Ian Campbell Music

Free Falling by Tom Petty is one of the first songs that I learned on the guitar. The chord progression is pretty straightforward but it’s a really fun song to play, which makes it a really fun song for a beginner guitarist. Of course, it also happens to be a great song, making it STILL a fun song to play after 20 plus years. Let me know how you like it! #acousticlive #musicvibes #makingmusic #musicrecording #60secondcover #iancampbell #musicforever #musicfans #singersongwriters #musicplayer #musicmoment #musicenthusiast #acousticguitarplayer #playingmusic #musicappreciation #musicpassion #musicconnects #covermusic #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarcover #musicinspiration #musiciseverything #songcovers #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover

This is my version of Have You Ever Seen the Rain by Creedence Clearwater Revival. As much as I love the complexity of so many of the songs from the 60s and 70s, I love the simplicity of songs like this. It’s easy to consider “simple” a bad thing, especially when it comes to songwriting, but simple songs are the ones that stick with you. Let me know what you think! #musicofinstagram #singersongwriters #acousticguitarplayer #makingmusic #musicenthusiast #acousticlive #musicrecording #musicinspiration #playingmusic #songcovers #musicvibes #iancampbell #musicpassion #musicforever #musicmoment #musicappreciation #musicconnects #musicfans #covermusic #oneminutecover #musiciseverything #60secondcover #acousticmusic #musicplayer #acousticguitarcover #acousticcover

Finding out that my son, Quinn, was going to be born was one of the biggest drivers into getting back into songwriting and performing after a pretty long hiatus. I was wondering how long it would take me to finally write a song in his honor, and when I did, the whole thing flowed like few songs have. If you have kids, then this song will probably hit home in a pretty intense way. I hope you enjoy! #musicappreciation #originalsong #musicplayer #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #makingmusic #musicofinstagram #originalmusiconly #musicrecording #iancampbell #originalmusic #originalsongs #acousticoriginals #musiciseverything #originallyrics #acousticlive #musicmoment #musicconnects #musicpassion #acousticmusic #musicforever #musicenthusiast #singersongwriters #musicfans #playingmusic #musicvibes

Fields of Gold - Acoustic Sting Cover So what do you do when you can’t sleep at 3 AM? Me - I work on channeling my inner Sting. When I was at my parents’ place in Rochester for Thanksgiving, I was woken up at about 2:30 or so. After laying in bed for about 20 minutes, I decided to get up and go downstairs to try a different location. When that didn’t work, I pulled out my guitar and started working on a Fields of Gold cover. I’m not sure where it’ll take me, but here’s the first draft…let me know what you think! #acousticlive #musicvibes #makingmusic #musicrecording #60secondcover #iancampbell #musicforever #musicfans #singersongwriters #musicplayer #musicmoment #musicenthusiast #acousticguitarplayer #playingmusic #musicappreciation #musicpassion #musicconnects #covermusic #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarcover #musicinspiration #musiciseverything #songcovers #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover #fieldsofgold #fieldsofgoldcover #sting #stingcover

This is an original song that I wrote called Nothing Wrong. If you’ve ever gotten out of a relationship and gotten to a point where you realized that you were better off and it really WAS them…this song is for you… #musicappreciation #originalsong #musicplayer #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #makingmusic #musicofinstagram #originalmusiconly #musicrecording #iancampbell #originalmusic #originalsongs #acousticoriginals #musiciseverything #originallyrics #acousticlive #musicmoment #musicconnects #musicpassion #acousticmusic #musicforever #musicenthusiast #singersongwriters #musicfans #playingmusic #musicvibes

Happy Thanksgiving 🦃

This is a cover of Blackwater by the Doobie Brothers. This is another one of those classic songs that landed on my radar when I was a kid and, like so many other people, that “funky Dixieland” section at the end of the song hooked onto me and never did let go. When I play this live, I have a loop station that I use to do the harmonies on the chorus (”oh blackwater, keep on rollin”), but I figured I’d do this one with just me and my guitar. Let me know what you think! #acousticlive #musicvibes #makingmusic #musicrecording #60secondcover #iancampbell #musicforever #musicfans #singersongwriters #musicplayer #musicmoment #musicenthusiast #acousticguitarplayer #playingmusic #musicappreciation #musicpassion #musicconnects #covermusic #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarcover #musicinspiration #musiciseverything #songcovers #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover #blackwater #blackwatercover #doobiebrothers #doobiebrotherscover

