Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

vibraphonist The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from

Teddy Wilson Theodore Shaw Wilson (November 24, 1912 – July 31, 1986) was an American jazz pianist. Described by critic Scott Yanow as "the definitive swing pianist", Wilson had a sophisticated, elegant style. His work was featured on the records of many ...

, Benny Goodman, and

Buddy Rich Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time. Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York ...

, to

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

, and

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

. In 1992, he was inducted into the

Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame The Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame (AJHF) was founded in 1978, and opened a museum on September 18, 1993, with a mission "to foster, encourage, educate, and cultivate a general appreciation of the medium of jazz music as a legitimate, original and dis ...

, and he was awarded the

National Medal of Arts The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and Patronage, patrons of the arts. A prestigious American honor, it is the highest honor given to artists and ar ...

in 1996.

Biography

Early life

Lionel Hampton was born in 1908 in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, and was raised by his mother. Shortly after he was born, he and his mother moved to her hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. He spent his early childhood in

Kenosha Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenosh ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, before he and his family moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, in 1916. As a youth, Hampton was a member of the

Bud Billiken Club The Bud Billiken Club was a social club for African–American youth in Chicago, Illinois, established in 1923, by the ''Chicago Defender'' founder Robert Sengstacke Abbott and its editor, Lucius Harper. The Bud Billiken Club was formed as part of ...

, an alternative to the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...

, which was off-limits because of

racial segregation Racial segregation is the systematic separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Racial segregation can amount to the international crime of apartheid and a crimes against hum ...

. During the 1920s, while still a teenager, Hampton took

xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in ...

lessons from

Jimmy Bertrand Jimmy Bertrand (February 24, 1900 – August 1960) was an American jazz and blues percussionist. Background Bertrand was born in Biloxi, Mississippi, and was active on the Chicago blues and jazz scene of the 1920s. Bertrand recorded with Loui ...

and began to play drums. Hampton was raised

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, and started out playing

fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

and drum at the Holy Rosary Academy near Chicago.

Early career

Lionel Hampton began his career playing drums for the ''

Chicago Defender ''The Chicago Defender'' is a Chicago-based online African-American newspaper. It was founded in 1905 by Robert S. Abbott and was once considered the "most important" newspaper of its kind. Abbott's newspaper reported and campaigned against Jim ...

'' Newsboys' Band (led by Major N. Clark Smith) while still a teenager in Chicago. While he lived in Chicago, Hampton saw Louis Armstrong at the Vendome, recalling that the entire audience went crazy after his first solo. He moved to California in 1927 or 1928, playing drums for the Dixieland Blues-Blowers. He made his recording debut with The Quality Serenaders led by Paul Howard, then left for Culver City and drummed for the

Les Hite Les Hite (February 13, 1903 – February 6, 1962) was an American jazz bandleader. Life and career Born in DuQuoin, Illinois, United States, Hite attended the University of Illinois and played saxophone with family members in a band in the 1920s. ...

band at Sebastian's Cotton Club. One of his trademarks as a drummer was his ability to do stunts with multiple pairs of sticks such as twirling and juggling without missing a beat. During this period, he began practicing on the

vibraphone The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

. In 1930

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

came to California and hired the Les Hite band for performances and recordings. Armstrong was impressed with Hampton's playing after Hampton reproduced Armstrong's solo on the vibraphone and asked him to play behind him like that during vocal choruses. So began his career as a vibraphonist, popularizing the use of the instrument in the process. Invented ten years earlier, the vibraphone is essentially a xylophone with metal bars, a

sustain pedal A sustain pedal or sustaining pedal (also called damper pedal, loud pedal, or open pedal) is the most commonly used pedal in a modern piano. It is typically the rightmost of two or three pedals. When pressed, the sustain pedal "sustains" all ...

, and resonators equipped with electric-powered fans that add

tremolo In music, ''tremolo'' (), or ''tremolando'' (), is a trembling effect. There are two types of tremolo. The first is a rapid reiteration: * Of a single Musical note, note, particularly used on String instrument#Bowing, bowed string instrument ...

