How many times has Jackson Browne been on Austin City Limits

Jackson Browne made his return to Austin City Limits (ACL) for the first time in two decades with a full band and some special guests. Browne’s performance was filmed and is set to premiere on Nov. 13 on PBS.

“It took a minor miracle just to pull off this show,” Terry Lickona, longtime executive producer of ACL tells American Songwriter. “We had been talking to Jackson for the better part of a year, and between the pandemic, Delta, and complicated touring and logistics, it almost didn’t happen.”

Throughout his nine-song set, which was originally taped on Sept. 22, 2021, Browne performed some songs spanning his 50-year career, including two from his latest collection Downhill From Everywhere. Backed by an eight-piece band, featuring bassist Bob Glaub, Jason Crosby on violin and piano, Greg Leisz on pedal and lap steel, drummer Mauricio Lewak, Jeff Young on organ, and Alethea Mills and Chavonne Stewart.

Special guest Leslie Mendelson, duets with Browne on “A Human Touch,” a song the pair wrote for Downhill From Everywhere, while guitarist Val McCallum joins Browne for “My Cleveland Heart,” a song the two penned for the same album.

“It’s like Valhalla for us, getting to play Austin City Limits,” joked Browne to the crowd.

Wrapping up the set, Browne performed “Take It Easy,” a song he wrote with Glenn Frey for the Eagles in 1972. “Sing it so Glenn Frey can hear you,” said Browne to the audience.

“Jackson came through in the end,” said Lickona, “and we captured what makes him such an essential artist.”

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Jackson Browne’s ACL 2021 Setlist:

I’m Alive
The Long Way Around
My Cleveland Heart
The Dreamer
These Days
Human Touch
Doctor My Eyes
Late For the Sky
Take It Easy/Our Lady of the Well

Photo by Scott Newton, courtesy of Austin City Limits

Austin City Limits is proud to present a season highlight: the return of Jackson Browne for the first time in nearly 20 years. The singer-songwriter showcases a chart-topping new collection, Downhill From Everywhere, alongside highlights from his five decade career in an exquisite hour premiering November 13 at 9pm ET/8pm CT as part of the series Season 47. Despite the challenges facing live music during the past year, ACL is thrilled to deliver a new season of performances for viewers, all recorded at ACL’s studio home in Austin, Texas in 2021, in front of limited live audiences. The program continues its extraordinary run as the longest-running music television show in history, providing viewers a front-row seat to the best in live performance for a remarkable 47 years. ACL airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings) and full episodes are made available to stream online at pbs.org/austincitylimits immediately following the initial broadcast.  

“It’s like Valhalla for us, getting to play Austin City Limits,” says Jackson Browne in his first appearance on the ACL stage since 2002. Backed by an ace eight-piece band, Browne delivers a career-spanning set including time-worn favorites and more recent gems from the acclaimed Downhill From Everywhere, his fifteenth studio album. A Rock Hall inductee, Browne is an archetype of the singer-songwriter, Americana genre, and started blazing a trail in the 1970s with his personal, introspective lyrics. He opens the hour with the searching “I’m Alive,” a mid-career highlight about moving on from past sorrows. Browne showcases new material tailor-made for these times, including the roots rocker “My Cleveland Heart,” about trading in a fragile human heart for a resilient, artificial replacement (gamely introducing it as a “cheerful song”). The veteran social justice advocate performs “The Dreamer” a powerful bilingual song that eloquently addresses the struggles facing a generation of children of immigrants. Browne duets with singer-songwriter Leslie Mendelson for the stunning collaboration “A Human Touch” and brings backing vocalist Chavonne Stewart out for the folk-rocker social commentary “The Long Way Around.” He dazzles with early-career classics including the radio staple “Doctor My Eyes” and “These Days,” written when Browne was just sixteen-years-old. 

“You wanna sing this one?” calls out Browne before closing with a pair of songs from 1973’s For Everyman: fan favorite “Take It Easy,” the Eagles 1972 smash that he co-wrote with Glenn Frey, poignantly calling for the crowd to “Sing it so Glenn Frey can hear you!” Browne allows the entire band to shine, segueing seamlessly into the wistful “Our Lady of the Well,” with round robin solos all-around for an unforgettable close.

“In so many ways, Jackson Browne epitomizes the return of live music in the post-pandemic 21st century,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “He’s a bridge to the best music of the last 40 years, but his new songs are spot-on relevant to the world we live in today. There aren’t that many artists who can pull that off.”

Jackson Browne setlist:

I’m Alive

The Long Way Around

My Cleveland Heart

The Dreamer

These Days

A Human Touch

Doctor My Eyes

Late For the Sky

Take It Easy/Our Lady of the Well

Season 47 Broadcast Line-up (second half of season to be announced shortly):

October 2Miranda Lambert with Jack Ingram & Jon Randall

October 9Jade Bird / Dayglow

October 16Jon Batiste

October 23Sarah Jarosz / Billy Strings

October 30Brandy Clark / Charley Crockett

November 6 Leon Bridges / Khruangbin

November 13Jackson Browne

November 20 Brittany Howard

Watch live, stream anytime, and let ACL be a trusted sidekick for entertainment during these challenging days. The complete line-up for the full 13-week season, including five new episodes to air beginning January 2022, will be announced shortly.  Viewers can visit acltv.com for news regarding live streams, future tapings and episode schedules or by following ACL on Facebook, Twitter and IG.Fans can also browse the ACL YouTube channel for exclusive songs, behind-the-scenes videos and full-length artist interviews.

Austin City Limits

Austin City Limits (ACL) offers viewers unparalleled access to featured acts in an intimate setting that provides a platform for artists to deliver inspired, memorable, full-length performances. Now in its 47th Season, the program is taped live before a concert audience from The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. Austin City Limits is the longest-running music series in television history and remains the only TV series to ever be awarded the National Medal of Arts. Since its inception, the groundbreaking music series has become an institution that’s helped secure Austin’s reputation as the Live Music Capital of the World. The historic Austin PBS Studio 6A, home to 36 years of ACL concerts, has been designated an official Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark. In 2011, ACL moved to the new venue ACL Live at The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. ACL received a rare institutional Peabody Award for excellence and outstanding achievement in 2012.  

Austin City Limits is produced by Austin PBS and funding is provided in part by Dell Technologies, Workrise, the Austin Convention Center Department and Cirrus Logic. Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Austin City Limits. Learn more about Austin City Limits, programming and history at acltv.com.

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