Singer, performer, television presenter and all around nice guy – is there anything David Campbell can’t do? David returns with his tenth (can you believe it?!) album The Essential – and it’s just that. I’m always curious as to who these kinds of albums are supposed to be marketed at. Are they made for the devoted, loyal DC fans? Surely, whom all would already have all the songs already on CD. Perhaps they’re made for fans who like his stuff but have yet to fork out the cash. So for the thrifty, the tight, the conservative, this album is for you! And what an album it is! With a generous listing of 33 tracks over two CDs, it’s definitely worth getting!
Having seen David perform these hits live, I am glad that a bit of his charisma has made it onto the album. It’s a mix of swing, classic hits and musical numbers – and I love every minute of it! It not only shows David’s range, but also his clear talent – something that often gets overlooked and labelled as only being a morning television host or Jimmy Barnes’ son.
The album has your typical classics, such as “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”, “The Way You Look Tonight”, “Mack The Knife” and “Good Lovin'”. The Ferris Bueller classic “Danke Schoen” shines. (I mention Ferris Bueller mainly because I know for a fact that’s why David wanted to record the song. And that makes me adore him even more. 80s reference for the win! Bueller? Bueller?)
Being a fan of Broadway, I can’t help but love his interruptions of “Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'” (Oklahoma!), “You’ll Never Walk Alone” (Carousel), “All I Care About” (Chicago) and “Luck Be A Lady” (Guys And Dolls), just to name a few. I hope this is a sign of David’s return to the stage soon. It’s nice to see David returning to his roots of where he first began his musical journey. It shows his passion and commitment to the genre, and I hope he records more songs such as these in the near future as well because he does a damn good job at it. Not many people can bring a personality to songs – but David has that ability to bring his cheekiness and charisma to every song, but this is even more present in the Broadway numbers.
Then there’s the catchy “Let’s Go”, which is an 80s-90s hybrid, which is just plain awesome. I also love the added 80s classics John Waite “Missing You” and Dan Hartman’s “I Can Dream About You. If you’re going to reprise the 80s, you might as well make it good 80s songs everyone can sing along to! Just don’t do what I do and sing it to yourself on the train with your earplugs in. Mmkay.
David Campbell’s The Essential is named rightly so. This album won’t disappoint. If anything, it’ll probably make you want to get up and dance more times than not!
Review Score: 8.5 out of 10
The Essential is out now.
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