Glen Campbell | |
|---|---|
 Campbell in 1967 | |
| Born | Glen Travis Campbell (1936-04-22)April 22, 1936 Billstown, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Died | August 8, 2017(2017-08-08) (aged 81) Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1950–2013 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 9, includingAshley Campbell |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instruments |
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| Works | Glen Campbell discography |
| Labels | |
| Website | glencampbell |
Musical artist | |
Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hostingThe Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour onCBS television from 1969 until 1972.[2] A revered session guitarist before breaking through as a solo performer, Campbell released 64 albums in a career that spanned five decades, selling over 45 million records worldwide, including twelve gold albums, four platinum albums, and one double-platinum album.
Born inBillstown, Arkansas, Campbell began his professional career as astudio musician in Los Angeles, spending several years playing with the group of instrumentalists later known as "The Wrecking Crew". After becoming a solo artist, he placed a total of 80 different songs on either theBillboard Country Chart,Billboard Hot 100, orAdult Contemporary Chart, of which 29 made the top 10 and of which nine reached number one on at least one of those charts. Among Campbell's hits are "Universal Soldier", his first hit from 1965, along with "Gentle on My Mind" (1967), "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" (1967), "Dreams of the Everyday Housewife" (1968), "Wichita Lineman" (1968), "Galveston" (1969), "Rhinestone Cowboy" (1975), and "Southern Nights" (1977).[3]
In 1967, Campbell won four Grammys in the country and pop categories. For "Gentle on My Mind", he received two awards incountry and western; "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" did the same in pop. Three of his early hits later wonGrammy Hall of Fame Awards (2000, 2004, 2008), while Campbell himself won theGrammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. He owned trophies for Male Vocalist of the Year from both theCountry Music Association (CMA) and theAcademy of Country Music (ACM), and took the CMA's top award as 1968 Entertainer of the Year. Campbell played a supporting role in the filmTrue Grit (1969), which earned him aGolden Globe nomination for Most Promising Newcomer. He also sang thetitle song, which was nominated for anAcademy Award. Campbell announced he was diagnosed withAlzheimer's disease in 2011 and retired in 2013 after recording his final song, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You". He died from the disease on August 8, 2017, at the age of 81.
Glen Travis Campbell was born on April 22, 1936, inBillstown, a tiny community nearDelight inPike County, Arkansas, to John Wesley Campbell (asharecropper) and Carrie Dell (née Stone) Campbell.[4] Campbell was ofScottish descent and was the seventh son of 12 children.[5][6] As a child he almost died from drowning.[7] His family went to theChurch of Christ, and Campbell's brother Lindell became a Church of Christ minister.[7] In 2011, Campbell said his mother wasIrish; although she was born in the United States, her family had emigrated fromCounty Tipperary.[8] The family lived on a farm, where they barely managed, by growing cotton, corn, watermelons and potatoes. "We had no electricity," he said, and money was scarce. "A dollar in those days looked as big as asaddle blanket."[9] To supplement income the family picked cotton for other farmers. "I picked cotton for $1.25 a hundred pounds," Campbell said. "If you worked your tail off, you could pick 80 or 90 pounds a day."[10]
Campbell started playing guitar at age 4 after his father gave him aSears-bought five-dollar guitar as a gift, with his uncle Boo teaching him the basics of how to play.[11] Most of his family was musical, he said. "Back home, everybody plays and sings."[12] By the time he was 6 he was performing on local radio stations.[2]
Campbell continued playing guitar in his youth, with no formal training, and practiced when he was not working in the cotton fields. He developed his talent by listening to radio and records and consideredDjango Reinhardt among his most admired guitarists, later calling him "the most awesome player I ever heard."[13][14] He dropped out of school in the 10th grade[7] at 14 to work inHouston alongside his brothers, installing insulation and later working at a gas station.[15]
Not satisfied with that kind of work, Campbell started playing music at fairs and church picnics and singing gospel hymns in the church choir. He was able to find spots performing on local radio stations, and after his parents moved to Houston, he made some appearances at a local nightclub.[15]
In 1954, at age 17, Campbell moved toAlbuquerque, New Mexico, to join his uncle's band, known as Dick Bills and the Sandia Mountain Boys.[16] He also appeared there on his uncle's radio show[14] and onK Circle B Time, the local children's program onKOB television.[17] It was there that he met his first wife, whom he married when he was 18 and she was 16.[15]
In 1958, Campbell formed his own band, the Western Wranglers.[16] "We worked hard," he said. "Six, sometimes seven nights a week. I didn't have my eye set on any specific goals or big dreams."[9]
He played with all kinds of genres, with different instrumentation and different styles. If it was a just and righteous world, Glen would be credited as one of the great, seminal influences of all time. He was a secret weapon in the armory of Sixties record producers.
