remembering MOTORHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell (1961-2026)

Philip Anthony Campbell (May 7, 1961 - Mar 13, 2026)

Phil Campbell (Wales, U.K.) first notable band was during his time in the British heavy metal band Persian Risk from 1979 to 1984, according to Metal Archives, which also shows that Phil joined Motörhead in 1983. It looks like after he joined Motörhead, both bands went on tour and Phil played with both Persian Risk as the opening band, and then with Motörhead, too. After that, he was only with Motörhead for 31 years until the end in 2015 after the death of Lemmy Kilmister. After Motörhead, he continued on with Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons.

What I want to do at this time is to show a different side of Motörhead with Phil Campbell. Fans know about the fast and furious side of Motörhead, a band that can play punk, heavy metal and thrash, depending on the album, era and specific songs. However, there is another side to their music: the blues. If one collects all the blues songs from their discography, one could easily put two albums together of Motörhead The Blues Band. They always had the blues in their music, starting in the 1970s, and this continued with Phil, too. This is only a handful of examples. This list would be much longer if I listed all the songs that show that the blues was always an element of the Motörhead sound. When Lemmy said that they were not a heavy metal band, that they were a rock and roll band, here was Motörhead trying, throughout the decades, album after album, trying to educate us all on the history of rock and roll music that turned into heavy metal music.

Motörhead - "Just 'Cos You Got the Power" (Eat the Rich single, 1987)

Motörhead - "You Better Run" (March ör Die, 1992)

Motörhead - "Lost in the Ozone" (Bastards, 1993)

Motörhead - "Bad Woman" (Bastards, 1993)

Motörhead - "Don't Let Daddy Kiss Me" (Bastards, 1993)

Motörhead - "Don't Waste Your Time" (Sacrifice, 1995)

Motörhead - "Whorehouse Blues" (Inferno, 2004)

Motörhead - "Christine" (Kiss of Death, 2006)

Motörhead - "Rock 'n' Roll Music" (The Wörld Is Yours, 2011)

Motörhead - "Lost Woman Blues" (Aftershock, 2013)

Motörhead - "Keep Your Powder Dry" (Aftershock, 2013)

Motörhead - "Dust and Glass" (Aftershock, 2013)

Motörhead - "Till the End" (Bad Magic, 2015)