Jobriath[1] (born Bruce Wayne Campbell, December 14, 1946 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - August 3, 1983), was a rock singer from 1973 to 1974.
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Jobriath Boone was signed to Elektra Records for a reported $500,000, which was allegedly the most lucrative recording contract of its time[citation needed]. His manager, Jerry Brandt, organized a huge marketing campaign, which included full-length posters on buses, full-page ads in magazines and a 43’ by 41’ billboard in Times Square, featuring a nude Jobriath, made to resemble the remains of a ancient, Roman statue.
Jobriath has been credited[citation needed] as the first openly gay rock singer to be signed to a major record label and become famous internationally. Despite extensive marketing, his first, self-titled album sold poorly. He was often compared with David Bowie, who was relatively new and used similar themes in much of his publicity. However, Jobriath’s tour, which had been heavily promoted, was canceled.
His second LP, Creatures of the Street, garnered even less attention. The Glam Rock period was in decline, soon to be succeeded by a new generation of musicians that came to be known, collectively, as “Punk”. After a brief tour of America, Jobriath lost his recording contract and dissolved his relationship with his manager. Over the next decade, his reputation suffered, not only because of his failure to reach a wide audience, but due to being ridiculed repeatedly in the press by his then ex-manager with whom he had a ten year contract that prevented him from continuing to publish music under the name Jobriath.[citation needed].
During this time, Jobriath sought to distance himself from his solo career. He moved to the Chelsea Hotel, in New York, where he lived in a small, pyramidal penthouse, atop the roof of the building. After a period of rest, he began using a pseudonym, Cole Berlin (based on the names of Cole Porter and Irving Berlin), and played cabaret music in local clubs and at parties. He also wrote musicals, one of which was to be produced by Joseph Papp, founder of the Public Theatre, called “Pop Star”, but it was never completed[citation needed].
By the late seventies/early eighties, he became known to a wider audience than he had while he was still performing as Jobriath, especially among musicians. Morrissey, Siouxsie Sioux, Gary Numan, Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys), Joe Elliot (Def Leppard) and Sid Vicious (Sex Pistols) were all fans[citation needed]. Def Leppard did a cover of “Heartbeat” on their 2006 release, “Yeah”.
By the time his contract with Brandt was up, Jobriath was sick with AIDS, which took his life on August 3rd 1983. In November 2004, Morrissey[2] oversaw Jobriath's first CD re-issue, a compilation called "Lonely Planet Boy".
Both studio albums were officially re-released on CD in Japan in late 2007, after being remastered in mini-vinyl replicas. They were issued in the U.S. in standard jewel-box packaging in 2008.
He has also been referenced by the indie-folk band (Okkervil River) on the final song of their 2008 album "The Stand-Ins" entitled "Bruce Wayne Campbell Interviewed on the Roof of the Chelsea Hotel, 1979"
Filmmaker Kieran Turner (24 Nights) is currently shooting a feature documentary about the late singer called "Jobriath A.D."
| Year | Title | Label |
| 1973 | Jobriath | Elektra |
| 1974 | Creatures of the Street | Elektra |
| Year | Title | Label |
| 2004 | Lonely Planet Boy | Sanctuary |
   | Jobriath at Find-A-Grave - Jobriath (1946 - 1983) - Find A Grave Memorial |
| | Jobriath's Allmusic biography - allmusic ((( Jobriath > Overview ))) |
| | Memories of Jobraith at MemoryArchive - Jobriath, ND, by Anonymous - MemoryArchive |
| | Jobriath's Allmusic biography - allmusic ((( Jobriath > Overview ))) |
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