In 1960, Campbell moved toLos Angeles to become asession musician.[19][20] That October,[21] he joinedthe Champs. By January 1961,[22] Campbell had found a daytime job at publishing company American Music, writing songs and recording demos.[14] Because of these demos Campbell soon was in demand as a session musician and became part of a group of studio musicians later known asthe Wrecking Crew.[20]
Campbell played on recordings bythe Beach Boys,Bobby Darin,Frank Sinatra,Ricky Nelson,Dean Martin,Nat King Cole,the Monkees,Nancy Sinatra,Merle Haggard,Jan and Dean,[19]Bing Crosby,Phil Spector,Sammy Davis Jr.,Doris Day,Bobby Vee,The Everly Brothers,Shelley Fabares,The Cascades,Paul Revere & the Raiders,Wayne Newton,The First Edition,The Kingston Trio,Roger Miller,Gene Clark,Lou Rawls,Claude King,Lorne Greene,Ronnie Dove, andElvis Presley.[23][20] He befriended Presley when he helped record the soundtrack forViva Las Vegas in 1964. He later said, "Elvis and I were brought up the same humble way – picking cotton and looking at the south end of a north-bound mule."[13]
In May 1961, he left the Champs[21] and was subsequently signed byCrest Records, a subsidiary ofAmerican Music. His first solo release, "Turn Around, Look at Me", a moderate success, peaked at number 62 on theHot 100 in 1961[24] but reached number 7 on the Hot 100 in a 1968Vogues cover. Campbell also formed the Gee Cees with former bandmembers from the Champs, performing at the Crossbow Inn inVan Nuys.[25] The Gee Cees, too, released a single on Crest, the instrumental "Buzz Saw", which did not chart.
In 1962, Campbell signed withCapitol Records.[26] After minor initial success with "Too Late to Worry, Too Blue to Cry", his first single for the label, and "Kentucky Means Paradise", released by the Green River Boys featuring Glen Campbell, a string of unsuccessful singles and albums followed. By 1963 his playing and singing were heard on 586 recorded songs.[2] He never learned to read music, but besides guitar, he could play the banjo, mandolin and bass.[2] Fellow Wrecking Crew memberLeon Russell said Campbell "was the best guitar player I'd heard before or since. Occasionally we'd play with 50- or 60-piece orchestras. His deal was he didn't read [music], so they would play it one time for him, and he had it".[27]
From 1964 on, Campbell began to appear on television as a regular onStar Route, asyndicated series hosted byRod Cameron,[28] ABC'sShindig! andHollywood Jamboree.[29]
From December 1964 to mid-May 1965, Campbell was a touring member ofthe Beach Boys, filling in forBrian Wilson,[30] playing bass guitar and singingfalsetto harmonies. He was then replaced on the Beach Boys' tours by new memberBruce Johnston.[31] Brian Wilson produced and co-wrote a single for Campbell, "Guess I'm Dumb", which failed to chart despite what writer David Howard called "a surging, elegantBurt Bacharach-inspired string and horn arrangement and Campbell's forlornRoy Orbison-like vocal.".[32]
In 1965, he had his biggest solo hit yet, reaching number 45 on the Hot 100 with a version ofBuffy Sainte-Marie's "Universal Soldier". Asked about the pacifist message of the song, he said that "people who are advocating burning draft cards should be hung".[33]
Campbell continued as a session musician, playing guitar on the Beach Boys' 1966 albumPet Sounds, among other recordings. In April of that year, he joinedRick Nelson on a tour through the Far East, again playing bass.[34]
When follow-up singles did not do well, and Capitol was considering dropping Campbell from the label in 1966, he was teamed with producerAl De Lory.[35] Together, they first collaborated on "Burning Bridges" which became a top 20 country hit in early 1967,[36] and thealbum of the same title.
Campbell and De Lory collaborated again on 1967's "Gentle on My Mind", written byJohn Hartford, which was an overnight success.[13] The song was followed by the bigger hit "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" later in 1967, and "I Wanna Live" and "Wichita Lineman" in 1968, remaining onBillboard's Top 100 charts for 15 weeks.[37] He won fourGrammy Awards for "Gentle on My Mind" and "By the Time I Get to Phoenix".[38]
In 1967, Campbell was also the uncredited lead vocalist on "My World Fell Down" bySagittarius, a studio group. The song reached number 70 on theBillboard Hot 100.[39]
In 1968, Campbell released "Wichita Lineman", a song written byJimmy Webb. It was recorded with backing from members ofthe Wrecking Crew[40] and appeared on his 1968album of the same name. It reached number 3 on the US pop chart, remaining in the Top 100 for 15 weeks. In addition, the song also topped the American country music chart for two weeks, and the adult contemporary chart for six weeks.
