The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown

The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown are an English rock group formed in London in 1967 by singer Arthur Brown. The original line-up includes Brown, Vincent Crane on Hammond organ and piano, Drachen Theaker on drums, and Nick Greenwood on bass. The band is active from 1967 to the present and its members also include Carter Arrington.

Style and performance

The group is associated with psychedelic rock, art rock, progressive rock and psychedelic soul. Early performances are marked by Crane’s organ and brass arrangements and by Brown’s wide vocal range, which runs into an operatic style. Brown also develops a theatrical stage image, using elaborate facepaint, costume changes, dance and a burning helmet.

Commercial success and key recordings

The band’s single Fire becomes its best-known recording. It sells more than one million copies, receives a gold disc, and reaches number one in the UK and Canada, as well as number two in the US Billboard Hot 100. The debut album, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, reaches number two in the UK, number six in Canada and number seven in the United States. The group’s second album, Strangelands, is intended for release in 1969 but is shelved by its label and not issued until 1988.

Live profile and later activity

During the late 1960s, the band shares bills with the Who, Jimi Hendrix, the Mothers of Invention, the Doors, the Small Faces and Joe Cocker. The group breaks up in 1970, with Crane and Carl Palmer forming Atomic Rooster, Theaker joining Love, and Brown later forming Kingdom Come. Palmer later co-founds Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Asia. The band then continues with many line-up changes and releases further studio and live recordings in 1970, 1993, 2000, 2003, 2011, 2013 and 2019.

Influence and related work

The Crazy World of Arthur Brown are cited as an early influence on shock rock and related theatrical performance styles. Artists associated with that influence include Kiss, Alice Cooper and Marilyn Manson, alongside musicians such as David Bowie and Peter Gabriel. Brown also appears in the film adaptation of the Who’s Tommy. Later studio albums include Tantric Lover, Vampire Suite, Zim Zam Zim and Gypsy Voodoo, the last of which is made with Mike Morgan.