Background
Campbell was born in London, Ontario to Alexander and Elizabeth Campbell in 1878.
Campbell was born in London, Ontario to Alexander and Elizabeth Campbell in 1878.
Campbell recorded with the Columbia, Davega, Perfect and Pathé labels. Although a tenor, Campbell had a very rich voice and could also sing baritone, and described himself as a tenore robusto. While Campbell was young, the family moved several times, living in Hamilton and Owen Sound before settling down in Winnipeg.
His first performance on stage took place in Winnipeg, when he performed for the High School Literary Society.
Campbell made a formal debut in 1909 in the role of Alfred Blake in The Love Cure by Edmund Eysler at the New Amsterdam Theatre. He began touring the United States and Canada as a vaudeville tenor on the Keith-Orpheum and Loew tour circuits.
In 1912, Campbell starred as Jack Travers in the first production of Rudolf Friml"s operetta The Firefly, which was performed at the Lyric Theatre. The female lead was Emma Trentini.
This would lead to Campbell"s first recording, when he recorded the song A Woman"s Smile from this play for the Columbia Record Company.
Campbell began giving performances in American opera halls and on concert stages. He appeared as a lead with Julia Claussen in Faust and Helena at the New York Symphony Orchestra in 1918. The next year, he sang Die Fledermaus with the Saint Louis Municipal Opera.
In 1931, he sang the role of Dick Dauntless in Ruddigore which was performed in Erlanger"s Theater.
He died in New York in 1965.
Campbell became a member of the American Society of Singers in 1914.
