Glen Campbell

He married Sarah Barg in 1976; this marriage ended four years later. He wed Kimberly ‘Kim’ Woollen in 1982.

His biography, ‘The Glen Campbell Story’, written by Freda Kramer, was published in 1970.

Glen Campbell was born on April 22, 1936 in Billstown, Arkansas, to John Wesley, a poor sharecropper, and Carrie Dell (Stone) Campbell. He had five brothers and four sisters. The family lived on a farm and picked cotton for rich farmers—Glen used to pick a hundred pounds for $1.25. He later said in an interview that even if he worked very hard, he could pick only 80-90 pounds a day.

His family has musical interests and Glen became efficient with the guitar at the age of four. Two years later, he ended up performing on local radio stations. With no formal training in music, he practiced by listening to the radio and records.

At the age of 14, he dropped out of school to work with his brothers in Houston. Yet, he wouldn’t give up music. He started playing music at fairs, church choirs, and church picnics. He also performed on local radio stations, and later in a local nightclub.

He eventually moved to New Mexico in 1954 and joined his uncle's band, Dick Bills and the Sandia Mountain Boys. He also found spots on children's programs on KOB television and radio shows with his uncle. In 1958, he formed his own band, the Western Wranglers.

In 1960, Glen Campbell moved to Los Angeles and joined the rock and roll band, the Champs. He also took up a job at American Music, a publishing company, where he wrote songs and recorded demos. Soon he joined a group of studio musicians called the Wrecking Crew.

In May 1961, he left the Champs and signed a contract with the Crest Records. His first solo single, ‘Turn Around, Look at Me’, peaked at No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100.

He, along with his band members from the Champs, formed Gee Cees and performed at the Crossbow Inn. They also released a single, which did not do well. In 1962, he signed with Capitol Records and achieved moderate success with songs like ‘Too Late to Worry, Too Blue to Cry’ and ‘Kentucky Means Paradise’.

His popularity as a musician earned him some television projects as well, and in 1964 he started appearing as a regular on the syndicated series ‘Star Route’, the musical variety series ‘Shindig!’ and ‘Hollywood Jamboree.’

In 1965, his song ‘Universal Soldier’ became his biggest solo hit and reached No. 45 on the Hot 100. He then collaborated with producer Al De Lory and recorded ‘Burning Bridges’ in 1966; it became a top 20 country hit. Next, they recorded ‘Gentle on My Mind’, which was an instant hit, followed by the song ‘By the Time I Get to Phoenix’, which became a bigger success.

Twelve of Glen Campbell albums were certified gold, four platinum, and one double-platinum. The albums ‘Rhinestone Cowboy’ and ‘Southern Nights’, both became US No. 1 hits. His single ‘Rhinestone Cowboy’ became one of his signature songs and won numerous awards and nominations.

The songs ‘Gentle on My Mind’ and ‘By the Time I Get to Phoenix’ were his other important works. The former won four Grammy Awards while the latter earned two. Both the songs are counted among the best country songs of all time.