The 1969 song "True Grit" by composerElmer Bernstein and lyricist Don Black, and sung by Campbell, who co-starred inthe movie, received nominations for theAcademy Award for Best Song and theGolden Globe for Best Original Song.
After he hosted a 1968summer replacement for television'sThe Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour variety show,[13] Campbell was given his own weekly variety show,The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, which ran from January 1969 through June 1972.[13] The show's comedy writers includedSteve Martin andRob Reiner.[13] At the height of his popularity, a 1970 biography by Freda Kramer,The Glen Campbell Story, was published.
With Campbell's session-work connections, he hosted major names in music on his show, includingthe Beatles (on film),David Gates,Bread,the Monkees,Neil Diamond,Linda Ronstadt,Johnny Cash,Merle Haggard,Willie Nelson,Waylon Jennings,Roger Miller, andMel Tillis. Campbell helped launch the careers ofAnne Murray andJerry Reed, who were regulars on hisGoodtime Hour program.
During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Campbell released a long series of singles and appeared in the moviesTrue Grit (1969) withJohn Wayne andKim Darby and had the lead role inNorwood (1970) with Kim Darby andJoe Namath.
After the cancellation of hisCBS series in 1972, Campbell remained a regular on network television. He co-starred in amade-for-television movie,Strange Homecoming (1974), withRobert Culp and up-and-coming teen idolLeif Garrett. He hosted a number of television specials, including 1976'sDown Home, Down Under withOlivia Newton-John. He co-hosted theAmerican Music Awards from 1976 to 1978 and headlined the 1979NBC specialGlen Campbell: Back to Basics with guest-starsSeals and Crofts andBrenda Lee. He was a guest on many network talk and variety shows, includingDonny & Marie andThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, where he performed "Rhinestone Cowboy".[41] He also appeared onCher,theRedd Foxx Comedy Hour,The Merv Griffin Show,The Midnight Special,DINAH!,Evening at Pops withArthur Fiedler andThe Mike Douglas Show.
In the mid-1970s, he had more hits with "Rhinestone Cowboy", "Southern Nights" (both U.S. number one hits),[13] "Sunflower" (U.S. number 39) (written byNeil Diamond), and "Country Boy (You Got Your Feet in L.A.)" (U.S. number 11).
"Rhinestone Cowboy" was Campbell's largest-selling single and one of his best-known recordings, initially with over 2 million copies sold.[42] Campbell had heard songwriter Larry Weiss' version while on tour of Australia in 1974. Both songs were in the October 4, 1975, Hot 100 top 10.[42] "Rhinestone Cowboy" continues to be used in TV shows and films, includingDesperate Housewives,Daddy Day Care, andHigh School High. It was the inspiration for the 1984Dolly Parton/Sylvester Stallone movieRhinestone. The main phrase of Campbell's recording was included inDickie Goodman'sJaws movie parody song "Mr. Jaws". Campbell also made a techno/pop version of the song in 2002 with UK artistsRikki & Daz and went to the top 10 in the UK with the dance version and related music video.
In January 1975, Campbell was awarded 4 gold records along with a platinum award for wholesale sales in excess of $1,000,000 in Australia.[43]
"Southern Nights", byAllen Toussaint, his other number one pop-rock-countrycrossover hit, was generated with the help ofJimmy Webb andJerry Reed, who inspired the famous guitar lick introduction to the song, which was the most-playedjukebox number of 1977.[13]
From 1971 to 1983, Campbell was the celebrity host of theLos Angeles Open, an annual professional golf tournament on thePGA Tour.[44]
Campbell made a cameo appearance in the 1980Clint Eastwood movieAny Which Way You Can, for which he recorded the title song.
From 1982 to 1983, he hosted a 30-minute syndicated music show,The Glen Campbell Music Show.
Campbell gave up smoking in March 1992 and believed it improved his singing voice.[45] In 1991, Campbell voiced Chanticleer the rooster inDon Bluth's live action/animated filmRock-a-Doodle.
In 1999 he was featured onVH1'sBehind the Music and onA&E Network'sBiography and aPBS "in concert" special in 2001.[46] He also appeared on a number ofCMT programs, where he ranked among their Greatest Men of Country Music.
