Glen Campbell charms audience

Glen Campbell defied many rules of concert pacing Wednesday night.

And the near-capacity crowd at the Maine Center for the Arts loved him for doing so.

Oh, those rules? Spread out the hits. Fill out the show with new songs, obscure cuts from old albums, and overused covers, so only the most devoted fans could nod knowingly at their less-informed neighbors.

But Campbell, after 50 years as a performer, does what he wants, convention be damned. The audience was there to have fun, and so was he.

The 90-minute show started with Hutchins Concert Hall in darkness, as an orchestral version of “Wichita Lineman” swelled (it must be an affectation left over from his Branson, Mo., days).

Campbell, resplendent in a gold shirt with a black and yellow brocade yoke and black pants, launched into that hit, and then “Gentle on My Mind.” “Try a Little Kindness” and “Country Boy” weren’t long in coming.

Campbell’s only guest for the evening was his daughter Debby, who came on to be his duet partner. They ripped through a medley of duets, his own and others’, including “United We Stand,” “Little Green Apples” and “Jackson.”

Glen Campbell then left the stage, with Debby calling after him, “Thanks for opening, Dad.” She then did a short tribute to leading women of country music.

The 63-year-old Campbell showed his voice was in fine form, even tackling some of the high notes in two Roy Orbison covers, “In Dreams” and “Cryin’.”

His fingers were also still nimble, as they flew across several guitars in frequent solos. Never was this more evident than in his medley of Beach Boys tunes (He was a Beach Boy for two years in the mid-’60s). Campbell and his Goodtime Band did an admirable imitation of surf rockers, performing, among others, “Good Vibrations,” “California Girls” and, after a rough start by Campbell, “I Get Around.”

Campbell seemed genuinely touched by the Orono audience on his first trip to the state in eight years: “Boy, if you could only come to Branson.” His musical director, T.J. Kuenster, chimed in: “Yeah, a lively one.”

The crowd was only reciprocating what they had received from Campbell and company.