"
Paul Campbell" is a songwriting pseudonym employed by the original members of the folk group
the Weavers --
Pete Seeger,
Lee Hays,
Fred Hellerman, and
Ronnie Gilbert -- during the first phase of their career, 1948-1953. According to song publishing convention, it was possible to acquire the copyright on an old folk song either by claiming to have "arranged" it or simply by putting down one's own name as the songwriter; often, of course, in what was called "the folk process," performers really did add their own arranging and melodic ideas, as well as new lyrics to create what were arguably distinct compositions only based on the old songs. For example,
the Weavers' hit "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine," credited to
Paul Campbell and Joel Newman, was based on the tune of an old Irish folk song that had been adapted earlier by their friend
Leadbelly (who is the pseudonymous "Joel Newman"), but they wrote an entirely new set of lyrics. The result was a success not only for
the Weavers in their Decca Records recording, but also in a later cover by
Jimmie Rodgers. Other songs credited to
Paul Campbell include "Wimoweh," another
Weavers hit based on a South African tune by Solomon Linda, later adapted into
the Tokens' hit "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by
Hugo Peretti,
Luigi Creatore, and George Weiss (who claimed the song for themselves without reference to Linda, much less "
Paul Campbell").