Perhaps best known as the father of the singer and songwriter Beck, Campbell is also their for writing or arranging music for such popular artists as Justin Timberlake, Adele, and Michael Jackson. Also a violin and viola player and pianist, he worked as a session musician for Marvin Gaye, Bill Withers, and many other singers.
After training at the Manhattan School of Music, he performed on Carole King's Tapestry album and subsequently served as a musical arranger on the singer's later recording King's Rhymes and Reasons.
His orchestration and musical arrangement credits include work on dozens of films, including Rock of Ages; Brokeback Mountain; Dreamgirls; and August: Osage County.
He grew up in Toronto, Ontario; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Seattle, Washington, as the son of a Presbyterian minister. He later left his father's faith for the Church of Scientology and raised a daughter named Alyssa Suede and sons named Beck and Channing Hansen.
He contributed to Jason Mraz's 2012 album Love Is a Four Letter Word.