Roy Sinclair Campbell Jr. (September 29, 1952 – January 9, 2014) was an American trumpeter frequently linked to

free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians during ...

, although he also performed

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

during his career.

Biography

Born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, in 1952, Campbell was raised in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. At the age of fifteen, he began learning to play trumpet and soon studied at the Jazz Mobile program along with

Kenny Dorham McKinley Howard "Kenny" Dorham (August 30, 1924 – December 5, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and composer. Dorham's talent is frequently lauded by critics and other musicians, but he never received the kind of attention or public ...

Lee Morgan Edward Lee Morgan (July 10, 1938 – February 19, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter and composer. One of the key hard bop musicians of the 1960s, Morgan came to prominence in his late teens, recording on John Coltrane's '' Blue Train'' (1 ...

and Joe Newman. Throughout the 1960s, still unacquainted with the avant-garde movement, Campbell performed in the

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

s of the

Manhattan Community College The Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) is a public community college in New York City. Founded in 1963 as part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system, BMCC grants associate degrees in a wide variety of vocational, business, ...

. From the 1970s onwards, he performed primarily within the context of free jazz, spending some of this period studying with

Yusef Lateef Yusef Abdul Lateef (born William Emanuel Huddleston; October 9, 1920 – December 23, 2013) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and prominent figure among the Ahmadiyya Community in America. Although Lateef's main instruments ...

. Campbell composed the film music for the documentary ''Survival in New York'' (1989) by Rosa von Praunheim. In the early 1990s, Campbell moved to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and performed regularly with Klaas Hekman and Don Cherry. In addition to leading his own groups, he performed with Yo La Tengo, William Parker,

Peter Brötzmann Peter Brötzmann (born 6 March 1941) is a German saxophonist and clarinetist. Biography Early life Brötzmann was born in Remscheid, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He studied painting in Wuppertal and was involved with the Fluxus movement ...

, Matthew Shipp, and other improvisors. Upon returning to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

he began leading his group

Other Dimensions In Music Other Dimensions In Music is a free jazz group founded in the 1980s.Allmusic/ref> The group is a collective quartet composed of trumpeter Roy Campbell, multi-instrumentalist Daniel Carter, bassist William Parker and drummer Rashid Bakr. Campb ...

and also formed the Pyramid Trio, a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

less trio formed with William Parker. He died in January 2014 of hypertensive atherosclerotic

cardiovascular disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, h ...

at the age of 61.

Discography

As leader

* ''

New Kingdom New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

'' ( Delmark, 1992) * ''

La Tierra del Fuego ''La Tierra del Fuego'' is the second album by American jazz trumpeter Roy Campbell, recorded in 1993 and released on the Delmark label. Music The album reflects Roy's interest in World music. "I wanted more of a Latin and Third World sound t ...

'' (Delmark, 1994) * '' Communion'' ( Silkheart, 1995) * ''

Ancestral Homeland An ancestral home is the place of origin of one's extended family, particularly the home owned and preserved by the same family for several generations. The term can refer to an individual house or estate, or to a broader geographic area such as a ...

'' (No More, 1998) * '' Ethnic Stew and Brew'' (Delmark, 2001) * '' It's Krunch Time'' ( Thirsty Ear, 2001) * ''

Akhenaten Suite ''Akhenaten Suite'' is the seventh album by American jazz trumpeter Roy Campbell, an extended work inspired by Amenhotep IV, Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt. The project was specially commissioned by Arts for Art, recorded live at the 2007 ...

'' ( Aum Fidelity, 2008)

As co-leader

with

Other Dimensions in Music Other Dimensions In Music is a free jazz group founded in the 1980s.Allmusic/ref> The group is a collective quartet composed of trumpeter Roy Campbell, multi-instrumentalist Daniel Carter, bassist William Parker and drummer Rashid Bakr. Campb ...

* ''

'' (Silkheart, 1990) * '' Now!'' ( Aum Fidelity, 1998) * ''

Time Is of the Essence Is Beyond Time ''Time Is of the Essence Is Beyond Time'' is the third album by free jazz collective quartet Other Dimensions In Music, composed of trumpeter Roy Campbell, multi-instrumentalist Daniel Carter, bassist William Parker and drummer Rashid Bakr. For ...

