Biography
Tony Campelo emerged among the earliest figures in Brazilian rock during the opening years of the 1950s. His career included co-hosting a television program alongside his sister Celly Campelo and appearing on the landmark Jovem Guarda broadcast. While maintaining activity as a vocalist he shifted focus toward production work, introducing acts that included Sérgio Reis, Deny e Dino, and Silvinha. Among his most notable vocal recordings stood “Canário” (Norman Luboff/Marilyn Keith/Alan Berman), “Boogie do Bebê” (J. Parker/Relin, both rendered by Fred Jorge), and “Pertinho do Mar” (Sílvio Pereira de Araújo). His musical path opened in the dance bands of Taubaté SP before he joined Mário Gennari Filho’s ensemble in the 1950s and contributed to that group’s sessions. After Odeon engaged Celly Campelo in 1957 the siblings cut their debut single the following year, with Celly delivering “Handsome Boy” and Tony performing “Forgive Me,” each written by the label’s director Mário Gennari Filho together with Celeste Novais. Celly’s nationwide success “Estúpido Cupido” in 1959 prompted her own program, Crush em Hi-Fi, on São Paulo’s TV Record, which Campelo co-hosted and which proved foundational to the growth of Brazilian rock. That same year he issued his first long-player, Tony Campelo (Odeon). He appeared on screen in Jeca Tatu (1959) and in Mazzaropi’s Zé do Periquito (1960). The Chico Viola trophy came to him in both 1961 and 1962. Faced with a narrow audience for rock in July 1962, Campelo joined other performers in turning toward romantic repertoire and recorded Italian material for Não Te Esqueças de Mim. He traveled through Peru and Paraguay in 1963 and 1964. A notable single arrived in 1964 with “Uma Lágrima no Rosto,” Fred Jorge’s adaptation of “Una Lacrima Sul Viso” (Bobby Solo). Production duties began for him the next year, coinciding with the launch of the historic Jovem Guarda television program on which he appeared from the first episode. In 1966 he oversaw sessions for the duo Deny e Dino, for Suzy Darlen, and for Sérgio Reis, who entered as a Jovem Guarda artist yet retained Campelo’s production services for more than twenty-five years. During the 1990s Campelo produced multiple albums by the Jet Blacks.