. While working with the Les Hite band, Hampton also occasionally did some performing with

Nat Shilkret Nathaniel Shilkret (December 25, 1889 – February 18, 1982) was an American musician, composer, conductor and musical director. Early career Shilkret (originally named Natan Schüldkraut) was born in New York City, United States, to parents ...

and his orchestra. During the early 1930s, he studied music at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

. In 1934 he led his own orchestra, and then appeared in the

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

film '' Pennies From Heaven'' (1936) alongside Louis Armstrong (wearing a mask in a scene while playing drums).

With Benny Goodman

Also in November 1936, the Benny Goodman Orchestra came to Los Angeles to play the

Palomar Ballroom The Palomar Ballroom, built in 1925, was a famous ballroom in Los Angeles, California, in the United States. It was destroyed by a fire on October 2, 1939. Originally named the El Patio Ballroom and located on the east side of Vermont Avenue betw ...

. When John Hammond brought Goodman to see Hampton perform, Goodman invited him to join his trio, which soon became the Benny Goodman Quartet with pianist

and drummer

Gene Krupa Eugene Bertram Krupa (January 15, 1909 – October 16, 1973), known as Gene Krupa, was an American jazz drummer, bandleader and composer who performed with energy and showmanship. His drum solo on Benny Goodman's 1937 recording of " Sing, Sing, ...

completing the lineup. The Trio and Quartet were among the first racially integrated jazz groups to perform before audiences, and were a leading small group of the day. During his nearly four years with Goodman, Hampton became a household name in the swing world, not only adding fire, color and inventive ideas to Goodman's quartet and occasionally filling in on drums with the big band, but staying long enough to be one of the stars at Goodman's famed Carnegie Hall concert in 1938, and to be part of the clarinetist's sextet with the pioneering electric guitarist

Charlie Christian Charles Henry Christian (July 29, 1916 – March 2, 1942) was an American swing and jazz guitarist. Christian was an important early performer on the electric guitar and a key figure in the development of bebop and cool jazz. He gained nat ...

. At the same time, Hampton led a series of mostly superb all-star sessions for the Victor label.

Lionel Hampton Orchestra

While Hampton worked for Goodman in New York, he recorded with several different small groups known as the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, as well as assorted small groups within the Goodman band. In 1940 Hampton left the Goodman organization under amicable circumstances to form his own

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

. Hampton's orchestra developed a high profile during the 1940s and early 1950s. His third recording with them in 1942 produced the version of "

Flying Home "Flying Home" is a jazz and jump blues composition written by Benny Goodman and Lionel Hampton with lyrics by Sid Robin. Background It was reportedly developed while Hampton was in the Benny Goodman band. A gig in 1939 required the band to f ...

", featuring a solo by

Illinois Jacquet Jean-Baptiste "Illinois" Jacquet (October 30, 1922 – July 22, 2004) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, best remembered for his solo on " Flying Home", critically recognized as the first R&B saxophone solo. Although he was a pioneer of ...

that anticipated rhythm & blues. Although Hampton first recorded "Flying Home" under his own name with a small group in 1940 for Victor, the best known version is the big band version recorded for Decca on May 26, 1942, in a new arrangement by Hampton's pianist

Milt Buckner Milton Brent Buckner (July 10, 1915 – July 27, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and organist, who in the early 1950s popularized the Hammond organ.Arwulf ArwulfMilt Buckner biography All Music. He pioneered the parallel chords styleFeathe ...

. The 78 RPM disc became successful enough for Hampton to record "Flyin' Home #2" in 1944, this time a feature for Arnett Cobb. The song went on to become the theme song for all three men. Guitarist Billy Mackel first joined Hampton in 1944, and would perform and record with him almost continuously through to the late 1970s. In 1947, Hamp performed " Stardust" at a "Just Jazz" concert for producer

Gene Norman GNP Crescendo Record Co. is an independent record label founded in 1954 by Gene Norman ''(né'' Eugene Abraham Nabatoff; 1922–2015). It started as a producer of jazz, then expanded into many other genres, including comedy, rock, and ''Star Trek' ...

, also featuring

Charlie Shavers Charles James Shavers (August 3, 1920 – July 8, 1971) was an American jazz trumpeter who played with Dizzy Gillespie, Nat King Cole, Roy Eldridge, Johnny Dodds, Jimmie Noone, Sidney Bechet, Midge Williams, Tommy Dorsey, and Billie Holiday ...

and

Slam Stewart Leroy Eliot "Slam" Stewart (September 21, 1914December 10, 1987) was an American jazz double bass player, whose trademark style was his ability to bow the bass (arco) and simultaneously hum or sing an octave higher. He was a violinist before swi ...