Van Morrison is one of my favorite artists to cover. I’ve done a bunch of his other tunes, and this one is Cray Love. So much of Van Morrison’s music hit home in a really solid way. It was fun to listen to, but it had more soul than I ever expected from the guy I saw singing the first time I saw him as a young man. Crazy Love is a song that I used to play a lot for weddings and rehearsal dinners, but I’ve set it aside for a while so it was fun to come back to it and see it redevelop itself in my repertoire. I hope you enjoy! #musicofinstagram #singersongwriters #acousticguitarplayer #makingmusic #musicenthusiast #acousticlive #musicrecording #musicinspiration #playingmusic #songcovers #musicvibes #iancampbell #musicpassion #musicforever #musicmoment #musicappreciation #musicconnects #musicfans #covermusic #oneminutecover #musiciseverything #60secondcover #acousticmusic #musicplayer #acousticguitarcover #acousticcover

This is a song that I wrote a while back called You Will Be Mine. I’ve talked before about how heartbreak has shaped a lot of the music that I’ve made over the years. Possibly even more than heartbreak, though, has been sheer desire and longing. Desire for women with whom I’ve been in relationships, and some that I’ve simply desired from afar because my feelings weren’t reciprocated or because I didn’t have the guts to walk up and say hi. This song is kind of a mix of both, but it was inspired by a picture of a friend of mine when she was doing modeling. Irrespective of my feelings for the person, this particular picture spoke volumes about that feeling of desire that suddenly this song was practically writing itself. Hope you enjoy! #musicappreciation #originalsong #musicplayer #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #makingmusic #musicofinstagram #originalmusiconly #musicrecording #iancampbell #originalmusic #originalsongs #acousticoriginals #musiciseverything #originallyrics #acousticlive #musicmoment #musicconnects #musicpassion #acousticmusic #musicforever #musicenthusiast #singersongwriters #musicfans #playingmusic #musicvibes

There's something special about Bill Withers. I've played his music a lot over the past 15 years or so, and it's about time I took a stab at "Lovely Day". I love the guitar groove on this so much and it's a ton of fun to play. It always surprises me that his career was only 18 years because he’s one of those guys that just always seemed like he was around and making music. A quick Google search tells me that he stopped being “active” in 1985, but he did a LOT in that 18 years. I’m curious which of his songs would be considered his biggest “hit”. I’m not sure but, as far as I’m concerned, I’d have to imagine it was this, Ain’t No Sunshine, or Use Me. But then again, Lean on Me and Just the Two of Us went pretty far too. Which Bill Withers tune do you think is his biggest hit? #acousticlive #musicvibes #makingmusic #musicrecording #60secondcover #iancampbell #musicforever #musicfans #singersongwriters #musicplayer #musicmoment #musicenthusiast #acousticguitarplayer #playingmusic #musicappreciation #musicpassion #musicconnects #covermusic #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarcover #musicinspiration #musiciseverything #songcovers #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover #lovelyday #lovelydaycover #billwithers #billwitherscover

This is one of my original songs called Right Back to Me. Like a lot of songwriters, heartbreaks definitely shaped a lot of my songs, and this one was a perfect example of that. I was in a relationship that came to an end, in no small part because I was about to move to San Diego. While we both knew that the relationship probably wasn’t going to go the distance, it certainly didn’t hurt any less when it came to its inevitable conclusion. All that said, it’s still nice to visit the melancholy of heartache from time to time, and this is one of my favorite songs I’ve written (if I do say so myself 🙂). I hope you enjoy! #musicappreciation #originalsong #musicplayer #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #makingmusic #musicofinstagram #originalmusiconly #musicrecording #iancampbell #originalmusic #originalsongs #acousticoriginals #musiciseverything #originallyrics #acousticlive #musicmoment #musicconnects #musicpassion #acousticmusic #musicforever #musicenthusiast #singersongwriters #musicfans #playingmusic #musicvibes

