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Vivian Patrick Campbell (born 25 August 1962) is a Northern Irish musician. He came to prominence in the early 1980s as the guitarist of Dio. He has also been the guitarist of Def Leppard since 1992 (replacing Steve Clark after his death). Campbell has also worked with Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, Sweet Savage, Trinity, Riverdogs and Shadow King.
Dio returned to the studio to write and record the follow-up to Holy Diver, The Last in Line, which charted at No. 23 in the US. "The Last in Line". The follow-up Sacred Heart was also a success, and managed to peak at No. 29 in the U.S. It featured the hits "Rock N Roll Children" and "Hungry For Heaven", the second of which was also included on the soundtrack to the film Vision Quest. Also around this time the band recorded the song "Hide in the Rainbow" for the Iron Eagle soundtrack, the last song Campbell recorded with Dio. A live Extended play Intermission was also released. Craig Goldy played on the disc's only studio song "Time to Burn" and over-dubbed the rhythm parts on the live tracks. Campbell and the band parted company in 1986 and he joined Whitesnake. He was replaced by Goldy.
Campbell's post-Dio relationship, including how Campbell considered his Dio years relative to his identity as a musician, has at times seemed positive, at times negative. For example, in 2003 Campbell said Dio was "one of the vilest people in the industry." Campbell later stated that he regretted making the statement., and Ronnie James Dio stated in an article in Hit Parader that he wished Campbell "the best." Further, in 2012 Campbell reunited with original Dio members bassist Jimmy Bain and drummer Vinnie Appice, along with vocalist Andrew Freeman, to form the band Last in Line, and Campbell subsequently made statements that suggest he had come to view his time in Dio more positively than he previously had indicated.
During the supporting tour for the band's self-titled album, Campbell's wife was barred from traveling with the group, due to strife between her and Coverdale's wife Tawny Kitaen; this caused friction between Campbell and Coverdale. After the tour ended, the latter informed the rest of the band that the next Whitesnake album would be written by him and Adrian Vandenberg alone. Vandenberg, for his part, didn't want Campbell in the band and sought to be Whitesnake's sole guitarist. Campbell later remarked: "I knew deep inside that this wasn't a band I would last in for too long." Eventually Campbell was informed by Whitesnake's tour manager that he'd been fired. He officially exited Whitesnake in December 1988, with David Coverdale citing musical differences.
Campbell's relationship with Coverdale remained strained for many years after his departure, due to the way Coverdale handled his firing. It wasn't until 2008, when Def Leppard and Whitesnake toured together, that Campbell and Coverdale were able to sort out their past differences. Campbell remarked: "David was very apologetic, and pointed out that he was in this bad relationship, living in an ivory tower, having people do things instead of doing those things by himself. — All this belongs in the past. We are all good now." In 2015, Campbell joined Whitesnake on stage for a performance of "Still of the Night" in Sheffield, England. Campbell has stated, that he doesn't consider Whitesnake an important part of his career: "We were all great individually, but that lineup with those musicians never really gelled. It was fun at the time, and I was flattered to have been invited to be a part of the band, but it doesn't mean an awful lot to me from a musical point of view."
According to fellow guitarist Phil Collen, Campbell was able to lock right into the position very naturally by simply being himself. Campbell made his debut with the band by playing a show in a Dublin club. A week later, 20 April 1992, the band took the stage at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, with their new guitarist.
Despite treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma, Campbell continued to tour with Def Leppard during summer 2013, and he and the rest of the band returned to the stage in summer 2014 as co-headliners with Kiss.
In mid-2010/early 2011, when Def Leppard was on hiatus, Campbell agreed to join Thin Lizzy, long his favorite band. After the tour, which he said inspired him to play more aggressively, he asked Jimmy Bain and Vinny Appice—both members of the original band Dio—to get together for a Dio tribute project that ultimately became the band Last in Line. With singer Andrew Freeman, they recorded the album Heavy Crown. Bain died before the album was released, and Campbell praised his creativity and his presence, adding that Bain deserved co-writing credits on more of the early Dio songs. Last in Line continued on, recruiting Phil Soussan to take over playing bass. The band released two more albums, II in 2019 and Jericho in 2023.
On 10 June 2013, Campbell announced that he has Hodgkin's lymphoma. Though he announced in November 2013 that he was in partial remission, in June 2014 he took that back saying the statement was premature. He had stem-cell therapy in late 2014, and by October 2015 he announced that while the cancer is still there he was doing much better using immunotherapy, undergoing treatment every three weeks with pembrolizumab. In 2023, he announced that the pembrolizumab was waning in effectiveness and chemotherapy had been added to his recent treatments.
Solo and other projects
In 2005 Campbell released a solo album produced by Tor Hyams called Two Sides of If, which features cover versions of his favourite blues tunes and one original blues song. Terry Bozzio plays drums on the album. ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons guests on two songs, and Joan Osborne on one other song.
Personal life
Campbell currently lives in New Hampshire and has two daughters with ex-wife Julie Campbell. After getting divorced, Campbell married his longtime girlfriend Caitlin Phaneuf on 4 July 2014. He also plays football regularly with Hollywood United F.C., a team composed mostly of celebrities and former professional football players.
Discography
Studio albums
with Sweet Savage
with Dio
with Hear 'N Aid
with Whitesnake
with Riverdogs
with Shadow King
with Def Leppard
with Bunny Brunel
with Clock
with Last in Line
Guest appearances
External links
Categories: 1962 Births, Living People, 20th-century Guitarists From Northern Ireland, 21st-century Guitarists From Northern Ireland, Def Leppard Members, Male Guitarists From Northern Ireland, Rock Guitarists From Northern Ireland, Expatriates From Northern Ireland In The United States, Musicians From Lisburn, Shadow King Members, Ulster Scots People, Whitesnake Members, Thin Lizzy Members, British Lead Guitarists, British Rhythm Guitarists, Dio Members, Hollywood United F.c. Players, People Educated At Rathmore Grammar School, Men's Association Football Players Not Categorized By Position, Musicians From Belfast, Association Football Players Not Categorized By Nationality, 20th-century Male Musicians From Northern Ireland, 21st-century Male Musicians From Northern Ireland, Clock Members, Riverdogs Members
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