Born Vincent Rodney Cheesman in Reading, Berkshire, he taught himself boogie woogie piano as a teenager before attending Trinity College of Music between 1961 and 1964.

Their debut album The Crazy World of Arthur Brown (1968) contained the song "Fire", co-written by Crane, which was a chart-topping hit single in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada, featuring Crane's organ and brass arrangements.

[1] Crane rejoined the band but on a subsequent tour of the United States, the band disintegrated in June 1969 when Arthur Brown temporarily disappeared to a commune[1] and Crane and drummer Carl Palmer left to form Atomic Rooster,[3] playing their first concert at the Lyceum in London on 29 August, headlining over Deep Purple.

[1] Atomic Rooster enjoyed success in 1971 with two hit singles, "Tomorrow Night" (written by Crane) and "Devil's Answer".

As a result of his mental health issues, Crane died of a deliberate overdose of painkillers in 1989 at age 45.