling in the aisles, cock-eyed and carolling, desperate for a ...
Christy Moore: Hammersmith Odeon
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, January 1987
WHILE OUR pubs become youth clubs (16-30s), where communication is broken by mindless muzak, and while our elders are alienated from our "social" lives, the ...
Microdisney: Crooked Mile (Virgin)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 10 January 1987
PLEASE EXCUSE my pretentiousness, but William Morris wrote in The Earthly Paradise: "Dreamer of dreams, born out of my time, why should I strive to ...
Van Morrison: Hammersmith Odeon, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 24 January 1987
NOT UNREASONABLY I've always associated middle-aged corpulence and material over-indulgence with the death of desire to develop; we witness the long drawn-out demise of our ...
Elvis Costello And The Attractions at the Royal Albert Hall
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 31 January 1987
STEVEN THE computer programmer is in his element. In black and white stripes with red kipper tie, he's sweating, shaking and singing all the words ...
The Style Council: Style Council: The Cost Of Loving (Polydor)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 7 February 1987
LISTEN TO the wordly-wise Cappuccino Kid: "...this affair of the heart, once it began, dispelled all the bitternenss I felt at the world, and gave ...
Billy Bragg's record collection
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 14 February 1987
A HARE-BRAINED afternoon in the warmest room and things are not quite what they seem. The bookshelves may be burdened with Mayakovsky and miner's lamps; ...
Mick Karn: Dreams Of Reason Produce Monsters (Virgin)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 21 February 1987
MICK'S HIT upon hard times since the fall of Japan and his forgotten Titles. Perhaps the demise of the miscellaneous/multi-instrumentalist category in the Readers' Poll ...
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 28 February 1987
MARIA McKEE bites yer lugs. Sometimes it's a sensual experience; a shiver in the stirrup, a tickle on the lobe. Sometimes it's excruciating; the yelp ...
Julian Cope: Saint Julian (Island)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 7 March 1987
THERE HAVE been four Saint Julians. One, Julian of Toledo, persecuted the Jews; Julian the Hospitaller murdered his mum and dad by mistake; and three, ...
The Weather Prophets: Singing In The Rain: The Weather Prophets
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 28 March 1987
Songs?! Poetry?!! Something's very wrong here; THE WEATHER PROPHETS are making a splash as a high profile rock band, but there's no mention of metal ...
Paul Simon: Royal Albert Hall, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 18 April 1987
LET'S NOT beat about the bush. This is a celebration of black South African music with an anti-apartheid spirit mixed into its magic. And it ...
Christy Moore: Unfinished Revolution (WEA)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, May 1987
SURELY CHRISTY Moore, the demi-god of Irish folk, can't have produced another masterpiece in the mould of Ride On and Ordinary Man? ...
The Cradle, Easterhouse: The Cradle: The Hand That Rocks The Cradle
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 23 May 1987
Following the acrimonious break-up of Easterhouse last year, guitarist Ivor Perry has put together a less rigidly militant combo called THE CRADLE. LEN BROWN hears ...
The Mighty Lemon Drops: Drop in the ocean
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 23 May 1987
Last year THE MIGHTY LEMON DROPS crossed the Great Rubicon between indie cred and chart expectations. This year America beckons but there's still no sign ...
Deacon Blue: Light Macs: Deacon Blue: Raintown (CBS)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 30 May 1987
RICKY ROSS— it's the type of name that must determine your destiny. Like Reed Richards: Reasonable Superhero or Bruno Brookes: Burly Deejay or Dickie Davies: ...
The Band of Holy Joy: "Bertolt Brecht, my arse!"
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 6 June 1987
THE BAND OF HOLY JOY go to Tynemouth and back to say 'we're not a bunch of art poseurs, ta very much' Bag-man: LEN BROWN ...
Jennifer Warnes, Leonard Cohen: Jennifer Warnes: Famous Blue Raincoat (RCA)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 20 June 1987
THE TOTAL exhumation and resurrection of Leonard Cohen gathers alarming pace. Here Jennifer Warnes, one-time backer to ole grumble guts, runs through nine of laff-a-lifetime-Len's ...
Martin Stephenson & The Daintees: Martin Stephenson and the Daintees: Town and Country Club, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 27 June 1987
PRESERVE US from Daintee girlies. They squeal, they stamp on my feet, they swoon "he's got lovely hands" about Stephenson's unremarkable mitts, and they feign ...
Peter Gabriel, Youssou N'Dour: Earls Court, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 4 July 1987
THE '70S DINOSAURS are dying out; either through lack of brain, excess of dosh or both. ...
The Christians: Rock On Commie: The Christians In East Berlin
Report and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 1 August 1987
WHERE AM I? The hotel receptionist says, "Have a nice day". There's Gershwin muzak in the lift. There's Sade on the radio. There's no bugging ...
