Glen Campbell

Biography

Glen Campbell was a country superstar, a TV host and a voice millions of people knew by heart, but before any of that he was one of the most in-demand session guitarists in Los Angeles, a member of the legendary studio musicians later known as the Wrecking Crew. He was born April 22, 1936, in Billstown, a tiny farming community near Delight, Arkansas, the seventh son of twelve children in a sharecropping family with no electricity. His father bought him a five-dollar guitar from the Sears catalog when he was four, his uncle Boo showed him the basics, and by six he was playing on local radio. He never had a formal lesson and never learned to read music.

He learned by ear from the radio and records, and his great hero was Django Reinhardt, whom he called the most awesome player he ever heard. At seventeen he joined his uncle's band, Dick Bills and the Sandia Mountain Boys, in Albuquerque, then formed his own group before moving to Los Angeles in 1960. Within a couple of years he was playing on sessions for the Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, the Monkees, Elvis Presley, Phil Spector and dozens more. By 1963 his guitar and voice had been heard on 586 recordings, and he played on the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds and even toured with them as Brian Wilson's replacement in 1964 and 1965.

Here is the gem. Because Campbell could not read charts, he had to hear a part just once to know it, and Wrecking Crew keyboardist Leon Russell later said he was the best guitar player he had heard before or since: the orchestra would play it through one time, and Glen had it. On "Wichita Lineman," the Jimmy Webb song Bob Dylan reportedly called the greatest ever written, Campbell borrowed Carol Kaye's Danelectro to play the twangy, tremolo-soaked solo that follows the vocal melody, one of the most famous guitar breaks in country pop.

His solo career took off in 1967 with "Gentle on My Mind" and "By the Time I Get to Phoenix," which won him four Grammys in a single year, followed by "Wichita Lineman," "Galveston," "Rhinestone Cowboy" and "Southern Nights." He sold more than 45 million records, hosted The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour on CBS from 1969 to 1972, co-starred with John Wayne in True Grit, and was named CMA Entertainer of the Year in 1968. Through all the fame he never stopped being a monster guitarist, ripping through "Classical Gas" and the "William Tell Overture" on live TV. He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012, made a moving farewell tour, recorded his final song in 2013 and died on August 8, 2017, at 81.

Legendary Performance

"Rhinestone Cowboy", 54th Grammy Awards Tribute

February 12, 2012 · Staples Center, Los Angeles, California

On February 12, 2012, at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards at Staples Center in Los Angeles, the music world paid tribute to Glen Campbell, who was receiving the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Blake Shelton and The Band Perry performed his songs, and then Campbell himself took the stage, guitar strapped on, to play "Rhinestone Cowboy" in front of the industry and a worldwide television audience.

The moment was charged with emotion. Campbell had announced in 2011 that he was facing Alzheimer's disease and was in the middle of a farewell tour, so everyone in the room knew it might be one of his last major appearances. He sang with the same warm, easy voice and played with his familiar confidence, and the audience rose to its feet. For many viewers it was the most powerful moment of the night, a celebration of a career that spanned the Wrecking Crew studios, network television and dozens of hit records.

The performance mattered because it let Campbell take a bow on his own terms, still singing and still playing, and it introduced his music to a new generation. It also reminded the industry that behind the country hits and the TV fame stood one of the great guitarists of his era, a player whose session work helped shape the sound of 1960s pop.

Gear

Ovation acoustic and Carol Kaye's Danelectro ("Wichita Lineman" solo)

Known for: The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour and the "Wichita Lineman" solo

Glen Campbell played many guitars across his long career, but two stand out. In the Wrecking Crew years he played whatever each session demanded, and on "Wichita Lineman" he borrowed bassist Carol Kaye's Danelectro to play the solo. The Danelectro's bright, twangy, slightly hollow voice, drenched in tremolo, gave the break its lonely, wide-open sound, perfect for a song about a lineman alone on the plains.

On television he became famous for playing the Ovation acoustic. Ovation, founded by aerospace engineer Charles Kaman, introduced its round-backed fiberglass guitars in the late 1960s, and Campbell's high-profile use of one on The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour put the brand in front of millions of viewers each week. Its round bowl and built-in pickup made it easy to amplify on stage and TV without feedback, a practical fit for a performer playing dazzling acoustic runs on live broadcasts.

Signature Technique

Ear-Trained Session Mastery and Django-Inspired Country Lead

Glen Campbell was a complete guitarist, equally at home playing tight country rhythm, slick pop fills, jazzy chord melodies and blazing lead lines. He learned entirely by ear, which gave him an extraordinary memory and instinct: in the studio he needed to hear a part only once before he could play it, a skill that made him one of the first-call players in Los Angeles.

His lead style mixed country picking with jazz and pop sophistication. He loved Django Reinhardt, and you can hear that influence in his fast, swinging single-note runs and chromatic passing tones. He used hybrid picking and smooth position shifts to play fluid lines, and he often doubled his vocal melody on guitar, as on the "Wichita Lineman" solo, where he followed the tune note for note with a twangy, tremolo-heavy tone in the Duane Eddy tradition.

He was also a showman with serious chops. On television he dazzled audiences with instrumental showpieces like "Classical Gas" and Rossini's "William Tell Overture," playing rapid-fire picking and cascading arpeggios on acoustic guitar. Behind the flash was rock-solid rhythm: his session work demanded perfect time and the ability to lock in with drummers like Hal Blaine on records for the Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra and the Monkees.

His influence is broad. As a Wrecking Crew guitarist he helped create the sound of 1960s pop, and as a star he showed that a country singer could also be a virtuoso instrumentalist. Players like Keith Urban and Brad Paisley carry on that tradition of singers who can really play, and his combination of taste, speed and feel remains a model for session guitarists.