James Campbell (1937 – 22 January 2022) was an Irish musician. He is regarded as one of

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

's most influential

traditional music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

ians.

Biography

Born in 1937, Campbell grew up in a house that was steeped in Donegal fiddle music. His father and grandfather were well known

fiddle player The following lists of violinists are available: * List of classical violinists, notable violinists from the baroque era onwards * List of contemporary classical violinists, notable contemporary classical violinists * List of violinist/compose ...

s. The Campbell home was a regular venue for musicians to come to visit and play music, including both Mickey and John Doherty. Campbell emigrated to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

where he worked as a tunnel tiger, and later settled in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. He was a mainstay of the traditional music scene in Britain, and has associations with Brendan McGlinchey, the Dwyers of Ardgroom and Paddy Conroy, the Galway accordion player. Campbell returned to

Glenties Glenties () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is situated where two glens meet, north-west of the Bluestack Mountains, near the confluence of two rivers. Glenties is the largest centre of population in the parish of Iniskeel. Glenties has ...

in 1988. His son Peter is also a renowned fiddle player.

Death

Campbell died in

on 22 January 2022, aged 84.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Jimmy 1937 births 2022 deaths Irish male fiddlers Musicians from County Donegal People from Glenties 20th-century Irish fiddlers 21st-century Irish fiddlers 20th-century Irish male musicians 21st-century Irish male musicians