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 1 August 1987
AND DARKNESS fell over all the earth. Well, only a teensyweensy bit of it actually, but it turned into the arse-end of Pandemonium. A plethora ...
Wet Wet Wet: Scream! Scream! Scream!
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 8 August 1987
Lock up your pop-stars, Glasgow's daughters are on the rampage. Thankfully the police have got the situation under control. Wet Wet Wet may be trapped ...
New Order: Substance (Factory)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 15 August 1987
WE CHUCK words at New Order. Words like funereal and ethereal and classical and awesome. ...
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 22 August 1987
IS MOMUS perverted, introspective, or just more candid than most? LEN BROWN meets the man whose songs are a poison heartache. ...
Alice Cooper, Status Quo, The Stranglers: Alice Cooper, The Stranglers, Status Quo: Reading Festival
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, September 1987
WELCOME TO my nightmare. "Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! It's been five years but it's good to be back. . . Awwwwwwright! . . . We f—kin' ...
The Smiths: Strangeways, Here We Come
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 12 September 1987
"MAN THAT is born of woman hath but a short time to live and is full of misery. He cometh up and is cut down ...
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 26 September 1987
ROCK HACKS aren't allowed near Bob. He's got no time for the press. In fact, someone who once met his grannie's dog-minder tells me Bob ...
The Oyster Band: Wide Blue Yonder (Cooking Vinyl)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 28 September 1987
ONCE UPON a time, admitting to a fondness for English folk was akin to confessing a savage case of crabs. Then came The Oyster Band, ...
Cowboy Junkies: Saddled With The Blues: Cowboy Junkies
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 1988
JOHN WAYNE on smack? Is that what you expected and outfit who call themselves Cowboy Junkies to sound like? Wild country and western shoot-outs and ...
Report and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, February 1988
"How could they do this to Oscar Wilde's grave?" Len Brown asks of Morrissey, but finds his genitals reduced to paperweights. (Oscar's that is...) ...
Morrissey: Borne To Be Wilde - interview part 1
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 13 February 1988
"WE HAVE a warrant here, Mr. Wilde, for your arrest on a charge of committing indecent acts." "Where shall I be taken?" "To Bow Street." ...
Woody Guthrie: Columbia River Collection
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 13 February 1988
THE LEGEND dwarfs the artist. His tragic life, his hard times have somehow cast his potent roots music into the shadows; if you can lay ...
Morrissey: Born to be Wilde - interview part 2
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 20 February 1988
"I THINK that very strong intelligent artists should dictate practically everything, but they don't. If we talk about Tiffany and Belinda Carlisle and the whole ...
Nanci Griffith: Little Love Affairs
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 12 March 1988
SHE'S THE very picture of vulnerability. The little girl stands – bobby sox, blazer, hair-band, sprig of blue bonnets in hand – by the window, ...
The Trio Bulgarka: Never Mind The Balkans: The New Bulgaria
Report by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 12 March 1988
Not exactly Bananarama, perhaps, but 4AD's LE MYSTÈRE DES VOIX BULGARES and TRIO BULGARKA and other Bulgarian artists are shifting a surprising number of units ...
Prefab Sprout: From Langley Park To Memphis
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 12 March 1988
FROM THE raw-wrestling flesh of Swoon to the black-faced greasy bikedom of Steve McQueen, the sleeves of Sprout albums have refused to reveal or hint ...
Tracy Chapman: Tracy Chapman (Elektra)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, April 1988
SHE COMES from the wilderness, as prophesised, with a voice like molasses, hair like an ink blot and a heartful of tears. She comes with ...
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 9 April 1988
DEEP JOY is in my heart that Aswad have had a giant hit single, a corking little pop reggae soul tune of some upliftingness. However, ...
Martin Stephenson & The Daintees: Gladsome Humour & Blue (Kitchenware/London)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 9 April 1988
STEPHENSON BUILDS bridges. Between love and hate, between cradle and grave, between folk and pop, between the past and the present. He surveys the world ...
The Men They Couldn’t Hang: The Men They Couldn't Hang: Hip Ahoy!
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 7 May 1988
Shiver yer timbers and splice yer mainbrace! THE MEN THEY COULDN'T HANG have just spirited up their first long player Waiting For Bonaparte. LEN BROWN ...
Report by Len Brown, David Quantick, New Musical Express, 14 May 1988
The best-selling 12" of all time! Two million copies worldwide! Five years on from its original release (four spent in the Top 200), NEW ORDER'S ...
The Weather Prophets: Judges Juries & Horsemen (Creation)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 26 May 1988
WELCOME TO The Pete Astor Experience. ...
Review and Interview by Len Brown, Spin, June 1988
Lyricist extraordinaire, celibate aesthete, charismatic bigmouth, the former Smiths frontman returns for tea & sympathy ...
