He is regarded as one of the Generation of '50 of Spanish poets, along with Claudio Rodríguez, Jaime Gil de Biedma and Ángel González.

His poetry collections include: Las brasas (1960), Palabras a la oscuridad (1966), Aún no (1971), Insistencias en Luzbel (1977), El otoño de las rosas (1986) and La última costa (1995).

He won the prestigious Premio Nacional de las Letras Españolas in 1999.

In 2020 he won the Premio Cervantes, the most important literary award of the Spanish language world.

Brines died on 20 May 2021, aged 89, at his home after being admitted to the hospital for a few days for a hernia operation.