Ian Campbell (folk musician)

Ian Campbell (10 June 1933 – 24 November 2012) was a Scottish folksinger. As leader of the Ian Campbell Folk Group, he was one of the most important figures of the British folk revival during the 1960s.[1]

Born in Aberdeen, Campbell moved to Birmingham as a teenager, where he subsequently worked as an engraver in the city's Jewellery Quarter.[2] His father, David Gunn Campbell, was a trade union leader who was originally from Shetland.[3] He fell under the influence of the Birmingham Marxist writer George Thomson and joined the choir of the local branch of the Workers' Music Association, which was run by Thomson's wife.[1] In 1957, he formed a skiffle group, initially called the Clarion Skiffle Group, which performed politically-charged material including Fenian and Jacobite songs, and songs of miners, industrial workers and farmworkers.[1] In 1958, the group changed their name to the Ian Campbell Folk Group and in 1962 recorded Ceilidh At The Crown, at the Crown Inn in Station Street Birmingham, their regular venue. It was the first ever live folk recording to be released on vinyl.[4]

After disbanding the group in 1978, Campbell worked as an editor and television presenter for TV-am and as a community arts worker in Dudley.[4] His sons Ali Campbell, Robin Campbell and Duncan Campbell have all been members of the Birmingham reggae group UB40.[2]

References
  1. Hunt, Ken (2012-12-04), "Ian Campbell: Musician whose politically charged band led the British folk revival of the 1960s", The Independent, London: Independent Digital News and media, retrieved 2013-06-23
  2. Miller, Sheila (2012-11-28), "Ian Campbell obituary - Leading singer in the British folk revival", The Guardian, London: Guardian News and Media, retrieved 2013-06-23
  3. McGrath, Nick (14 November 2014). "Ali Campbell: My family values". theguardian.com. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  4. "Obituaries - Ian Campbell", The Daily Telegraph, London: Telegraph Media Group, 2013-06-23, retrieved 2013-06-23
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