'' (Aum Fidelity, 2000) * ''

Live at the Sunset ''Live at the Sunset'' is the fourth album by free jazz collective quartet Other Dimensions In Music, composed of trumpeter Roy Campbell, multi-instrumentalist Daniel Carter, bassist William Parker and Hamid Drake replacing regular drummer Ras ...

'' (

Marge Marge is a feminine given name, a shortened form of Marjorie, Margot or Margaret (name), Margaret. Notable Marges include: People *Marge (cartoonist) (1904–1993), pen name of Marjorie Henderson Buell, American cartoonist *Marge Anderson (1932� ...

, 2007) * ''

Kaiso Stories ''Kaiso Stories'' is an album by free jazz collective quartet Other Dimensions In Music featuring vocalist Fay Victor, which was recorded in 2010 and released on the Swedish Silkheart label. The album is a collection of improvised pieces with cla ...

'' (Silkheart, 2011) with

The Nu Band ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

(Roy Campbell Jr., Mark Whitecage, Joe Fonda, Lou Grassi) * ''Live at the Bop Shop'' (

Clean Feed Clean may refer to: * Cleaning, the process of removing unwanted substances, such as dirt, infectious agents, and other impurities, from an object or environment * Cleanliness, the state of being clean and free from dirt Arts and media Music A ...

, 2001) * ''Live'' (Konnex, 2005) * ''The Dope and the Ghost'' (Not Two, 2007) * ''Lower East Side Blues'' (Porter, 2009) * ''Live in Paris'' (No Business, 2010) * ''Relentlessness Live at the Sunset'' (Marge, 2011) with

Joe McPhee Joe McPhee (born November 3, 1939) is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist born in Miami, Florida, a player of tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone, the trumpet, flugelhorn and valve trombone. McPhee grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York, and is ...

, William Parker & Warren Smith * ''

Tribute to Albert Ayler Live at the Dynamo ''Tribute to Albert Ayler Live at the Dynamo'' is an album by a free jazz quartet composed of trumpeter Roy Campbell, Jr., Roy Campbell, multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee, bassist William Parker (musician), William Parker and drummer Warren Smith ( ...

'' (Marge, 2009)

As sideman

;with

Billy Bang Billy Bang (September 20, 1947 – April 11, 2011), born William Vincent Walker, was an American free jazz violinist and composer. Biography Bang's family moved to New York City's Bronx neighborhood while he was still an infant, and as a ...

*'' Live at Carlos 1'' (Soul Note, 1986) ;with

's Die Like a Dog Quartet *''

From Valley to Valley ''From Valley to Valley'' is a live album by the Die Like a Dog Quartet: saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, trumpeter Roy Campbell Jr. (substituting for Toshinori Kondo), bassist William Parker, and drummer Hamid Drake. It was recorded in July 1998 at ...

'' (Eremite, 1998) ; with

Tentet + 2 * ''Short Visit to Nowhere'' (Okkadisk, 2002) * ''Broken English'' (Okkadisk, 2002) ; with Rob Brown * ''

Jumping Off the Page ''Jumping Off the Page'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist Rob Brown released in 2000 on No More, a label founded by producer Alan Schneider. It features a quartet with trumpeter Roy Campbell, bassist Chris Lightcap and drummer Jackson K ...

'' (No More, 2000) * '' The Big Picture'' (Marge, 2004) ; with

Whit Dickey Whit Dickey (born May 28, 1954) is an American drummer. He has recorded albums with David S. Ware and Matthew Shipp. Biography His first album as a leader was ''Transonic Transonic (or transsonic) flow is air flowing around an object at ...

* ''

Coalescence Coalescence may refer to: * Coalescence (chemistry), the process by which two or more separate masses of miscible substances seem to "pull" each other together should they make the slightest contact * Coalescence (computer science), the merging of ...

'' (Clean Feed, 2004) * '' In a Heartbeat'' (Clean Feed, 2005) * '' Sacred Ground'' (Clean Feed, 2006) ;with

El-P Jaime Meline (born March 2, 1975), better known by the stage name El-P (shortened from his previous stage name El Producto), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Starting his career as a member of Company Flow, he has been a ...

*''

High Water Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables can ...

