Richard S. Campbell (January 25, 1944 – April 25, 2002), was a US

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

singer-songwriter and film producer. He is best known for his 1966 album ''Dick Campbell Sings Where It's At'', rated as "the sole masterpiece of the fake-Dylan field"

Early career

Born in

Boston Massachusetts Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most po ...

and raised in

Monroe, Wisconsin Monroe, known as "the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA", is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 10,661 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered by the Town of Monroe to the north and the T ...

, Campbell was a relatively obscure singer-songwriter, who had released a couple of singles and composed for others including Artie Sullivan and all 34 tracks on

Ken Nordine Ken Nordine (April 13, 1920 – February 16, 2019) was an American voice-over and recording artist, best known for his series of word jazz albums. His deep, resonant voice has also been featured in many commercial advertisements and movie traile ...

's album ''

Colors Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...

''. In 1965 he sent "a couple of ''Dylan-esque'' songs" to

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

. Mercury were looking for an artist to compete with

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

who was signed to

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, so Mercury asked Campbell "to write ten more, come back in two weeks, and make an album." Mercury teamed Campbell up with the then unknown producer

Lou Reizner Lou Reizner (born Chicago 1934, died London 26 June 1977) was a record producer, A&R executive and head of Mercury Records European operations. He produced Rod Stewart's first two solo albums, the orchestral version of The Who's rock opera Tommy, ...

, who used Mike Bloomfield and The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, who had previously backed Bob Dylan, to ensure the style was very similar to Dylan's sound. Artists appearing on the album include

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...

(guitar),

Paul Butterfield Paul Vaughn Butterfield (December 17, 1942May 4, 1987) was an American blues harmonica player, singer and band leader. After early training as a classical flautist, he developed an interest in blues harmonica. He explored the blues scene in his n ...

(harmonica),

Sam Lay Samuel Julian Lay (March 20, 1935January 29, 2022) was an American drummer and vocalist who performed from the late 1950s as a blues and R&B musician alongside Little Walter, Howlin' Wolf, Paul Butterfield, and many others. He was inducted into ...

(drums),

Mark Naftalin Mark Naftalin (born August 2, 1944) is an American blues keyboardist, recording artist, composer, and record producer. He appears on the first five albums by Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the mid 1960s as a band member, and as such was inducted ...

(organ) and

Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera ( ; born September 13, 1944) is an American retired musician best known for being a lead vocalist and the bassist of the rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985, before launching a successful solo career. His c ...

(bass). A single "Blues Peddlers"/"The People Planners" was released in 1965; with the album, entitled ''Dick Campbell Sings Where It's At'', released in 1966. The album includes 12 tracks, all written by Campbell. As admitted in the sleeve notes, the album is heavily informed by his volatile relationship with his girlfriend, Sandi; with lines such as "I won't be capitulating/ You’re going to lose a few points in your ratings" and tracks including "You've Got to Be Kidding", "Approximately Four Minutes of Feeling Sorry for Dick Campbell", "Girls Named Misery" and "Ask Me If I Care". The LP has been

out of print __NOTOC__ An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a book ...

for several years, and has yet to be released on compact disc in the US, although there has been a CD release in Japan.

Critical reception

Although popular at the time, in retrospect, critical reception for ''Dick Campbell Sings Where It's At'' has not been great.

Richie Unterberger Richie Unterberger (born January 19, 1962) is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing. Life and writing Unterberger attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote for the university newspaper '' ...

's Allmusic review gives it *** despite comments such as "Although this LP approximated the instrumental sound of Dylan's early rock records ..... ylan'swas far superior." before finally conceding "As a curio of the early folk-rock era, though, this rare record definitely has its interest." Conversely,

Gene Sculatti Eugene Paul Sculatti (born January 30, 1947) is an American music journalist who compiled and edited the book ''The Catalog of Cool'' (1982). In 1966, he became the first journalist to write about the nascent San Francisco music scene in a nati ...

's "Top 10 'Next Dylans'" described it as "the sole masterpiece of the fake-Dylan field", particularly rating "The People Planners (proudly waving their propaganda banners)" where "Mike Bloomfield, Paul Butterfield and support staff kick up an electrical storm as DC spits fire at the enemies of us all:

Hey there, don’t you scream
‘Cause I didn’t eat up all my ice cream
Or turn off the light when I came downstairs
Forgot to burn the rubbish or comb my hair
Just shut up!

".... worth any effort it takes to find. Never has thievery sounded so sweet."