He is credited with givingAlan Jackson his first big break after Jackson recorded with Campbell's music publishing business in the early 1990s.[47] Campbell also served as an inspiration toKeith Urban, who cites Campbell as a strong influence on his performing career.[48][49]
In 2005, Campbell was inducted into theCountry Music Hall of Fame.[50] Glen was inducted into theMusicians Hall of Fame and Museum in thefirst group of inductees alongside other members of the Wrecking Crew in 2007. It was announced in April 2008 that Campbell was returning to his signature label,Capitol, to release his new album,Meet Glen Campbell.[51] The album was released on August 19. With this album, he branched off in a different musical direction, covering tracks from artists such asTravis,U2,Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers,Jackson Browne, andFoo Fighters.[13] It was Campbell's first release on Capitol in over 15 years. Musicians fromCheap Trick andJellyfish contributed to the album as well. The first single, a cover ofGreen Day's "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)", was released to radio in July 2008.
In March 2010, Campbell announced his farewell album titledGhost on the Canvas, which served as a companion toMeet Glen Campbell (2008).[52]
Following his late-2010 Alzheimer's diagnosis, Campbell embarked on a final "Goodbye Tour", with three of his children joining him in his backup band.[53][54] He was too ill to travel to Australia and New Zealand in the summer of 2012.[55] His final show was on November 30, 2012, inNapa, California.[56] After the end of the tour, Campbell entered the studio in Nashville to record what would be his final album,Adiós, which would not be revealed until five years later. According to his wife Kim, he wanted to preserve "what magic was left" in what would be his final recordings.[57] In January 2013, Campbell recorded his final song, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You", during what would be his last recording sessions. The song, which is featured in the 2014 documentaryGlen Campbell: I'll Be Me, was released on September 30, 2014, with the documentary following on October 24.[58][59] On January 15, 2015, Campbell and fellow songwriterJulian Raymond were nominated forBest Original Song at the87th Academy Awards.
In March 2016, it was confirmed that Campbell was in the final stages of Alzheimer's disease.[60]
On August 30, 2016, during the 10th Annual ACM Honors,Keith Urban,Blake Shelton and others performed a medley of Glen Campbell's songs in tribute to him. His wife Kim accepted the Career Achievement Award on his behalf.[61]Alice Cooper described him as being one of the five best guitar players in the music industry.[62]
Campbell's final album,Adiós, featuring twelve songs from his final 2012–13 sessions, was announced in April 2017. It was released on June 9, 2017.[57]Adiós was named by the UK's Official Charts Company as the best-selling country/Americana album of 2017 in Britain.[63]
In 2024,Glen Campbell Duets: Ghost on the Canvas Sessions was released. It is a reworked version of Campbell's farewell album, featuring newly recorded guest vocals performing posthumous duets with Campbell, from artists such asCarole King,Elton John,Eric Clapton,Hope Sandoval andDolly Parton[64][65]
Campbell was married four times and fathered six sons and three daughters:
After his divorce from Sarah Barg Davis, Campbell began a relationship with fellow country artistTanya Tucker.[69] The relationship was marked by frequent tabloid gossip and articles.[13] The couple recorded a number of songs together, including the single "Dream Lover", and they performed the national anthem together at the1980 Republican National Convention.[13]
Campbell was raised in theChurch of Christ.[74] In the 1980s, he joined a Baptist church in Phoenix along with his wife Kim.[75] In a 2008 interview, Campbell said that they had been adherents ofMessianic Judaism for two decades.[76]
Campbell began having problems with alcoholism and cocaine addiction in the 1970s. He credited his fourth wife Kim with helping him turn his life around. Campbell eventually stopped drinking alcohol and taking drugs in 1987.[77] However, it was evident that he had relapsed in 2003 when he pleaded guilty in Arizona to aggravated drunk driving and leaving the scene of an accident and spent 10 days in Maricopa County jail.[78][79]
OnThe Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour television show, Campbell avoided political topics.[80][81][82] Around this time, in interviews he described himself as "a registeredDemocrat", but also said he "votedRepublican a few times",[83][84][85] and he performed in support of both Republican and Democratic politicians.[84][86][87] Campbell performed theNational Anthem at the1980 Republican National Convention[88] and continued to make a number of campaign appearances for Republican candidates during the 1980s.[89][90][91]
