I never met Glen Campbell. I don't travel in those circles. But for me and others of my generation his music had meaning and his talent was real, not contrived. During a time of political and social upheaval, not unlike today, Glen Campbell was safe. Great songs, amazing musicianship, and a genial demeanor.
His passing last week was sad, but not surprising. He announced a couple of years ago that he had Alzheimers. I've written about my student who is battling that disease before. In other diseases, when you die your body dies and takes you with it. But with Alzheimers you die first and your body dies later. Right now, short of howling at the moon, there seems to be little most of us can do about it.
Ironically I started watching some of his old clips on YouTube about a year ago. The hits are pretty much imbedded in my brain so I didn't watch those much. It was his guitar playing that fascinated me. Watching him play live on his old show with Jerry Reed and others I began to have a deeper appreciation for his talent. It was easy to see why he was such a sought after studio musician long before he became a celebrity.
As a member of a group of Los Angeles studio musicians affectionately known as the "Wrecking Crew" he played on a variety of hits ranging from some of the Beach Boys stuff to "Strangers in the Night" by Frank Sinatra. TV shows and movies too. All in a days work for these unsung players. There are a lot of YouTube videos about them if you want to follow up.
Many times while listening to a guitarist, I have a pretty good idea of what they are doing and what they are about to do. But Glen Campbell's playing was usually a surprise. He would toss in a few notes here and there to accentuate the line and I knew immediately that it would take me a month to figure out what those few notes were. His lead lines were inventive and unique to him. And he was so nonchalant about it. He made it look easy. It isn't.
Unlike many other artists, he survived an epic battle with drug and alcohol addiction. There were numerous stories printed and I heard a few others. I'm guessing that most are only partly true. But I have to believe that the real stories are far more interesting.
I can't say that my guitar playing was influenced by him. My style of playing is very different. But I have a deep respect for his talent and accomplishments. In a business overflowing with semi-talented famous people, he was a contrarian. All talent and no bluster. And that philosophy about the way you conduct yourself may be the better influence.