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Ambrose Campbell

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Ambrose Campbell
Campbell in January 2006.
Campbell in January 2006.
Background information
Birth nameOladipupo Adekoya Campbell
Born(1919-08-19)19 August 1919
Lagos,Nigeria
Died22 June 2006(2006-06-22)(aged 86)
Plymouth,England
GenresHighlife,jùjú music,jazz,rock, etc.
Occupation(s)Singer, bandleader, guitarist
Instrument(s)Guitar, percussion
Years active1946–1990s
LabelsMelodisc,Columbia
Formerly ofLes Ballets Nègres,Leon Russell,Willie Nelson,Ronnie Scott,Tubby HayesandPhil Seamen.

Ambrose Campbell(19 August 1919 – 22 June 2006) was a Nigerian musician and bandleader. He is credited with forming Britain's first everblackband, the West African Rhythm Brothers, in the 1940s, and was also acknowledged byFela Kutias "the father of modern Nigerian music".[1]Campbell worked with Britishjazzmusicians in the 1950s, and later toured and recorded withLeon Russellin the US, where he lived for thirty years.

Biography

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He was bornOladipupo Adekoya CampbellinLagos,Nigeria, into a Christian family; his father was a preacher. Campbell sang in the church choir, and also, nicknamed "Ambrose", started performingpalm-wine musicagainst the wishes of his family, who kicked him out of the house when they discovered what he was doing. For a while, he lived under the protection of nationalist leaderHerbert Macaulayand worked as a printer, as well as a musician.[2]He met guitaristBrewster Hughesin Lagos, and performed with him in the Jolly Boys Orchestra.[3]

Soon after the start ofWorld War II,Campbell joined the crew of anElder Dempstercargo ship sailing to Britain.[2]On its second voyage, the ship was attacked byU-boatsin theAtlantic Ocean,and Campbell jumped ship inLiverpool,England, soon moving toLondon,where he came into contact with other members of the small Nigerian community, including Brewster Hughes, who had also moved to the capital city. Campbell formed a band, but soon afterwards he was attacked by racist thugs at aLondon undergroundstation; Hughes was later imprisoned for shooting one of the assailants.[3]Campbell first came to public attention by performing with his band at theVE Daycelebrations inTrafalgar SquareandPiccadilly Circusin 1945.[1]He said:[4]

"People didn't know what was going on but they joined in. I suppose it was curiosity. Everybody had been waiting for that day so everybody was happy and jumping around and dancing and kissing each other, so we thought we'd join the celebration. We had a huge crowd following us around Piccadilly Circus. You could hardly move."

In 1946, Campbell and Brewster Hughes, after his release from prison, formed a professional band, the West African Rhythm Brothers. They were employed to provide music for theatre performances by the black ballet company,Les Ballets Nègres,and toured the UK. The group appeared on British television, and around 1952 established a residency at the Abalabi club inSoho,playing a mixture of palm-wine andjùjú musicand associating withjazzmusicians includingRonnie Scott,Tubby HayesandPhil Seamen.Campbell and his band increasingly absorbedcalypsoandmentoinfluences from musicians newly arriving from theCaribbean,some of whom joined the band, as well as group members' experiences ofracism in Britain.With Campbell on vocals and Hughes on guitar, other members of the group included trumpeterHarry Beckett,saxophonist Willy Roachford, pianist Adam Fiberesima, and bongo player Ade Bashorun.[1][4]In the 1950s Campbell recorded a series of78 rpm recordsfor theMelodisclabel owned by Emil Shalit, and became a well-known figure inSoho.[2]He appeared thinly disguised as the character "Cranium Cuthbertson" inColin MacInnes's 1957 novelCity of Spades;MacInnes becamegodfatherto Campbell's first son.[4]

In the 1960s, the Abalabi club moved and became the Club Afrique inWardour Street.Campbell learned guitar and, after a disagreement with Brewster Hughes, formed a new band. Campbell toured Italy, and formed a production company with the help of lawyer andLabour PartyadviserArnold Goodman.[1][2]Campbell recorded an album forColumbia,Highlife Today,in 1968, before seemingly vanishing; newspapers in Lagos reported his death. However, in fact he travelled toLos Angeles,California,in 1972 with record producerDenny Cordell,intending to start his own business in the United States. There he was introduced to keyboardist and record producer Leon Russell, who invited Campbell to tour with him. He recorded as a percussionist with Russell – who referred to Campbell as his "spiritual adviser"[1]– andWillie Nelsonon the albumOne for the Road.Campbell toured worldwide with Russell, before settling inNashville,Tennessee,in 1982 and remarrying.[4]

He returned to Britain in 2004, to live inPlymouthwith his daughter and grandchildren. The following year,Honest Jon's Recordsincluded some of Campbell's Melodisc recordings on a compilation CD,London Is the Place for Me, Vol.3.Campbell died in Plymouth in 2006 at the age of 86.[1][2][5]

Collaborations

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WithDon Preston

  • Been Here All The Time(Shelter Records, 1974)

WithLeon Russell

References

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  1. ^abcdefAnkeny, Jason."Ambrose Campbell".Allmusic.Retrieved5 September2013.
  2. ^abcdeWilmer, Val (8 July 2006)."Obituary: Ambrose Campbell".The Guardian.Retrieved5 September2013.
  3. ^abWilmer, Val(2010)."Hughes, Brewster (1912–1986)".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography(online ed.). Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/100490.Retrieved6 September2013.(Subscription orUK public library membershiprequired.)
  4. ^abcdWilliamson, Nigel(22 January 2006)."Deep roots".The Observer.Observer Music Monthly.Retrieved5 September2013.
  5. ^"Ambrose Campbell Funeral".27 January 2007 – via YouTube.
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