Noel Browne of the Browne Bunch
Musician and former member of The Browne Bunch, Noel Browne, died from a heart attack at his home in the United Kingdom on September 17. He was 64.
His brother, Cleveland “Clevie” Browne confirmed his death. Clevie, formerly of the production duo Steely and Clevie, said he spoke to Noel two days prior and suspects he was overworked.
“He just has a sudden heart attack. We are still gathering information as we speak. His eldest child lives in the UK so we’re still communicating—trying to get all the details. He was found on the ground. He was a workaholic. What I know is that he spent many hours in his studio beyond what most people would do. At times, he would call me at 11:00 pm Jamaica time, which I know was 5:00 am UK time and he’d say that he hadn’t gotten any sleep, then he’d be back at it again early the same day. He was really putting in a whole heap of work. I cannot say that’s the cause of his death, but I know he was always working hard. A lot of us used to do that in my earlier years because you wouldn’t want to lose the vibe in that moment of creating music, so you don’t stop until you’re complete,” Clevie told the Jamaica Observer.
He lost another older brother, Dalton, on November 1, 2020, days after he underwent quadruple bypass surgery. The other members of the Browne Bunch are bassist Glen and Danny, a guitarist.
Noel Browne was instrumental in the foundation of singer Freddie McGregor’s Big Ship Studio. He is credited on McGregor’s songs, Winner and Knocking on Heaven’s Door, and also worked with Dennis Brown and Glen Washington.
Clevie, a drummer, said Noel will be remembered for his calm demeanour and tireless work ethic.
“All the Browne brothers are kind gentlemen. He would give his best in whatever he was doing. He spent so much time on his music…to get good results you have to spend time on music. We stood close to our mother who will soon be 96 years old.”
The Browne Bunch formed in 1972 with their first single being a cover of The Jackson 5’s We’ve Got A Good Thing Going, produced by Mikey and Geoffrey Chung.
Noel Browne is survived by seven children.