; the recording was issued by Decca. Later, Norman's GNP Crescendo label issued the remaining tracks from the concert. Hampton was a featured artist at numerous Cavalcade of Jazz concerts held at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...

in Los Angeles and produced by

Leon Hefflin Sr. Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to: Places Europe * León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León * Province of León, Spain * Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again fro ...

His first performance was at the second Cavalcade of Jazz concert held on October 12, 1946, and also featured

Jack McVea John Vivian McVea (November 5, 1914 – December 27, 2000) was an American swing, blues, and rhythm and blues woodwind player and bandleader. He played clarinet and tenor and baritone saxophone. Career Born in Los Angeles, California, his fat ...

, Slim Gaillard,

T-Bone Walker Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker (May 28, 1910 – March 16, 1975) was an American blues musician, composer, songwriter and bandleader, who was a pioneer and innovator of the jump blues, West Coast blues, and electric blues sounds. In 2018 ''R ...

, the

Honeydrippers The Honeydrippers were an English rock and roll band of the 1980s, deriving their name from Roosevelt Sykes, an American blues singer also known as "Honeydripper". Former Led Zeppelin lead singer Robert Plant formed the group in 1981 to sati ...

and

. The fifth Cavalcade of Jazz concert was held in two locations,

in Los Angeles and Lane Field in San Diego, July 10, 1949, and September 3, 1949, respectively. Betty Carter,

Jimmy Witherspoon James Witherspoon (August 8, 1920 – September 18, 1997) was an American jump blues singer. Early life, family and education Witherspoon was born in Gurdon, Arkansas. His father was a railroad worker who sang in local choirs, and his mot ...

, Buddy Banks, Smiley Turner and Big Jay McNeely also played with Hampton. It was at the sixth Cavalcade of Jazz, June 25, 1950, that Hampton's playing precipitated the closest thing to a riot in the show's eventful history. Lionel and his band paraded around the ball park's infield playing ‘Flying High’. The huge crowd, around 14,000, went berserk, tossed cushions, coats, hats, programs, and just about anything else they could lay hands on and swarmed on the field.

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the 1950s songs". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performe ...

Roy Milton Roy Bunny Milton (July 31, 1907 – September 18, 1983) was an American R&B and jump blues singer, drummer and bandleader. Career Milton's grandmother was Chickasaw. He was born in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, and grew up on an Indian reservation bef ...

, PeeWee Crayton, Lillie Greenwood, Tiny Davis and Her Hell Divers were also featured. His final Cavalcade of Jazz concert held on July 24, 1955 (Eleventh) also featured Big Jay McNeely, The Medallions,

The Penguins ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

and James Moody and his Orchestra. From the mid-1940s until the early 1950s, Hampton led a lively rhythm & blues band whose

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

recordings included numerous young performers who later had significant careers. They included bassist

, saxophonist

Johnny Griffin John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...

, guitarist

Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for an unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a dist ...

, vocalist

, and vocal stylist "Little" Jimmy Scott. Other noteworthy band members were trumpeters Dizzy Gillespie, Cat Anderson, Kenny Dorham, and

Snooky Young Eugene Edward "Snooky" Young (February 3, 1919 – May 11, 2011) was an American jazz trumpeter. He was known for his mastery of the plunger mute, with which he was able to create a wide range of sounds. Biography Young was lead trumpeter of t ...

, trombonist

Jimmy Cleveland James Milton Cleveland (May 3, 1926 – August 23, 2008) was an American jazz trombonist born in Wartrace, Tennessee.

, and saxophonists

Jerome Richardson Jerome Richardson (November 15, 1920 – June 23, 2000) was an American jazz musician, tenor saxophonist, and flute player, who also played soprano sax, alto sax, baritone sax, clarinet, bass clarinet, alto flute and piccolo. He played with C ...

and Curtis Lowe. The Hampton orchestra that toured Europe in 1953 included Clifford Brown,

Gigi Gryce Gigi Gryce (born George General Grice Jr.; November 28, 1925 – March 14, 1983), later Basheer Qusim, was an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, clarinetist, composer, arranger, and educator. While his performing career was relatively short, ...

