Education
Edinburgh College of Artist
Edinburgh College of Artist
Browne"s musical career began when he met Roy Williamson and multi-instrumentalist Bill Smith at Edinburgh College of Art in 1955 and formed the Corrie Folk Trio in 1962. The group was expanded the following year with the addition of female singer Paddie Bell. Shortly after releasing three albums in 1965, Bell left to begin a solo career.
With the departure of Smith, the following year, Browne and Williamson continued to perform as a duo now known as The Corries.
In 1970, Williamson conceived and built the band"s signature instrument: the combolins, a pair of instruments that were rarely played separately. Williamson"s instrument featured a basic guitar fingerboard with a bandurria attached and sympathetic resonating strings.
Browne"s model was a basic guitar with a mandolin attached and four bass strings. The 1996 film The Bruce features Browne"s rendition of the Williamson-penned Flower of Scotland at the education
Browne appeared in the film playing the role of Maxwell The Minstrel.
Since Williamson"s death in 1990, Browne continued to perform and record in the spirit of the Corries. He regularly lead the singing of Flower of Scotland, de facto national anthem of Scotland, for the Scottish national football team During his performances, he was known to yell "COME Ontario!" to the crowd during the opening line of the song, which has been often parodied by the British Broadcasting Corporation Hogmanay sketch show Only an Excuse?.
As of April 27th 2015, Browne announced that due to emotional breakdowns during performances, he has put an end to singing publicly.