Morrissey, The Smiths: Hate Male
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 2 July 1988
The Smiths were "like a life-support machine" to Morrissey. Without STEPHEN STREET – co-writer/producer of Viva Hate – it's conceivable that Les Miserable himself would ...
The Dinner Ladies, The Oyster Band: The Oyster Band and The Dinner Ladies: A Total Oyster Time?
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 30 July 1988
Is the New Wave of British Folk going anywhere, or is it just the old stuff tanked up and recut? ...
Frank Sidebottom: 5/9/88! (In Tape Double LP/Cassette only)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 17 September 1988
THE VERY existence of 5/9/88! is a triumph of art over antagonism. Like The Smiths at Strangeways… and The Beatles during Let It Be, Sidebottom's ...
Tom Waits: Big Time (Island LP/Cassette/CD)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 1 October 1988
START MAKING SENSE ...
The Fall: I Am Kurious Oranj (Beggars Banquet)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 29 October 1988
"When I was at the Witch Trials of the 20th Century, they said: 'You are white crap. You are an aesthetic anesthetic. Your repetition will ...
Kate Bush: Down At The Old Bul and Bush
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 12 November 1988
Kate Bush and Yanka Rupkina sit on a bean-bag couch and sing to me, Bulgarian style; Rupkina bleating high and joyous above Bush's harmony. ...
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 17 November 1988
Does PHIL COLLINS keep up the tradition and slot into the file alongside Ringo and Keith Moon – tub-thumpers and "silly" actors both? LEN BROWN ...
Live Review by Len Brown, The Guardian, 30 December 1988
WITH A soft Charles Hawtrey-style "hullo" and a shower of flowers. Steven Patrick Morrissey returns to the stage. It's two years since his uniquely English ...
Profile and Interview by Len Brown, unpublished, 1989
This article appeared in edited form in New Musical Express"This is a good time to replenish, to renourish and drink silence." ...
Dusty Springfield: Scandal In The Wind: Dusty Springfield
Report and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 1989
As the sex-in-high-places Profumo Scandal returns to this nation's screens, Dusty Springfield (with the Pet Shop Boys) brings us the single soundtrack. Len Brown met ...
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 7 January 1989
AT THE DAWN OF 1989 I'm confronted by Guy House Of Love Chadwick, Andrea Darling Bud and Miles Wonder Stuff. The first, an anorexic Brian ...
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 21 January 1989
WAS SITTING BULL a Hunkpapa or an Oglala Sioux? And how come one of these two strands of the Sioux nation has emerged as a ...
The Lilac Time, Love and Money: Love and Money, the Lilac Time: Town & Country Club, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 11 February 1989
I'M ASHAMED of myself, as usual. For having missed the tea-time set by Andy Pawlak — the post-Sprout troubadour who feeds ice cream to rattlesnakes ...
Dusty Springfield: Scandal In The Wind
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 25 February 1989
"IT'S AMAZING when you consider how many people have croaked. Looking back at some of those old Ready Steady Go! Shows, 'Jesus, she's croaked, where's ...
Nick Drake: Deja Vu: Nick Drake
Retrospective by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 11 March 1989
Nick Drake: Five Leaves Left ...
Papa Wemba: Papa's Got a Brand New Wardrobe: Papa Wemba
Profile and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 11 March 1989
Film-star, superhero, total poseur, Zairean PAPA WEMBA brings his brand of designer World Beat to town, with a swish of posh cloth and a creak ...
Profile and Interview by Len Brown, unpublished, 14 March 1989
IN AN UPSTAIRS storeroom at Hannibal Records HQ, the quarterback-sized Joe Boyd sits on a sack. Around him are boxes, piled high, brimming with the ...
Adult Net, The , The Bluebells, The Smiths: I Was A Juvenile Axe-Attacker: Craig Gannon
Retrospective and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 18 March 1989
From THE SMITHS to THE ADULT NET, THE BLUEBELLS to THE COLOURFIELD and not forgetting AZTEC CAMERA… CRAIG GANNON has played with them all, and ...
Johnny Marr: What Is Johnny Marr Playing At?
Report by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 27 May 1989
SINCE THE SMITHS split in 1987, MORRISSEY has gone on to bigger if not necessarily better things, while JOHNNY MARR has been living the 'have ...
Peter Gabriel, Youssou N'Dour: Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos
Report and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 3 June 1989
YOUSSOU N'DOUR and PETER GABRIEL, the pair that have set so many causes alight, have combined again, this time to champion female emancipation. LEN BROWN ...
Peter Gabriel: An Alien In The Real World
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 10 June 1989
Although he's never appeared in the Sunday Sport, PETER GABRIEL has achieved enough for anyone else's lifetime. In part two of this interview, he talks ...
"I Know Where Syd Barrett Lives"
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 7 October 1989
PETER JENNER epitomises the 'fifth Beatle' school of pop management, guiding the ill starred careers of the early Pink Floyd, Marc Bolan and Topper-troubled Clash ...
