Country singer. Born April 22, 1936, on a family farm in Billstown, Arkansas. A talented guitarist by the age of 15, Campbell dropped out of school and headed West, where he played with bands in Wyoming's bars and roadhouses. In 1952, he joined the Sandia Mountain Boys and soon became a popular performer on local television and radio shows. At the age of 22, Campbell formed his own band—The Western Wranglers.

Shortly after, Campbell relocated to Los Angeles, where he took a job at the American Music Company, a small publishing house that employed a staff of songwriters. In 1961, Campbell wrote and recorded the single “Turn Around, Look at Me” whose modest success caught the attention of Capitol Records. Under contract with the label, he worked as a session musician with various artists like the Monkees, Frank Sinatra, and Merle Haggard.

In 1965, following Brian Wilson's retirement, Campbell toured with the Beach Boys as a temporary bassist. Two years later, he recorded the song “Gentle on My Mind” which proved to be a crossover success and landed on the pop charts. Campbell's next single “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” also entered the Top 40 and earned a Grammy Award for Best Country and Western Recording. In 1968, Campbell released his biggest hits to date—“Wichita Lineman” and “Galveston,” which both served to narrow the gap between country and pop music.

During the late 1960s, CBS offered Campbell his own primetime variety hour. A Smothers Brothers production, The Glen Campbell Good Time Hour joined the ranks of such programs as The Carol Burnett Show and The Red Skelton Show. Campbell also forged a film career with a debut performance opposite John Wayne in True Grit. The success of the singles “Rhinestone Cowboy” (1975) and “Southern Nights” (1977), which secured places at No. 1 on both the country and pop charts, further cemented Campbell's status as a crossover success.

Beginning in the late 1970s, while dating singer Tanya Tucker, Campbell's abuse of cocaine and alcohol began to take a toll on his career. After a few years of touring in the 1980s, Campbell successfully kicked his drug habit and became a born-again Christian. In 1994, he published an autobiography fittingly titled Rhinestone Cowboy.