, Anthony Ortega,

Monk Montgomery William Howard "Monk" Montgomery (October 10, 1921 – May 20, 1982) was an American jazz bassist. He was a pioneer of the electric bass guitar and possibly the first to be recorded playing the instrument when he participated in a 1953 session re ...

George Wallington George Wallington (October 27, 1924 – February 15, 1993) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Early life Wallington was born Giacinto Figlia (some sources give "Giorgio") in Sicily, and then moved to the United States (New York) with ...

, Art Farmer,

, and singer

Annie Ross Annabelle McCauley Allan Short (25 July 193021 July 2020), known professionally as Annie Ross, was a British-American singer and actress, best known as a member of the jazz vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross. Early life Ross was born in Surr ...

. Hampton continued to record with small groups and jam sessions during the 1940s and 1950s, with

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards ...

Buddy DeFranco Boniface Ferdinand Leonard "Buddy" DeFranco (February 17, 1923 – December 24, 2014) was an Italian-American jazz clarinetist. In addition to his work as a bandleader, DeFranco led the Glenn Miller Orchestra for almost a decade in the 1960s and ...

, and others. In 1955, while in California working on ''

The Benny Goodman Story Dick Winslow ''The Benny Goodman Story'' is a biographical film starring Steve Allen and Donna Reed, directed by Valentine Davies, and released by Universal-International in 1956. The film was intended as a follow-up to Universal's 1954 hit '' Th ...

'' he recorded with Stan Getz and made two albums with

Art Tatum Arthur Tatum Jr. (, October 13, 1909 – November 5, 1956) was an American jazz pianist who is widely regarded as one of the greatest in his field. From early in his career, Tatum's technical ability was regarded by fellow musicians as extraord ...

for

Norman Granz Norman Granz (August 6, 1918 – November 22, 2001) was an American jazz record producer and concert promoter. He founded the record labels Clef, Norgran, Down Home, Verve, and Pablo. Granz was acknowledged as "the most successful impres ...

as well as with his own big band. Hampton performed with Louis Armstrong and Italian singer

Lara Saint Paul Silvana Savorelli (30 April 1945 – 8 May 2018), professionally known as Lara Saint Paul, was an Italian Eritrean singer, entertainer, impresario and record producer. Sanremo Music Festival Saint Paul's first public performance was in 1962 at ...

at the 1968

Sanremo Music Festival The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival () and commonly known as just (), is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria. It is the longest-running annua ...

in Italy. The performance created a sensation with Italian audiences, as it broke into a real jazz session. That same year, Hampton received a Papal Medal from

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

Later career

During the 1960s, Hampton's groups were in decline; he was still performing what had succeeded for him earlier in his career. He did not fare much better in the 1970s, though he recorded actively for his

Who's Who in Jazz Who's Who in Jazz was a record label based in New York City, formed by Lionel Hampton in 1977 or 1978, and distributed by the Gillette Madison Company (GEMCON). It specialized in jazz albums and later CDs and released a half dozen recordings of ...

record label, which he founded in 1977/1978. Beginning in February 1984, Hampton and his band played at the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho. It is the state's land-grant and primary research university,, and the lead university in the Idaho Space Grant Consortium. The Universit ...

's annual jazz festival, which was renamed the

Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival The Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival is an annual jazz festival, the largest west of the Mississippi River, that takes place in February on the campus of the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho. In 2007, the festival was awarded the National Medal ...

the following year. In 1987, the UI's school of music was renamed for Hampton, the first university music school named for a jazz musician. During much of the 1980s, some notable sidemen in Hampton's orchestra included

Thomas Chapin Thomas Chapin (March 9, 1957 – February 13, 1998) was an American composer and saxophonist/multi-instrumentalist. Though primarily an alto saxophonist, he also played sopranino, as well as soprano, tenor, baritone saxes and flute. Ma ...

, Paul Jeffrey,

Frankie Dunlop Francis Dunlop (December 6, 1928 – July 7, 2014) was an American jazz drummer. Dunlop, born in Buffalo, New York, grew up in a musical family and began playing guitar at age nine and drums at ten. He was playing professionally by age 16 and re ...

Arvell Shaw Arvell Shaw (September 15, 1923 – December 5, 2002) was an American jazz double-bassist, best known for his work with Louis Armstrong. Life and career He was born on September 15, 1923 in St. Louis, Missouri. Shaw learned to play tuba in high ...