Kate Bush: In The Realm Of The Senses
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 7 October 1989
The essence of sensuality and child-like wonder or screeching wood nymph? KATE BUSH steps back into the spotlight after four years of reclusive recording and ...
Richard Thompson: Royal Festival Hall, London
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 14 October 1989
"IT'S TAKEN me a long time to clamber my way back to the top of showbiz," announces Richard wryly, "see under Wyman, Bill." Although he ...
David Byrne: Rei Momo (Sire-WEA)
Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 28 October 1989
PURISTS AND cultural segregationists must be reaching for the suicide pills. There's Acid Bhangra, African House, Japanese ska, Brazillian Hip-hop, Yemenite disco, Turkish rap, Kate ...
Billy Bragg: Is Billy Bragg Pissing In The Wind Or What?
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 4 November 1989
Highway Through Hellas: a Greek tragicomedy in sex acts and three comic benefits. Starring Billy Bragg as Flash Gordon (protest singer, planet saviour and aspiring ...
Kate Bush: Positive Female Energy
Interview by Len Brown, CD Review, December 1989
"I find it extraordinary that people should want to write about me when I do so little. I just pop out and do an album ...
The Band of Holy Joy, James: Band of Holy Joy, James: Manc Magic Majestic
Live Review by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 9 December 1989
Band of Holy Joy, James: Cambridge Corn Exchange ...
808 State, A Guy Called Gerald: House-proud
Report by Len Brown, The Observer, 17 December 1989
Techno-beat may have played itself out in the capital, but in Manchester it's the rhythm which has sparked a working-class musical revolution. LEN BROWN reports ...
Edwyn Collins: Hope Springs Eternal: Edwyn Collins
Interview by Len Brown, Cut, Fall 1989
Though his brand of jangly guitar pop is oft-imitated, commercial success has eluded EDWYN COLLINS. But the ex-Orange Juice frontman isn't bitter, as LEN BROWN ...
Ride: In The Land of The Riding Sons: Ride: Boardwalk, Manchester
Review and Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 10 March 1990
"TALLULAH GOSH and some bloke from Supertramp" — this is the grim musical history of Oxford according to Ride. ...
Suzanne Vega: Godmother Of New Age
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 14 April 1990
Suzanne Vega was brought up as a Puerto Rican, attended the neo-legendary New York School Of Performing Arts and went on to become the sensitive ...
Joy Division, Tony Wilson: Division On: Joy Division
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 19 May 1990
"FUNNY. I WAS IN the car with Barney the other day and I just hit Unknown Pleasures into the CD. And Barney shouted, 'Get that ...
Roy Harper: Peace, Love and a Punchup with Ginger Baker: The Saga of Roy Harper
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 23 June 1990
After 25 years on life's acoustic stage, ROY HARPER is undoubtedly King Of The Hippies. In a moment of good karma, NME let the man ...
Interview by Len Brown, Vox, November 1990
Morrissey could probably have done without the last year, and there's a been a few none too kind hacks and hackettes who say we could ...
Interview by Len Brown, New Musical Express, 24 November 1990
IT'S BIN A long time comin'. Twenty-five years since his first Top 20 hit ('Catch The Wind' in '65) and over 20 since his last ...
The Sundays: They Do Like Sundays
Interview by Len Brown, Vox, January 1991
They do like the sundays in japan, where their three-rs album title was renamed for local pronunciation and they like 'em in the States. Despite ...
Retrospective by Len Brown, Record Hunter, January 1991
Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan may never have strummed a note had it not been for the influence of the folk pioneer, Woody Guthrie. So ...
Interview by Len Brown, Details, March 1991
"IF GEORGE MICHAEL had to live my life for five minutes, he'd strangle himself with the nearest piece of cord," says Morrissey as he walks ...
The Bhundu Boys Take Up Whistle-Blowing
Interview by Len Brown, The Independent, 27 November 1991
David Mankaba, of Africa's best-known band, decided to tell the whole continent he was dying of AIDS. It was his challenge to ignorance and apathy, ...
Joy Division: She’s Got Control
Interview by Len Brown, Q, June 1995
Fifteen years after he hanged himself in their Macclesfield kitchen, Joy Division leader Ian Curtis has been "outed" by his widow, Deborah, as an ill-tempered, ...
Live Review by Len Brown, Rock's Backpages, 22 December 2006
A DICKENSIAN SMOG shrouds the city centre and the increasingly familiar ghost of Manchester's Christmas' past shuffles onto the stage. "Well, they look friendly," he ...
Morrissey: Unhappy Birthday, Morrissey
Retrospective by Len Brown, Rock's Backpages, 22 May 2009
N.B. This is the full, unedited version of a piece published in The Guardian on 22 May 2009 ...
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