3 Songs You Might Not Know Glen Campbell Played on as a Session Musician

Several decorated musicians have called Glen Campbell’s “Wichita Lineman” one of the greatest songs of all time. Even more musicians have celebrated Campbell’s work altogether for its cross-genre success in both pop and country. Glen Campbell is truly one of the best musicians and songwriters to ever grace the industry, and he proved that fact in more ways than just one.

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Glen Campbell is most notable for being Glen Campbell—The tall, smooth singing, country pop star of the 60s and 70s. But his contributions to the music industry extend far beyond those who basked in the limelight, as Campbell was also a frequent session musician.

However, that news didn’t make many headlines, and as a result, you might know that Glen Campbell played as a session musician on these three classic tracks.

“Strangers in the Night” by Frank Sinatra

Just a year before his career took off in 1967, Glen Campbell, who was still working as a session musician, was tasked with playing the rhythm guitar part on Frank Sinatra’s staple single, “Strangers in the Night”. Star-struck by the presence of working with Sinatra, Campbell recalled in an interview with The Telegraph, “Frank asked [the producer] Jimmy Bowen, ‘Who’s the f** guitarist over there?’ I told him I’d slap him if he said that again.”

Following the release of the single, Sinatra’s classic peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at No. 1 on the United Kingdom charts. Subsequently, the track went on to win two Grammy Awards in 1967.

“Mama Tried” by Merle Haggard

Glenn Campbell notoriously helped out Merle Haggard on several different occasions, before and after his personal career took off. In particular, Glen Campbell appears on Haggard’s Swinging Doors, I’m a Lonesome Fugitive, Branded Man, and Sing Me Back Home.

Out of all his collaborations with Haggard, the most eye-opening is his one on Haggard’s hit, “Mama Tried”. On the single, Campbell plays acoustic rhythm guitar and sings back-up harmony. If you listen closely, you might just hear him.

“Danke Schoen” by Wayne Newton

“Danke Schoen” by Wayne Newton certainly gained the majority of its notoriety thanks to the 1986 cult classic film, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. But another notable fact about the 1963 pop tune is that Glen Campbell is on the record, too.

Like the rest of these singles, Glen Campbell played guitar on this track alongside the infamous studio musicians known as the “Wrecking Crew.” After the release of this single, “Danke Schoen” would go on to peak at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Photo by Tony Russell/Redferns