'' (Thirsty Ear, 2004) ; with Ehran Elisha * ''Sweet Empathy'' (Cadence, 1995) * ''The Kicker'' (CIMP, 1998) * ''Lowe Down Suite'' (CIMP, 1999) ; with Exuberance * ''The Other Shore'' (Boxholder, 2003) * ''Live at Vision Festival'' (Ayler, 2004) ;with Garrison Fewell * ''Variable Density Sound Orchestra'' (Creative Nation Music, 2009) ; with Yuko Fujiyama * ''Re-entry'' (CIMP, 2001) ;with

Dennis Gonzalez Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Greek god of ecstatic states, particularly those produced by wine, which is someti ...

* ''Nile River Suite'' (Daagnim, 2004) ;with Burton Greene * ''Isms Out'' (CIMP, 2004) ;with William Hooker Trio with Dave Soldier *''Heart of the Sun'' (Engine Records, 2013) ; with

Khan Jamal Khan Jamal (July 23, 1946 – January 10, 2022), born Warren Robert Cheeseboro, was an American jazz vibraphone and marimba player. He founded the band Sounds of Liberation in 1970. He was described by Ron Wynn as "a proficient soloist when p ...

* ''Balafon Dance'' (CIMP, 2002) ; with Adam Lane * ''Blue Spirit Band'' (CIMP, 2013) * ''Oh Freedom'' (CIMP, 2013) ; with Steve Lehman * ''Structural Fire'' (CIMP, 2001) * ''Camouflage'' (CIMP, 2002) ; with Maneri Ensemble * ''Going to Church'' (Aum Fidelity, 2002) ;with

Jemeel Moondoc Jemeel Moondoc (August 5, 1946 – August 29, 2021) was a jazz saxophonist who played alto saxophone. He was a proponent of a highly improvisational style. He was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and studied clarinet and piano before s ...

* ''

The Evening of the Blue Men ''The Evening of the Blue Men'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc with Muntu, which was recorded live in 1979 at NYC's St. Mark's Church and released on his own Muntu label. The album was reissued in 2009 as part of the three ...

'' (Muntu, 1979) * ''New York Live!'' (Cadence, 1981) * ''The Intrepid Live in Poland'' (Poljazz, 1981) * ''The Athens Concert'' (Praxis, 1982) *''

Konstanze's Delight ''Konstanze's Delight'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc, which was recorded live at the Third Street Music School in 1981 and released on the Italian Soul Note label. He leads a sextet that features Muntu's members Roy Cam ...

'' (Soul Note, 1983) * ''

Spirit House A spirit house is a shrine to the protective spirit of a place that is found in the Southeast Asian countries of Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The spirit house is normally in the form of smal ...

'' (Eremite, 2001) * '' Live in Paris'' (Cadence, 2003) * '' Live at the Vision Festival'' (Ayler, 2003) * ''

The Zookeeper's House ''The Zookeeper's House'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc, which was recorded in 2013 and released on Relative Pitch Records. It was his first album leading a full band in over a decade. Music Moondoc plays the ballad "For ...

'' (

Relative Pitch Relative pitch is the ability of a person to identify or re-create a given musical note by comparing it to a reference note and identifying the interval between those two notes. For example, if the note ''Do'' and ''Fa'' is played on a piano, a per ...

, 2014) ;with New Atlantis Octet * ''Unto the Sun'' (Not Two. 2013) ; with

Kevin Norton Kevin Norton (born January 21, 1956) is an American percussionist and composer active in the New York City jazz and contemporary music scenes. He has performed and recorded with a diverse group of musicians, including Anthony Braxton, Paul Dunmal ...

* ''The Dream Catcher'' (CIMP, 2003) ; with William Parker * ''

Flowers Grow in my Room A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

'' (Centering, 1994) * ''

Sunrise in the Tone World ''Sunrise in the Tone World'' is an album by American jazz double bassist William Parker, which was recorded live in 1995 and released on the AUM Fidelity label. This is the second recording by William Parker & The Little Huey Creative Music Orc ...

'' (AUM Fidelity, 1997) * ''

Mayor of Punkville ''Mayor of Punkville'' is a double live album by American jazz bassist William Parker and his Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra, which was recorded at Tonic in New York City in 1999 and released on the AUM Fidelity label. Reception In her r ...

