Glen Campbell's death has been met with reverence from many in the industry that embraced the country-pop artist. A crack studio guitarist who found fame thanks to a pristine voice and a keen ear for great songs -- many written by friend Jimmy Webb -- Campbell is being remembered by Nashville execs and label heads, including Universal Music Group chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge, whose UMe division released the artist's final album, Adios.
"Glen Campbell will forever be an essential part of the fabric of American music," Grainge said in a statement. "He is not only one of the most versatile and brilliant artists ever to grace us, but he is someone who over the course of a remarkable fifty-plus year career, remained as relevant and productive until his final years."
Also chiming in following Campbell's death was Big Machine Label Group president and CEO Scott Borchetta, who called the artist a "superstar of the highest order and a multi-threat talent as a singer, entertainer, world-class guitar virtuoso, actor and, of course, a great family man." Borchetta noted that BMLG worked with Campbell's family on the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack to I'll Be Me, the documentary tracing the singer's fight with Alzheimer's. "Even in his final act, Glen's star touched so many," he said.
Country Music Association CEO Sarah Trahern paid tribute to her organization's 1968 entertainer of the year. "Our music community is greatly saddened by the loss of an icon," she said. "He was a ground-breaking artist of our genre, and a pioneer of Country Music on television. Many of my generation grew up with his music. His impact on the industry will remain gentle on our minds."
Kyle Young, the CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, said that "had [Campbell] 'only' played guitar and never voiced a note, he would have spent a lifetime as one of America’s most consequential recording musicians." Conversely, "had he never played guitar and 'only' sung, his voice would rank with American music's most riveting, expressive, and enduring. He left indelible marks as a musician, a singer, and an entertainer, and he bravely shared his incalculable talent with adoring audiences even as he fought a cruel and dread disease."
Recording Academy president and CEO Neil Portnow also paid tribute to the six-time Grammy winner. "Glen Campbell was, and always will be, an American treasure. We have lost an icon who will be greatly missed, but Glen's musical gifts will live on forever."