While I was traveling last week, I started looking through some of the songs that I wanted to develop and Don’t Dream It’s Over stood out on that list and I wanted to take a swing at it. I started working on it and built out what I think is a pretty cool acoustic version of an amazing song from the 80s. This is another one of those songs that I heard on the radio all the time and it’s always stayed with me. I’ve still got a little work to do to clean it up, but I like the direction that it’s going - what do you think? #musicofinstagram #singersongwriters #acousticguitarplayer #makingmusic #musicenthusiast #acousticlive #musicrecording #musicinspiration #playingmusic #songcovers #musicvibes #iancampbell #musicpassion #musicforever #musicmoment #musicappreciation #musicconnects #musicfans #covermusic #oneminutecover #musiciseverything #60secondcover #acousticmusic #musicplayer #acousticguitarcover #acousticcover #dontdreamitsover #dontdreamitsovercover #crowdedhouse #crowdedhousecover

Spent some time in Denver this week and stopped by the rehearsal studio that I used to use when I lived in my downtown apartment to do some work. Started playing around with some Tom Petty, who’s one of my all-time favorites. Enjoy! #acousticlive #musicvibes #makingmusic #musicrecording #60secondcover #iancampbell #musicforever #musicfans #singersongwriters #musicplayer #musicmoment #musicenthusiast #acousticguitarplayer #playingmusic #musicappreciation #musicpassion #musicconnects #covermusic #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarcover #musicinspiration #musiciseverything #songcovers #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover #dontdomelikethat #dontdomelikethatcover #tompetty #tompettycover

Into the Mystic is one of my favorite Van Morrison songs. When I used to play it, it would always bother me that it wasn’t very long (it’s pretty much one verse and a couple of chorus repeats), but it occurred to me at some point that that’s the beauty of it. If you can convey the soul that this song can in such brevity - why would you ruin it by stuffing more unnecessary words in there? #acousticlive #musicvibes #makingmusic #musicrecording #60secondcover #iancampbell #musicforever #musicfans #singersongwriters #musicplayer #musicmoment #musicenthusiast #acousticguitarplayer #playingmusic #musicappreciation #musicpassion #musicconnects #covermusic #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarcover #musicinspiration #musiciseverything #songcovers #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover #intothemystic #intothemysticcover #vanmorrison #vanmorrisoncover

This is my song 2am. This was the first song I wrote when I came back to songwriting in my mid-20s. The last song I wrote before then was in high school when imposter syndrome and all sorts of other self-doubts “convinced” me that songwriting was for other people and I wasn’t anywhere good enough to create a song from scratch. 2am was the first song that I wrote that made me think “Hey, maybe I can do this too…” #musicappreciation #originalsong #musicplayer #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #makingmusic #musicofinstagram #originalmusiconly #musicrecording #iancampbell #originalmusic #originalsongs #acousticoriginals #musiciseverything #originallyrics #acousticlive #musicmoment #musicconnects #musicpassion #acousticmusic #musicforever #musicenthusiast #singersongwriters #musicfans #playingmusic #musicvibes

Like a lot of people, I remember hearing Peter Gabriel’s In Your Eyes since I was a kid. The song came out in ‘86 (apparently now known as the “late 1900s”???) and put into movies, tv shows, commercials, and just about anything else you could think of…but none as iconic as John Cusack holding a boom box over his head (and if you don’t know what a boom box is, ask your parents for some old party photos 😂). For me, though, because this song was everywhere for the longest time, it was kind of like it was nowhere. Eventually, even with some of the best songs in the world, you just kind of tune them out after a while. Then I heard this version by a guy named Jeffrey Gaines (I think) and it gave this song a whole new life for me. It was such a cool version to hear it on an acoustic guitar that I started playing it at just about every gig that I played for a long time (even now it’s on most of my set lists). Take a listen and let me know what you think! #musicofinstagram #singersongwriters #acousticguitarplayer #makingmusic #musicenthusiast #acousticlive #musicrecording #musicinspiration #playingmusic #songcovers #musicvibes #iancampbell #musicpassion #musicforever #musicmoment #musicappreciation #musicconnects #musicfans #covermusic #oneminutecover #musiciseverything #60secondcover #acousticmusic #musicplayer #acousticguitarcover #acousticcover

