Guitarist Phil Campbell, best known for his three decades in the hard rock band Motörhead, has died after what his family described as "a complex major operation."
Campbell, who was 64, in 1984 joined Motörhead, a legendary band founded by the late Lemmy Kilmister in 1975. Campbell would go on to be the longest serving band-member besides Kilmister, who died in 2015.
"It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved father, Philip Anthony Campbell, who passed away peacefully last night following a long and courageous battle in intensive care after a complex major operation," said a post on the social media accounts for his band Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons.
Born in Pontypridd, Wales, Campbell founded metal band Persian Risk in 1979 before joining Motörhead. He and another guitarist Würzel (birth name Michael Burston) joined the band in 1984 to replace the departing Brian Robertson, according to Allmusic.com.
The first Motörhead album Campbell appeared on was 1986's "Orgasmatron" and he would go on to record a total of 16 studio albums with the group, before it disbanded following Kilmister's 2015 death. Riffs Campbell contributed appear on songs such as "Deaf Forever," "Eat the Rich," and "Born to Raise Hell," noted Rolling Stone.
A good sense of humor helped him become Motörhead's longest-tenured guitarist, Campbell told Guitar World in 2020.
"The camaraderie was very important. We believed in each other. We wrote the music for ourselves, we didn't write for fans or record companies. It was all music that got us off, it floated our boat and that's what made it all fun," Campbell said. "Regardless of all the other things going on, we could pick up our instruments, crank it up and be away in another world. None of us were qualified to do anything else, anyway, so it definitely helped!"
Post-Motörhead, Campbell formed Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons with vocalist Neil Starr and his sons on guitar, bass and drums, according to Guitar World. That band recorded and toured for years, according to a post on the official Motörhead social platforms.
"Phil was a wonderful guitarist, writer, performer, and musician who had Motörhead in his veins. He always led with his gift of guitar and carried a great sense of humour but most of all Phil led with his heart. You could not be around him without a chuckle or twenty because quite simply Phil loved life and lived it with great joy," the band's account said. "Much love and RIP Phil. The world has just lost an enormous beam of light and we are devastated."
Drummer Mikkey Dee, who joined Motörhead in 1992 and remained until it disbanded after Kilmister's death, called Campbell, "the funniest guy I have ever known and the best rock guitar player I have ever played with," in an Instagram post.
"His vibe and feel for rock music were outstanding. We wrote 12 studio albums together, and he never stopped surprising me with his extreme talent," Dee wrote. "Most of all, I will miss hanging out with the nicest guy you could ever meet."