John Colianni John Colianni (born 1966) is an American jazz pianist. Early life The son of Patricia Colaianni and journalist James F. Colaianni, John Colianni was born in Paterson, New Jersey on January 7, 1966 and grew up in Maryland. Duke Ellington perfo ...

, Oliver Jackson and George Duvivier. Hampton remained active until a stroke in Paris in 1991 led to a collapse on stage. That incident, combined with years of chronic arthritis, forced him to cut back drastically on performances. However, he did play at the

Smithsonian National Museum of American History The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...

in 2001 shortly before his death. Hampton died from

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City, on August 31, 2002. He was interred at the Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York. His funeral was held on September 7, 2002, and featured a performance by

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Award ...

and David Ostwald's Gully Low Jazz Band at

Riverside Church Riverside Church is an interdenominational church in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, on the block bounded by Riverside Drive, Claremont Avenue, 120th Street and 122nd Street near Columbia University's Mornin ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

; the procession began at The Cotton Club in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

Personal life

On November 11, 1936, in Yuma, Arizona, Lionel Hampton married Gladys Riddle (1913–1971). Gladys was Lionel's business manager throughout much of his career. Many musicians recall that Lionel ran the music and Gladys ran the business. Around 1945 or 1946, he handed a pair of vibraphone mallets to then-five year old (later jazz musician) Roy Ayers. During the 1950s he had a strong interest in Judaism and raised money for Israel. In 1953 he composed a King David suite (music), suite and performed it in Israel with the Boston Pops Orchestra. Later in life Hampton became a Christian Science, Christian Scientist. Hampton was also a Thirty-third degree Prince Hall Freemasonry, Prince Hall freemasonry, freemason. In January 1997, his apartment caught fire and destroyed his awards and belongings; Hampton escaped uninjured.

Charity

Hampton was deeply involved in the construction of various public housing projects, and founded the Lionel Hampton Development Corporation. Construction began with the Lionel Hampton Houses in Harlem, New York, in the 1960s, with the help of then Republican Party (United States), Republican governor Nelson Rockefeller. Hampton's wife, Gladys Hampton, also was involved in construction of a housing project in her name, the Gladys Hampton Houses. Gladys died in 1971. In the 1980s, Hampton built another housing project called Hampton Hills in Newark, New Jersey. Hampton was a staunch Republican Party (United States), Republican and served as a delegate to several Republican National Conventions. He served as vice-chairman of the New York Republican County Committee for some years and also was a member of the New York City Human Rights Commission. He served as Director of Special Events for Gerald Ford's 1976 re-election campaign. Hampton donated almost $300,000 to Republican campaigns and committees throughout his lifetime. However, in 1996 he endorsed Clinton/Gore, saying that the Republican party, which he had joined because it was the party of Lincoln, no longer represented moderates like himself.

Awards

* 2021 – Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (posthumous) * 2001 – Harlem Jazz and Music Festival's Legend Award * 1996 – International Jazz Hall of Fame Induction and Award (performed "Flying Home" with Illinois Jacquet and the Count Basie Orchestra) * 1996 –

presented by President Bill Clinton * 1995 – Honorary Commissioner of Civil Rights by George Pataki * 1995 – Honorary Doctorate from the New England Conservatory of Music * 1993 – Honorary Doctorate from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore * 1992 – Inducted into the

* 1992 – "Contributions To The Cultural Life of the Nation" award from John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts * 1988 – The National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Fellowship * 1988 – The National Association of Jazz Educators Hall of Fame Award * 1987 – Honorary Doctorate of Humanities from the

– UI's School of Music renamed "Lionel Hampton School of Music" * 1987 – The Roy Wilkins Memorial Award from the NAACP * 1986 – The "One of a Kind" Award from Broadcast Music, Inc. * 1984 – Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, Jazz Hall of Fame Award from the Institute of Jazz Studies * 1984 – Honorary Doctorate of Music from University of Southern California, USC * 1983 – The International Film and Television Festival of New York City Award * 1983 – Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the State University of New York * 1982 – Hollywood Walk of Fame Star * 1981 – Honorary Doctorate of Humanities from Glassboro State College * 1979 – Honorary Doctorate of Music from Howard University * 1978 – Bronze Medallion (New York City award), Bronze Medallion from New York City * 1976 – Honorary Doctorate of Humanities from Daniel Hale Williams University * 1975 – Honorary Doctorate of Music from Xavier University of Louisiana * 1974 – Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from Pepperdine University * 1968 – Papal Medal from