Grateful Dead is one of my favorite bands, and I’ve always loved Friend of the Devil. Obviously they’re best known as the quintessential jam band, which I love, but so many of their songs are really great even without the jam sessions (and the psychedelics that often go with those jam sessions 🙂). It’s awesome to me how they’ve stood up over time and have become mainstays in the American canon. When I play songs like this, I often wonder if they people who wrote them knew that they were going to still be sung and enjoyed decades later…and probably many more decades to come… #musicofinstagram #singersongwriters #acousticguitarplayer #makingmusic #musicenthusiast #acousticlive #musicrecording #musicinspiration #playingmusic #songcovers #musicvibes #iancampbell #musicpassion #musicforever #musicmoment #musicappreciation #musicconnects #musicfans #covermusic #oneminutecover #musiciseverything #60secondcover #acousticmusic #musicplayer #acousticguitarcover #acousticcover #friendofthedevil #friendofthedevilcover #gratefuldead #gratefuldeadcover

Doin Fine is another song that I wrote a long time ago that I’ve been revisiting lately. I’m getting ready to go back into the recording studio and record my first release in about 15 years. It’ll be an EP with five or so songs on it, and since I have more songs in my catalog to work from, I’ve been thinking a lot about what to put on that EP, and what I want them to sound like. This one keeps coming back around for some reason. I remember writing it - I was at my folks' place because my grandma was in town so I went over to visit. My sister had her guitar there, so I picked it up and this just kind of came out, so I wrote it down. It was a time when I was starting to become mildly well known in the town that I was in - in part for my music, but mostly just because I’m good at building a network and becoming known (it’s the marketing guy in me). And, as we all know, any time people learn about you, they’re going to judge you, criticize you, and “should” all over you. I was dealing with a lot of that at the time that I wrote this, so this was kind of my middle finger to that crowd. I’m not sure if this will make it onto my EP, but it’s still a fun song to play (albeit simple in the chord progression and lyrics), and I’m glad it’s still got a bit of life to it! #originallyrics #originalmusic #acousticoriginals #musicenthusiast #iancampbell #musiciseverything #singersongwriters #musicappreciation #playingmusic #musicpassion #acousticlive #originalsong #originalsongs #musicforever #musicinspiration #musicplayer #musicrecording #musicvibes #musicofinstagram #makingmusic #musicmoment #acousticguitarplayer #originalmusiconly #musicconnects #musicfans #acousticmusic

I added Give a Little Bit by Supertramp to my repertoire recently. This is a great tune from the 70s that’s gotten a couple of new lives over the years with some bigger bands covering the song. The Goo Goo Dolls version, for example, was a pretty popular version of the song. This is a pretty simple song, but it’s a lot of fun to dive into and learn. I haven’t done too much experimenting with it yet, but I think that there are some pretty fun places where I can take this, so keep an eye out for more on this one ;) In the meantime, enjoy! #musicconnects #musicmoment #musicforever #musicrecording #musicvibes #singersongwriters #musicappreciation #musicofinstagram #oneminutecover #makingmusic #musicenthusiast #iancampbell #60secondcover #playingmusic #acousticlive #acousticguitarcover #covermusic #musicpassion #acousticcover #acousticmusic #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #musicfans #musiciseverything #musicplayer #songcovers #givealittlebit #givealittlebitcover #supertramp #supertrampcover

Wild Horses is hands down one of my favorite songs in the world. It’s just one of those tunes that really hits you. It’s haunting, it’s nostalgic, and it seems to always be meaningful. It seems that there are so few songs out that can make that kind of lasting impact. I remember the first time that I decided that I wanted to learn it. I was actually listening to a cover of it and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I don’t remember the circumstances in my life at the time, but I sure as hell remember the way that it made me feel. I hope you dig my version of it too! #songcovers #musicmoment #playingmusic #covermusic #acousticlive #musicforever #oneminutecover #makingmusic #musicplayer #musicofinstagram #musicpassion #60secondcover #musiciseverything #musicfans #acousticmusic #musicconnects #acousticguitarplayer #musicinspiration #singersongwriters #musicappreciation #acousticguitarcover #musicvibes #musicrecording #musicenthusiast #iancampbell #rollingstones #rollingstonescover #wildhorses #wildhorsescover #acousticcover