'' (AUM Fidelity, 2000) * ''

Raincoat in the River ''Raincoat in the River'' is a live album by bassist and composer William Parker's Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra, which was recorded in Boston in 2001 and released on the Eremite label.

'' (Eremite, 2001) *''

Spontaneous Spontaneous may refer to: * Spontaneous abortion * Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis * Spontaneous combustion * Spontaneous declaration * Spontaneous emission * Spontaneous fission * Spontaneous generation * Spontaneous human combustion * Spontan ...

'' (Splasc(H), 2002) * ''

Mass for the Healing of the World ''Mass for the Healing of the World'' is a live album by American jazz double bassist William Parker & the Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra which was recorded live in 1998 but not released on the Italian Black Saint label until 2003. Recept ...

'' (Black Saint, 2003) * '' Fractured Dimensions'' (FMP, 2003) * ''

For Percy Heath ''For Percy Heath'' is an album by bassist and composer William Parker's Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra, which was recorded in 2005 and released on the Canadian Victo label.Lopez, R.William Parker sessionography accessed June 4, 2014 The alb ...

'' (Victo, 2006) * ''

Essence of Ellington ''Essence of Ellington'' (subtitled ''Live in Milano'') is a double live album by bassist and composer William Parker's Orchestra, which was recorded in Italy in 2012 and released on the Centering label. The album features new arrangements of son ...

'' (Centering, 2012) ;with Marc Ribot *'' Spiritual Unity'' (Pi recordings, 2005) ;with

Saheb Sarbib Saheb Sarbib (born 1944) is an American jazz double-bassist and bandleader. Career Sarbib, born Jean Henri Sarbib, was raised in Europe. His father was Roger Sarbib, a French pianist and innovator of the big band style in Portugal in the 1940s a ...

* ''Live at the Public Theatre'' (Cadence, 1981) * ''Aisha'' (Cadence, 1981) ; with Matthew Shipp * ''

Strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...

'' (hatOLOGY, 1998) * '' Pastoral Composure'' ( Thirsty Ear, 2000) ; with Alan Silva * '' Alan Silva & the Sound Visions Orchestra'' (Eremite, 2001) * '' H.Con.Res.57/Treasure Box'' (Eremite, 2003) ;with Stone Quartet * ''

Live at Vision Festival ''Live at Vision Festival'' is a live album by the Stone Quartet: bassist Joëlle Léandre, trumpeter Roy Campbell, pianist Marilyn Crispell, and violist Mat Maneri. It was recorded in June 2010 at the Vision Festival held at the Abrons Arts Cente ...

'' (Ayler, 2011) ; with Steve Swell * ''Suite for Players, Listeners and Other Dreamers'' (CIMP, 2003) * ''

News from the Mystic Auricle ''News from the Mystic Auricle'' is an album by American jazz trombonist Steve Swell, which was recorded in 2007 and released on the Polish Not Two label. He presents a new band called Rivers of Sound Ensemble, extending Slammin' the Infinite with ...

'' (Not Two, 2008) ;with

Charles Tyler Admiral Sir Charles Tyler, GCB (1760 – 28 September 1835) was a naval officer in the British Royal Navy who gained fame during the Napoleonic Wars as a naval captain that fought at the Battle of Copenhagen (1801) and Battle of Trafalgar, beco ...

* ''Live at Sweet Basil vol. 1 & 2 (1984)'' (Bleu Regard, 2006) ; with Yo La Tengo * ''

Summer Sun ''Summer Sun'' is the tenth studio album by American indie rock band Yo La Tengo, released on April 8, 2003 by record label Matador. Recording ''Summer Sun'' was recorded in Nashville, United States. The album was mixed at Shelter Island in ...

'' (Matador, 2003)

References

External links

Official site
*
Roy Campbell on Life
brief spoken word video, Jalopy, Brooklyn, September 26, 2009. (

Punkcast Punkcast.com was an online video site that covered the NYC underground music scene. The site, though not active, remains with an archive of videos from 1997 to 2011. Newer videos are now on the Punkcast YouTube channel. History Background Punkcas ...

) {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Roy 1952 births 2014 deaths Musicians from Los Angeles American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters Free jazz trumpeters 20th-century American musicians 21st-century American musicians 20th-century trumpeters 21st-century trumpeters Jazz musicians from California 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Other Dimensions In Music members Thirsty Ear Recordings artists