Glen Campbell: Outlaw!

USA Today has a poignant feature interview with Glen today:
As memory dims, Glen Campbell plays on

how's the new ine?

on3

great piece there.

"I got to play with the big guys, the Wrecking Crew," he says. "They just blew me away. I learned a lot of stuff from those guys. The band was just super. We did songs with Frank Sinatra, everybody. And if they made mistakes, we made fun of them. 'What's the matter? Can't keep up?' We didn't care how many takes we did. We got paid by the hour!"

He laughs. "That was the most fun I had since being born, the most incredible part of my career."

My wife and I had tickets to see the farewell last summer -- and two days before our 5 year-old broke her arm so we had to cancel. Still haven't forgiven her.

The new record–See You There–is pretty great, btw.

"Rhinestone Cowboy" on this is devastating -- trio consisting of voice, guitar and amp noise.

http://open.spotify.com/track/523XkEd2xiVbZ2HdXI4MTU

Jesus Christ that's great

i don't know about the 'lineman' redo

the original arrangement is all-time

Incredible.

http://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/glen-campbells-battle-alzheimers-last-recorded-song-n220031

bloody hell, that brings a tear to the eye.

what a gorgeous song.

The documentary was just on TV, it is very painful to watch. The idea on the surface seems horribly exploitative, a farewell tour when he is suffering from Alzheimer's. But after seeing the documentary, it's pretty clear that's not the case. The music really did keep him going, and his family was there with him throughout the tour.

It's incredible to see how he could still play guitar and remember the lyrics, when he couldn barely remember the names of his children. It's a powerful film about a brutal disease.

Yeah, it's v moving

I watched the first half & was like oh yeah I can do this I'll be fine - second half? I am an ugly-crying mess curled up on the sofa

It is fascinating how innate the music is to him, as you mention

Like it's somehow protected by the degradation. I wonder how that happens. Fascinating to see

& his voice still sounds great!

Yes. It shows just how monumentally talented he is, as a guitar player and singer.

Sadly, you can really see the disease progress in the doc. At the beginning he's fine, with a sense of humor about things. But that's all gone towards the end, when he is afraid and paranoid.

I did not care for the last song he did, that was the one time it struck a wrong note.

His wife is kinda um in many places
overall, strong film

This letter from Jimmy Webb is posted on the Glen Campbell website.

I visited my friend Glen Campbell Wednesday in Nashville. Laura and Kim Campbell were there as well. You may be aware that Glen has bravely been living with Alzheimer’s Disease. Along with his strong and courageous wife, they have changed the face of Alzheimer’s forever. The world watched as Glen traveled from city to city, to continue doing what he loves to do: perform and share his music. Doctors were amazed at how the music and activity appeared to slow the pace of the disease for awhile. With his family, they showed the world that you don’t have to hide when you become ill. They raised awareness, and in turn, funds for Alzheimer’s research.

Glen is currently residing in a memory support community—it reminded me of one of the nice hotels he would stay at while on tour. Kim has found this place for Glen that is safe, where he is cared for 24 hours a day. The ratio of caregivers to residents astounded me–he is never alone. And there are only 17 other residents; his neighbors are former lawyers, doctors, teachers and others who are living with the same challenges that dementia brings. Glen has been my friend for a long time and I love him like a brother. I am sure that Kim has made the right choices for and with my friend of 50 years.

Glen has his private room and bathroom, all decorated by Kim with custom paint, lots of photos murals and framed memorabilia. The place is bright and clean. He loves color and still wears his blue suede shoes from time to time! The memory center has elaborate arrangements for activities. There are many different rooms and spaces for him to experience each day, each furnished tastefully and safely.

There is an airy screened-in porch where Glen likes to sit and where we visited with him. He has a full time care-er, Brody. Brody is in his early twenties with long blond hair–he looks like a surfer! Brody is patient and kind. He plays the guitar with and for Glen. They sing, they walk around the grounds and converse almost constantly. We instantly fell for Brody and thanked him for the care he gives to Glen and the important breaks he gives Kim so she can rest and work.

