It was apparent at an early age that Indiana native Royce Campbell was destined to be a world traveler. When he was four years old Royce's mother remarried a career navy man and Royce spent his childhood residing in such diverse locales as Japan, Barbados, Spain, Philadelphia and South Carolina. "I feel that being exposed to different cultures was influential to my early musical development; for example, when I lived in Barbados I lived next to a hotel that featured a steel band, so I went to sleep every night to the sound of calypso music outside my window."

Although Royce had played guitar since age nine, he didn't become serious about music until age 15 when he became interested in blues and blues-rock guitarists such as Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. "I was living in Philadelphia at the time and I got to hear Clapton and Hendrix in person, which was quite a thrill." When he was 16, Royce purhased a Wes Montgomery LP which spawned his interest in jazz. "I didn't understand what he [Montgomery] was doing musically, but I knew immediately that I wanted to learn more about that style of guitar."

By the time Royce finished high school, he was certain he wanted to pursue a career in music, but he didn't have the means to go to music school. Fortunately, his uncle Carroll DeCamp, a renowned arranger/pianist/guitarist, invited Royce to live with him and study music. "My uncle is a master arranger; he has arranged for Stan Kenton and Les Elghart and is currently arranging for clarinetist Eddie Daniels. In the two years I lived with him he taught me so much about harmony and all facets of music. I guess you could say I went to the University of Carroll DeCamp." In addition to teaching him about music, DeCamp also taught Royce about the professional aspects of the musician's life.

Soon Royce's reputation as a quality musician spread, and in 1973 he was asked to tour with vocalist Marvin Gaye. "Marvin was the first big name artist I had toured with so I was pretty much in awe of the whole situation, being only 21 at the time." Two years later, Royce was hired by a local music contractor to do three concerts with Henry Mancini in Indianapolis. Mancini was so impressed by Royce's abilities that he asked him to become his regular touring guitarist. Royce would remain with Mancini for 19 years until Mancini's death in 1994."It was such a wonderful experience playing with Mancini all those years. He was a kind, generous man and a wonderful musician. I feel that playing his music all those years helped make my composing and improvising more melodic since Mancini was such a master of melody," That Mancini was indeed a good mentor to Royce is obvious not only in his style but also in his prolific CD output.

Royce's first CD, Nighttime Daydreams, was released in 1990 on the Dutch label Timeless Records. Since then Royce has released a total of nine CD's as leader or co-leader. He has also appeared on over thirty recordings as a sideman. In '93 the Japanese label Paddlewheel released a CD Royce produced entitled Project G-5, A Tribute to Wes Montgomery. This CD also featured legendary guitarists Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow, Jimmy Raney, and Cal Collins. "I was very nervous about playing with so many guitarists that I had grown up listening to, however, I was soon put at ease by the fact that they were so friendly and supportive." A year later Evidence Records released this CD in the U.S. and it reached #3 on the national radio charts (Gavin Report).

In '94 Royce produced another CD for Paddlewheel Records called 6x6. This project featured Royce playing two tunes each with guitarists Pat Martino, John Abercrombie, Larry Coryell, Dave Stryker and Bucky Pizzarelli."I enjoy playing all kinds of jazz, so I intentionally chose guitarists with varied styles from Pizzarelli's traditional approach to Abercrombie's more modern concept. I wanted to stretch myself by playing in a ways that would be compatible with their respective styles." This CD has yet to be released in the U.S.

Royce's latest CD, A Tribute to Henry Mancini, on Episode Records, is one of Royce's personal favorites. "It was very emotional for me to record Henry's music since I was so close to him." This CD was the highest rated jazz guitar CD in the country on the Gavin Report for four weeks, reaching #8 overall, and it received much critical acclaim. Royce has performed in Europe and Australia, and has toured Japan nine times as a soloist. "It's good that I love to travel because I sure have done a lot of it."

Royce has performed with many jazz greats such as Mel Torme, James Moody, Nancy Wilson, Sarah Vaughn, Jack McDuff, Ray Brown, Dave Brubeck, Joe Williams, Cleo Laine, Eddie Daniels, Eddie Harris, and Frank Morgan. Although Wes Montgomery is his main influence, critics have also compared him to Charlie Byrd, Cal Collins, Kenny Burrell, Herb Ellis and Jim Hall, which shows how diverse his influences really are. "In addition to guitarists, I would say my style is influenced by melodic horn players such as Dexter Gordon and Chet Baker. What inspires me about Dexter and Chet is that they truly create melodies when they solo, instead of falling into the trap of trying to show off their technique by playing as many notes as possible, which often comes off as egotistical. I feel that they give respect to the notes. That is what I try to achieve when I solo."

One of the realities of the music business is the fact that few jazz musicians can make a living just playing jazz. Royce has performed with nearly every major symphony orchestra, numerous Broadway musicals, and with many popular artists. "When you are a struggling musician and you a have an offer to do a jazz gig for $50 and Henry Mancini offers you a gig for $500 it's not that difficult of a decision which one to do."

Royce was featured on the cover of the European magazine String Jazz in February of '96, and received a feature profile in Jazz Times magazine in Aug.'96. It is apparent that more and more people are becoming aware of Royce Campbell's talents as a world class jazz guitar master.