Reviews  

Campbell sings just as sweetly on his own·his singing and lyrics place him somewhere between early Neil Young and solo Don Henley.

- Dave Marsh

 American Breakdown has soulful vocals, beautiful melodies, cool guitar, and honest and down to earth lyrics. Troy Campbell shows depth and rascality.

- Ray Wylie Hubbard

Troy Campbell has trod a quieter path: but his second solo outing, American Breakdown, is likely to change that. Campbell and ace producer Gurf Morlix have fashioned a cool, brooding sound; the shadowy noir of the title track demonstrates how perfect Morlix's velvety production is for Campbell's dusky, haunted voice.

- Luke Torn, No Depression

Former Diamonds Singer Crafts a Polished Jewel: American Breakdown by Troy Campbell. The former loose Diamonds singer finds his voice on this atmospheric gem, easily the best work of his career.

- Michael Corcoran, Austin American-Statesman

 In a word, it's simply superb. - Lee Zimmerman, The Miami Herald

On his second solo release, American Breakdown, ex-Loose Diamond Troy Campbell teams up with white-hot producer Gurf Morlix. The result is some of the best work ever done by either. Campbell's songwriting has never been more powerful. While being emotionally direct, he lays bare his soul with melodic sophistication in a way that's both fresh and stimulating.

- Jim Caliguri, The Austin Chronicle

A Rare Voice. - Bruce Springsteen

Atmospheric touches and gloomily ruminative melodies·twenty-first century folk.

- Jason Cohen, Texas Monthly

 Austin singer-songwriter Troy Campbell's impressive second album is American Breakdown· Campbell's album will grow on you like a Chia Pet.

- Tony Peyser, Santa Monica Mirror

 Troy Campbell, former singer for the Austin Texas band Loose Diamonds, has a voice as sweet and smooth as whipped honey butter and a penchant for catchy, evocative songwriting. And on "American Breakdown," both are in evidence. Tracks such as "Sad Truth" and "Sorrytown"have a delicate melancholy that is hard to dismiss, while on the more revved-up "Rosebelle," Campbell proves that he can shake the rafters.

- Jeff Wisser Chicago Sun-Times

The World Keeps On Ending

Tracks

1. Sad Truth
2. World of Tears
3. American Breakdown
4. Sorrytown
5. Rosabelle
6. Sleeping Without You
7. The World Keeps on Ending
8. Blind
9. Pacific
10. Home After Dark
11. Ruby

TROY CAMBELL

From its title onward, American Breakdown is an album that sings the truth, and rather beautifully as well. The second release from Austin, TX rock'n'roller gone solo acoustic artist Troy Campbell, it has already been hailed as his "best work" by the singer and songwriter's hometown daily and weekly papers, and for good reason. Within a record that the Miami Herald describes as "simply superb," Campbell's compositions resonate with all the emotional power of a Marshall amplifier stack turned up to 10, even on the subtlest moments of what the Austin American-Statesman calls an "atmospheric gem."

The potency found on American Breakdown, Campbell's first release for Loudhouse Records, derives from the alchemy that occurs when an artist finds his creative sweet spot. In a way, the album brings it all back home for Campbell, who fronted Loose Diamonds, one of the most-lauded American rock'n'roll bands of the 1990s, before striking out on his own. His first solo outing, 1999's Man vs. Beast, found Campbell exploring new musical realms and breaking molds. He then followed it with near-endless months of touring across North America and Europe, renewing bonds with fans of his former band and winning new followers.

Although Campbell has a healthy wanderlust and a desire to be heard as widely as possible, the feelings and songs that emerged nearly all examined in some fashion the notion of a sense of place, be it actual, romantic, spiritual or otherwise. On his return to Austin to make his next album, Troy found the ideal creative foil in producer and guitarist Gurf Morlix, renowned for his work with Lucinda Williams, Robert Earl Keen, Ray Wylie Hubbard and others. The results reflect a return to and a refinement of the 21st Century roots-rock sound Campbell helped develop with Loose Diamonds, and have earned comparison with "early Neil Young and solo Don Henley" (by famed critic Dave Marsh in Playboy) as well as Roy Orbison (No Depression).

The album received its fitting title of American Breakdown from a talk Troy and Gurf had one day in the studio. Campbell was recounting a time while in London after years of travel when he was "flipping out because I was dying to get home. I didn't think I was having a nervous breakdown. And then Gurf said, 'It was like an American breakdown.'" The term crystallized the emotional realms Campbell was exploring in his songs. "That's what a lot of the songs are about - how you throw yourself out of your element, fragment, and come back again even stronger."

Campbell is uniquely positioned by his background as well as personally inclined to explore his American sense of self and place. Dubbed "a rare voice" by Bruce Springsteen as well as "a rare songwriter" by the Austin Chronicle, Campbell is the Ohio-reared son of a Korean War bride mother and coal-truck driving Kentucky hillbilly father. His dad's love of Elvis, George Jones and Red Sovine was matched by his mom's affection for stirring crooners like Sam Cooke, Freddie Fender and Bobby Darin, instilling a love of music early on.

By his teens, Campbell was a budding rocker under the swoon of the punk revolution, catching every band that played nearby Dayton, Ohio. Inspired by an offer from Alejandro Escovedo to open a show for his band The True Believers the next time they came through town, Troy and his brother Mike started a band that just did that. They then went on as The Highwaymen to win a local battle of the bands, release an EP, and open for a number of touring acts before relocating to Austin, TX.

There, the group became whole when joined by guitarist, singer and songwriter Scrappy Jud Newcomb. Changing their name to Loose Diamonds (to avoid confusion with the superstar country quartet called The Highwaymen), the band won the NAIRD Indie Album of the Year award with 1993's Burning Daylight and placed 1995's Fresco Fiasco among the year's 10 undiscovered gems in The New York Times. Despite the awards, critical favor and hometown support in Austin, the many years of touring the U.S. and Europe and a series of shaky record deals eventually took their toll and led the group to disband. Campbell then forged on in a determined D.I.Y. fashion, winning more kudos with Man vs. Beast, filling his passport with visa stamps, and even earning a gold record in Denmark for a song he co-wrote with Danish artist Paul Krebs.

On American Breakdown, one can hear where Troy Campbell has been, where he is now, and where he is going. Dubbed a "jewel" by the Austin-American Statesman, the disc features nine stunning new Campbell compositions. It then closes out with his take on Dan Stuart's "Home After Dark" and Troy's solo rendition of Jo Carol Pierce "Ruby" (a favorite number with Loose Diamond fans after the band recorded it for the acclaimed Pierce tribute album, Across The Great Divide, that Campbell co-produced). Joining Campbell are such guests as Eliza Gilkyson, famed Irish singer-songwriter Juliet Turner, and Troy's former Loose Diamonds band mates Jud Newcomb and brother Mike Campbell. The album's compelling allure has already sparked a buzz that has traveled as far as Ireland ("great success," notes Hot Press) and Singapore (hailed as "a masterpiece" in Big O).

Touted by Performing Songwriter as "a truly notable American rock'n'roller, Troy Campbell appreciates the praise, but doesn't let it distract his eye from what he feels is the true prize: genuine communication with listeners. "Wherever I go," says the well-traveled artist, "it seems like somebody connects. And that's all I am looking for - just to connect."