In June 2011, Campbell announced he had been diagnosed withAlzheimer's disease six months earlier.[92] After his diagnosis was revealed, he withdrew from a scheduled Australian concert tour withKenny Rogers. He became a patient at an Alzheimer'slong-term care and treatment facility in 2014.[93][94] That same year, Campbell was the subject of the documentaryGlen Campbell: I'll Be Me, directed by longtime friendJames Keach, that examined Campbell's Alzheimer's diagnosis and how it affected his musical performances during his final tour across the United States with his family. The documentary received critical acclaim, earning a rare100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Campbell died inNashville, Tennessee, on August 8, 2017, at the age of 81.[78] He was buried at his family cemetery in Billstown, Arkansas.[95]
In June 2020, Campbell's wife of 34 years, Kim Campbell, publishedGentle on My Mind: In Sickness and in Health with Glen Campbell, a memoir of their life together.[96]
Following the announcement of Campbell's death, fellow musicians, friends and fans expressed their condolences and noted his music legacy. Recording Academy presidentNeil Portnow praised him for having been "an American treasure" whose songs, guitar work, and "dazzling showmanship shot him to superstardom in the 1960s" to make him one of the most successful music artists in history.[97]
Tributes poured in from countless others in the industry, includingBrian Wilson ofthe Beach Boys, comedy writer and actorSteve Martin,Sheryl Crow,Dolly Parton,Lenny Kravitz, andAnne Murray.[97] Campbell's former partnerTanya Tucker wrote and released a song in his honor, "Forever Loving You".[98][99]
Jimmy Webb, who wrote many of Campbell's hits and worked with him throughout his life, said that Campbell could play with "any guitar player in the world, fromGeorge Benson toEric Clapton", adding thatPaul McCartney considered him among the best guitar players. "People will realize what an extraordinary genius Glen really was", Webb toldABC News.[100]
TheCountry Music Television Channel (CMT) aired a special about his career a few days after his death.[101] Other networks were also "lining up to honor his life and brilliant legacy", including interviews withKeith Urban,Reba McEntire andBlake Shelton, among others.[102]
Campbell's daughterAshley was invited to perform atThe O2 Arena in London as part of theC2C: Country to Country festival. Her set was billed as a special tribute to her father and included a medley of his hits alongside "Remembering", a song she wrote about Campbell's battle with Alzheimer's.
Campbell recorded and released 60 studio albums and six live albums between 1962 and 2017. He also lent his vocals to four soundtracks for motion pictures:True Grit (1969),Norwood (1970),Rock-a-Doodle (1992), and the 2014 documentary filmGlen Campbell: I'll Be Me. He placed a total of 82 singles (one of which was a re-release) on either theBillboard Country Chart, theBillboard Hot 100, or the Adult Contemporary Chart, nine of which peaked at number one on at least one of those charts. He released 15 video albums and featured in 21 music videos. His first two music videos, "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" and "Wichita Lineman", were directed by Gene Weed in 1967 and 1968, respectively. Campbell released his final music video, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You", in 2014 to coincide with the release of the documentaryGlen Campbell: I'll Be Me. His final studio album,Adiós, was released on June 9, 2017.[57]
In May 2019, it was announced that Glen Campbell'sThe Legacy box set was to be expanded and reissued.[103]
| Year | Title[104] | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | Baby the Rain Must Fall | Band Member | |
| 1967 | The F.B.I. | Larry Dana | Episode: "Force of Nature" |
| 1967 | The Cool Ones | Patrick | |
| 1969 | True Grit | La Boeuf | |
| 1970 | Norwood | Norwood Pratt | |
| 1974 | Strange Homecoming | Bill Hasley | TV movie |
| 1976 | Christmas in Disneyland | Grandpa Jones / Disneyland visitor | TV movie |
| 1980 | Any Which Way You Can | Singer at Million Dollar Cowboy Bar | |
| 1986 | Uphill All the Way | Capt. Hazeltine | |
| 1991 | Rock-a-Doodle | Chanticleer | Voice |
| 1997 | Players | Jesse Dalton | Episode: "In Concert" |
| Year | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Single of the Year | "Gentle on My Mind" | Won |
| Album of the Year | Gentle on My Mind[107] | Won | |
| Top Male Vocalist[108] | Won | ||
| 1968 | Album of the Year | Bobbie Gentry and Glen Campbell | Won |
| Top Male Vocalist[108] | Won | ||
| TV Personality of the Year | Won | ||
| 1971 | TV Personality of the Year | Won | |
| 1975 | Single of the Year | "Rhinestone Cowboy" | Won |
| 1998 | Pioneer Award | Won | |
| 2014 | Video of the Year | "I'm Not Gonna Miss You"[109] | Nominated |
| 2016 | Career Achievement Award[110] | Won | |
| Source:[111][better source needed] | |||
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