Cantina was recorded on July 19, 1961, a few months after Glen had left the band. Whether Glen plays on that track is unknown to me. "Panic Button" however is a year older. In the booklet of Wing Ding (1993), a Champs compilation CD issued by Ace Records, music journalist Rob Finnis writes:
Could this be true? The thing is, Glen didn't join The Champs until October 1960, in LA. However, the guitar solos on Suicide/Panic Button distinctly sound like Glen Campbell to me. If it is, it's Glen at his most raw and uninhibited, and I love it. In one of my earlier posts in this thread I wrote that Glen already met The Champs in (probably) late April 1960, when they did a concert in Albquerque, where Glen lived at the time. So could it be that when The Champs returned to Texas and New Mexico in the summer of 1960, that Glen was perhaps invited to join The Champs for one session in the Norman Petty studios? After all, Albuquerque and Clovis are in the same state.When the Champs swung through Texas in the summer of 1960, they detoured to Norman Petty's
famed studio in Clovis, New Mexico where they recorded their next single, the soporiphic "Cocoanut
Grove" on July 6th. The livelier Suicide, from the same session, was eventually re-titled "Panic
Button" and issued on the flipside of "Cantina" in 1961. It's likely that Cole and Campbell are the
guitarists on these sides.
To confirm this theory, I contacted the Norman Petty Studios. However, they could not find any records of a Champs session in their files. I also tried to contact Rob Finnis, but I didn't have any luck with that either. So, I guess it will remain a mystery for now. The only thing left to ask now is.. what do YOU think? Does this sound like early Glen Campbell on guitar, or not?
http://www.glencampbellforums.com/viewt ... f=30&t=285" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (note you have to be logged in to access this link)
PS: In July 1961 "Suicide" was supposedly remastered in LA, and released as "Panic Button". On Spotify you can hear both versions (or you can download the tracks on amazon.com or iTunes). On the original "Suicide" track the guitar solo is very clear. On "Panic Button" the guitar seems to be mixed down a little in favour of the bass and drums.