Later Writings

Despite the success of ''Dick Campbell Sings Where It’s At'' Mercury Records dropped him, and his next album ''Demo Songs'' was released on Andrea Dawn in 1968. He continued writing and also recorded as 'Dick Campbell and the Scarlets', although the album was not released until 2009. One track "Patty Girl" was extensively covered, and was used by Lou Reizner for another of his acts, Gary and The Hornets. Dick Campbell wrote 398 songs as well as many poems, short stories, and screen plays. Campbell became an A&R manager at

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. Working with

Gary Usher Gary Lee Usher (December 14, 1938 – May 25, 1990) was an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer, who worked with numerous California acts in the 1960s, including the Byrds, the Beach Boys, and Dick Dale. Usher also produced fict ...

, he was involved with numerous artists, including unknown writer

Jim Weatherly James Dexter Weatherly (March 17, 1943 – February 3, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter who wrote mostly pop and country music. He played quarterback at the University of Mississippi while also writing music with his own bands. He subseq ...

who wrote "Midnight Plane To Houston". Originally recorded by

Cissy Houston Emily "Cissy" Houston ( ''née'' Drinkard; born September 30, 1933) is an American soul and gospel singer. After a successful career singing backup for such artists as Roy Hamilton, Dionne Warwick, Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin, Houston embar ...

Gladys Knight and the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American R&B, soul and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early 1950s. Starting out as simply ...

later changed the title to "

Midnight Train To Georgia "Midnight Train to Georgia" is a song by Gladys Knight & the Pips, their second release after departing Motown Records for Buddah Records. Written by Jim Weatherly, and included on the Pips' 1973 LP ''Imagination'', "Midnight Train to Georgia" be ...

" and it became a major hit. With Gary Usher, Campbell co-wrote "Good Ole Rock & Roll Song" which appears on

The Cowsills The Cowsills are an American singing group from Newport, Rhode Island, six siblings noted for performing professionally and singing harmonies at an early age, later with their mother. The band was formed in early 1965 by brothers Bill, Bob, and ...

1970 LP ''On My Side''. The Cowsills also sang it on

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 198 ...

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...

. Campbell also co-wrote all 21 tracks on Usher's posthumously released 2001 album ''Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt''.

Later years

In the early 1970s Campbell started a film production business, producing films such as '' Glitter Goddess of the Sunset Strip'' starring

Angela Bowie Angela Bowie (born Mary Angela Barnett; September 25, 1949) is an American model, actress, and journalist. Alongside her ex-husband David Bowie, she influenced the glam rock culture and fashion of the 1970s. She was married to Bowie (whom she a ...

and Llana Lloyd. Campbell ran his film production business until the late 1980s when he retired for health reasons, having discovered he had

Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (A1AD or AATD) is a genetic disorder that may result in lung disease or liver disease. Onset of lung problems is typically between 20 and 50 years of age. This may result in shortness of breath, wheezing, or an inc ...

; an inherited genetic disorder, which leads to lung damage due to the lack of the protective protein, Alpha-1 antitrypsin. Campbell lived in Los Angeles, California and later in

Mission Viejo, California Mission Viejo ( ; corruption of ''Misión Vieja'', Spanish for "Old Mission") is a commuter city in the Saddleback Valley in Orange County, California, United States. Mission Viejo is considered one of the largest master-planned communities eve ...

until 2000 when he moved to

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. In February 2002 he received a lung transplant, but due to complications, did not recover consciousness and died on April 25, 2002. He was survived by his mother, three children, and 10 grandchildren and was buried in his family cemetery in Oakley, Wisconsin, about 10 miles north of the Illinois border. A posthumous Dick Campbell CD called ''Blue Winds Only Know'' was released in 2003.

Discography

*"Greatest Girl"/"Happy-Go-Lucky" – (1960) – Performer (With Roger Hesseling) and composer *"Debbie Darling"/"She's My Girl" – (1962) – Performer & composer *"It's Time"/"Suzanne" – Artie Sullivan (1963) – Composer *"Blues Peddlers"/"The People Planners" – (1965) – Performer & composer * ''Colors'' –

(1966) – Composer * ''Dick Campbell Sings Where It's At'' – (1966) – Performer & composer * ''Demo Songs'' – (1968) – Performer & composer *"Goin' to Hollywood Tomorrow"/"Sugar River Blues" – (1969) – Performer & composer * ''On My Side'' –

(1971) – Composer * ''Beyond a Shadow of Doubt'' – Gary Usher (2001) Performer & composer * ''Blue Winds Only Know'' – (2003) – Performer & composer * ''You're Getting Better: The Word Jazz Dot Masters'' – Ken Nordine (2007) – Performer & composer

References

External links

Dick Campbell website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Dick 1944 births 2002 deaths American folk singers American male singer-songwriters Mercury Records artists 20th-century American singers Lung transplant recipients Musicians from Boston People from Monroe, Wisconsin 20th-century American male singers Singer-songwriters from Wisconsin Singer-songwriters from Massachusetts