Anthony Alexander Campbell, better known by his stage name Dobie, is a British

alternative hip hop Alternative hip-hop (also known as alternative rap and experimental hip-hop) is a subgenre of hip-hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising "hip-hop group ...

musician and producer. His nickname came about due to his resemblance to the character Dobie in the TV detective series ''

Starsky and Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a '' Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired ...

''.

Early career

Campbell worked as a skateboarder and photographer in the early 1980s. As a photographer, he photographed the skaters in

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial area on the south bank of the River Thames, in the London Borough of Lambeth, central London, England. The South Bank is not formally defined, but is generally understood to be situated betwe ...

, and the breakdancers in

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

in the early 1980s. His musical career began in 1989, when he began working on NSO Force Organization tracks for the genre-spanning label

Vinyl Solution Vinyl Solution was a record label of the late 1980s and early 1990s, the offshoot of an independent London-based record store based at 231 Portobello Road (now known as Intoxica Records). The label signed many unconventional acts in a number of unc ...

. Soon afterward, he met Soul II Soul, after which Jazzie B recruited him to produce tracks on their debut album '' Club Classics Vol. One''. He has also remixed albums by

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...

DJ Premier Christopher Edward Martin (born March 21, 1966), known professionally as DJ Premier (also known as Preemo), is an American record producer and DJ. He has been frequently lauded as one of hip hop's greatest producers by publications such as '' ...

Massive Attack Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol, England, by Robert Del Naja, Robert "3D" Del Naja, Daddy G, Grant "Daddy G" Marshall, Tricky (musician), Adrian "Tricky" Thaws and Andrew Vowles, Andrew "Mushroom" ...

, and Tricky, as well as the London Posse song "How's Life in London".

Solo career

Campbell's first solo release was an eponymous EP on Howie B.'s Pussyfoot Records in 1995. His first full-length album was ''The Sound of One Hand Clapping'', released in 1998, also on Pussyfoot. It was followed by a remixed version of the album, ''The Sound of One Hand Clapping Version 2.5'', in 2004 on BBE Records. He then released two EPs in 2012: ''Nothing to Fear'' and ''...But Fear Itself'', both on Big Dada Records. His official second album was 2013's '' We Will Not Harm You'', which was also released by Big Dada.

Personal life

Due to Campbell's shy nature,

Gilles Peterson Gilles Jérôme Moehrle MBE (; born 28 September 1964), better known as Gilles Peterson (), is a broadcaster, DJ, record label and festival owner. He is renowned for his genre-defying approach to music with jazz at its core. From this base he ...

has described Campbell as "the Ghost Dog of

Stoke Newington Stoke Newington is an area in the northwest part of the London Borough of Hackney, England. The area is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington (parish), Stoke Newington, the ancient parish. S ...

Discography

Studio albums

*''The Sound of One Hand Clapping'' (Pussyfoot, 1998) *''The Sound of One Hand Clapping Version 2.5'' (BBE, 2004) *'' We Will Not Harm You'' (Big Dada, 2013)

EPs

*''The Dobie E.P.'' (Pussyfoot, 1995) *''Nothing to Fear'' (Big Dada, 2012) *''...But Fear Itself'' (Big Data, 2012)

References

{{Authority control Barely Breaking Even artists Living people Big Dada artists English hip-hop musicians English record producers Alternative hip-hop musicians People from Stoke Newington English electronic musicians Year of birth missing (living people) Black British male rappers British male rappers