Glen has always been a happy guy and a jokester. He still is. For longer than I’d like to remember, he has imitated Donald Duck and during the visit, he did his Donald voice for us. He sings in a low register all the way to high clear notes that are reminiscent of the performances we are all familiar with. He seems almost to go from song to song, under his breath at times. He looked at me after singing one song and said, “that was a good song wasn’t it?” Music is still at the very center of who he is. It is almost as though he is giving a never-ending performance.

The last thing he said to me when it was time for us to go was, “Was it a good one?” like he used to say to me at the end of a concert. That phrase made me think that he recognized me, that and the fact that he said my name to Kim and Laura when I left the room briefly.

He sees his family all of the time; Kim and two of his younger children live just a few minutes away. And his oldest daughter Debby was visiting just the day before.

He is loved. He is cared for. He is respected. And most of all, he has his dignity. We can all be comforted by that.

Yours very truly,

Jimmy L. Webb

<
It sounds a bit like the memory care place that my father-in-law is in currently

About as good as you can hope for with such a cruel disease

The stuff in the movie where he got paranoid & afraid of shadows was v much our experience with my FiL, v hard to watch

all that sounds too familiar. I saw Webb's facebook update and was impressed at how he responded personally to almost everyone who commented on the thread, many of whom were sharing similar stories.

the documentary about his final tour is now on netflix if anyone wants to make themselves sad.

Saw that. Can't bring myself to watch it yet.

It's a rough watch. Heartbreaking but well done.

Watching now.

Heartbreaking is right

His birthday yesterday.

IIRC the glen campbell goodtime hour special is getting a DVD release soon.

spotted Glen pretending to be Steve McQueen's sideman in Baby the Rain Must Fall

And he's gone

http://www.rollingstone.com/country/news/glen-campbell-dead-at-81

Hardly surprising, obviously, but still awfully sad. One of the great singers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTbTHlTmDX8

RIP.

:(

I love Glen. Beautiful voice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExxrB-E4oBo

Oh man that sucks. Hardly unexpected but still.

loved this one. nothing else like it. RIP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VecunpIqlg0

The fact that he had a TV show (actually two) from '68-72 meant he was one of the first country-pop singers I heard (Cash shortly after). My dad bought at least 3 or 4 of the '68-71 LPs, and looking at the track listing for Gentle on My Mind, that means he was the first singer I heard do "Dock of the Bay," "Words," Jacques Brel, etc.

(Hardin's "Reason to Believe" too)

There seemed to follow after him or maybe overlap a number of copycat shows hosted by one-hit wonder country singers of limited duration such as The Jim Stafford Show and The Jud Strunk Show.

RIP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_Yj9oHikgY

Think he ended up resenting doing the show because they let him play guitar less and less. (Think something similar happened with Nat King Cole and the piano, the not playing part)

rip, wichita still one of the greatest love songs of all timenx

oh Glen ... so long buddy <3

I love this one - gives me a beautiful soaring Orbison-esque vibe of longing

https://youtu.be/JijBzCUxYkc

RIP, Glen. You were my first employer as a writer. We we all in awe of your musicality. https://t.co/WjvYWGNGl7

— Steve Martin (@SteveMartinToGo) August 8, 2017

RIP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wEvENJpVSA

RIP. His '68 television show is one of the first things I remember - not just my memory of television, but of anything.

Funny, solid, and handsome in True Grit. RIP.

Been relistening to the (quite excellent) UK comp The Capitol Years: 65-77 here. Stellar work indeed, and a lot of his quieter guitar performances are standing out in particular.

I mean, jeebus, this ain't perfect, but it's incredible:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxoJkDQdNBI

I've always kinda liked Glen but find the added strings / backing vocals / shmaltz unappealing. Johnny Cash has his prison albums that strip all that away and let the songs and voice shine, does Glen have anything similar?