* 1966 – Handel Medallion * 1957 – American Goodwill Ambassador by President Dwight D. Eisenhower * 1954 – Israel's Statehood Award

Discography

Compilations & original issues

Other compilations

The Chronological ... Classics series

note: every recording by Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra is included in this 12 volume series from the CLASSICS reissue label ... * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1937–1938'' (#524) - RCA Victor recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1938–1939'' (#534) - RCA Victor recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1939–1940'' (#562) - RCA Victor recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1940–1941'' (#624) - RCA Victor recordings; first Decca session * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1942–1944'' (#803) - Decca recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1945–1946'' (#922) - Decca recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1946'' (#946) - Decca recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1947'' (#994) - Decca recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1949–1950'' (#1161) - Decca recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1950'' (#1193) - Decca recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1950–1951'' (#1262) - last two Decca sessions; MGM recordings * ''The Chronological Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra 1951–1953'' (#1429) - includes Hamp's first Norman Granz-produced quartet session (September 2, 1953) with Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, and Buddy Rich.

Glad-Hamp Records

* GHLP-1001 (1961) ''The Many Sides Of Hamp'' * GHLP-3050 (1962) ''All That Twist'n Jazz'' * GHLP-1003 (1962) ''The Exciting Hamp In Europe'' * GHLP-1004 (1963) ''Bossa Nova Jazz'' * GHLP-1005 (1963) ''Recorded Live On Tour'' * GHLP-1006 (1964) ''Hamp In Japan/Live'' * GHLP-1007 (1965) ''East Meets West (Introducing Miyoko Hoshino)'' * GHLP-1009 (1965) ''A Taste Of Hamp'' * GHS-1011 (1967) ''Hamp Stamps'' [includes "Greasy Greens"] * GHS-1012 (1966) ''Hamp's Portrait Of A Woman'' * GHS-1020 (1979) ''Hamp's Big Band Live!'' * GHS-1021 (1980) ''Chameleon'' * GHS-1022 (1982) ''Outrageous'' * GHS-1023 (1983) ''Live In Japan'' * GHS-1024 (1984) ''Ambassador At Large'' * GHS-1025 (1985) ''Sentimental Journey (Featuring Sylvia Bennett)'' * GHS-1026 (1988) ''One Of A Kind'' * GHS-1027 (1987) ''Midnight Blues'' - with Dexter Gordon * GHCD-1028 (1990) ''Cookin' In The Kitchen''

As sideman

;With Frank Sinatra * ''L.A. Is My Lady'' (Qwest/Warner Bros. Records, Warner Bros., 1984)

Filmography

Hampton appeared as himself in the films listed below.

References

External links

*
Lionel Hampton
at Drummersworld *
Lionel Hampton: His Life and Legacy
at

Lionel Hampton Library Collection
part of th
International Jazz Collections
at the University of Idaho#UI Library, University of Idaho Library
Christopher Popa, "Lionel Hampton: Music Was His Fountain of Youth," Big Band Library

Photos
at Jazzhouse.org
Lionel Hampton
interview on BBC Radio 4 ''Desert Island Discs'', September 17, 1983 *
Lionel Hampton Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (1989)
Lionel Hampton recordings
at the Discography of American Historical Recordings. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hampton, Lionel 1908 births 2002 deaths African-American jazz musicians American Prince Hall Freemasons Alabama Republicans American Christian Scientists American jazz bandleaders American jazz vibraphonists Big band bandleaders Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York) Kennedy Center honorees Kentucky Republicans Musicians from Louisville, Kentucky New York blues musicians New York (state) Republicans Musicians from Birmingham, Alabama Swing bandleaders Timeless Records artists United States National Medal of Arts recipients USC Thornton School of Music alumni American jazz drummers Audio Fidelity Records artists Jazz musicians from Kentucky 20th-century American drummers American male drummers Converts to Christian Science from Roman Catholicism Jazz musicians from Alabama American male jazz musicians Bluebird Records artists Black & Blue Records artists 20th-century American male musicians African-American Catholics Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Jazz vibraphonists