Vagabond

Royce Campbell Goes Off the Map with the Vosbein Magee Big Band on Vagabond

Jazz guitarist, composer, and arranger Royce Campbell takes a detour from the expected with Vagabond, a richly layered collaboration with the Vosbein Magee Big Band, a group often called the best big band to come out of Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. Known for their adventurous spirit and razor-sharp execution, the band provides the perfect vehicle for Campbell to explore new territory, blending old-school swing with fresh ideas and cinematic textures.

Vagabond is exactly what the title suggests: a musical road trip, drifting through eras, moods, and genres. Campbell brings his signature touch, tasteful, refined, and full of emotional nuance, to a collection that mixes his own compositions with reimagined classics. These aren’t just covers. They’re bold rewrites, reinterpretations, and sometimes outright reinventions that blur the line between nostalgia and innovation.

There’s an unmistakable retro flavor to the album, and it’s no accident. Campbell spent years working alongside legendary composer Henry Mancini, whose influence can still be heard in the whimsical, polished atmosphere of Campbell’s arrangements. Think The Pink Panther, but grown up, still playful, still stylish, but shaded with depth and introspection. There’s even a wink to Mancini’s famous theme if you listen closely enough.

And when you do listen, especially with eyes closed, you’ll find yourself transported. This is music that evokes an era when jazz was as much about personality as it was about precision, when bands swung hard and made you feel good just to be alive. That energy is alive and well in the Vosbein Magee Big Band, a relatively young outfit (founded in 2015) with an old soul. From the start, their mission has been to dig up and breathe life into rare, underappreciated jazz compositions. Working with Campbell on Vagabond only deepens that commitment, offering a sound that honors tradition while nudging it gently forward.

Campbell is the thread that ties it all together, not just as a soloist, but as an instigator of ideas, a player who knows when to lead and when to blend into the fabric. His guitar work is never flashy for its own sake, but always expressive, always telling a story. He knows how to elevate the ensemble without overshadowing it. That balance, that grace, is what makes this album stand out.

To anyone familiar with Campbell’s resume, this level of artistry won’t come as a surprise. Over the years, he’s played with an astonishing range of jazz luminaries, Pat Martino, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow, Jimmy Raney, Cal Collins. Add to that names like John Abercrombie, Larry Coryell, Mundell Lowe, Charlie Byrd, Gene Bertoncini, Bucky Pizzarelli, it reads like a hall-of-fame lineup of jazz guitarists. He’s toured Europe eight times, Japan ten, and performed alongside some of the most iconic voices in jazz history: Sarah Vaughan, Mel Tormé, James Moody, Nancy Wilson, Dave Brubeck, Ray Brown, Joe Williams, Mose Allison, and many more.

That kind of pedigree brings depth, but also humility. Vagabond doesn’t shout. It invites. It opens doors to a time when arrangements were lush, solos were storytelling, and albums had a sense of place and purpose. It’s rooted in classic big band structure, yes, you’ll recognize the format, but that familiarity is part of the appeal. This isn’t about reinventing the wheel; it’s about reminding us why the wheel rolled so beautifully in the first place.

And within that frame, there’s plenty of room to appreciate the subtleties. Listen for the elegance in Campbell’s phrasing, the warmth in the brass, the unexpected twists in the arrangements. There’s a quiet joy running through the album, a feeling that, just maybe, the spirit of jazz is still out there roaming, curious and free.

Vagabond is the kind of album that invites repeat listens. Jazz fans will find not just comfort in its grooves, but also inspiration, a reminder that even within a well-worn tradition, there are always new paths to wander.

— Thierry De Clemensat, Paris-Move)

When guitarist Royce Campbell was looking over some big band charts of his songs written by his late uncle, Carroll DeCamp, he realized that they were worthy of wide exposure, and that he had enough material to give a concert of this material. At the suggestion of bassist Bob Bowen, bassist with the Vosbein Magee Big Band, Campbell approached the band's leader Terry Vosbein with the material. He agreed and the result is Vagabond (Max Frank Music - 010) with Campbell featured with the 16-piece Vosbein Magee Big Band. The result is an exciting eleven-tune program that is chock full of inspired guitar work by Campbell supported by the band which is tight in its ensemble playing and loaded with excellent soloists. This is a fitting tribute to the arranging talent of DeCamp who wrote charts for the likes of Stan Kenton and Larry Elgart as well as having played piano with Wes Montgomery. It is nice to have a new release that carries on the tradition of modern big band music, and one that engages you from beginning to end.
— Joe Lang, Jersey Jazz

Royce Campbell has an awesome and enviable worldwide reputation as a jazz guitarist. Who knew he could also write this well, and for a big band, no less. All but one of the eleven engaging songs on Vagabond were composed by Campbell, and every one of the impressive charts was written by his cousin and mentor, the late Carroll DeCamp, who had done the same for Stan Kenton and Larry Elgart, among others.

Campbell, who was born in Indiana, now lives in Virginia, the home base of the perhaps surprisingly tight and powerful Vosbein Magee Big Band, co-led by composer and educator Terry Vosbein and trumpeter and educator Chris Magee. Vagabond was recorded by Campbell and the band at a concert held sometime in 2024 somewhere in Virginia. No more need be known, as the outcome would be as handsome and pleasing no matter where or when it took place.

Campbell has a keen ear for an enticing melody, and uses it to good advantage on every number, from the blues-tipped opener, "Peepers," to the buoyant finale, "Viper," and everything in between. By the same token, Campbell plays guitar in a sunny and charming style that is well-nigh irresistible, soloing with ardor and assurance on every number. As for the band, it houses a number of stellar soloists, each of whom delivers the goods whenever his moment to shine arrives.

Trombonist Matt Niess, perhaps the only familiar name in the ensemble owing to his years of service in the U.S. Army Band, solos with Campbell on "Peepers," as do Magee, pianist Matthew Billings and soprano saxophonist Bill Schnepper on the soft-flowing "Gentle Breeze," Billings, bassist Bob Bowen, trombonist Tom Lundberg and alto Greg Moody on the tasteful "A Sharp Blues." The album's lone standard, Johnny Green's fervent "Body and Soul," follows, with Campbell the lone soloist, proving his mastery of a slow and subtle approach.

Latin comes to the fore on the tantalizing "Mambo Puente" (solos by Campbell and Magee), balladry on "Moon Cycle," on which Campbell and Moody's perceptive solos are complemented by flugelhornist Alec Moser. Schnepper's is the second solo voice on the album's upbeat title song, which precedes the colorful "Middle Ground," a second showcase for Campbell's nimble guitar on the gentle "Dancing Waterfall," on which Campbell is escorted by trumpeter Kerry Moffitt. The tempo moderates even further on "Inner Peace," a well-oiled vehicle for Campbell, Schnepper (on flute) and baritone Kyle Greaney, before accelerating one last time on "Viper," a delightful closing number whose perceptive soloists are Campbell and Cotton.

As is true on every number, the Vosbein Magee Band is squarely in the pocket, blowing with power and enthusiasm behind a razor- sharp rhythm section comprised of Billings, Bowen and drummer DeWayne Peters. The overall sound is clear and well-balanced, especially for a concert date, and the band channels a lovely stream of music that both seduces and satisfies the ear. Vagabond is one of the year's foremost big-band recordings, one whose replay value is intrinsic and rewarding.

— Jack Bowers, AllAboutJazz

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/vagabond-royce-campbell-vosbein-magee-big-band-max-frank-music