Lionel Hampton was
the first jazz vibraphonist and was one of the jazz giants beginning in
the mid-'30s. He has achieved the difficult feat of being musically
open-minded (even recording "Giant Steps") without changing his basic
swing style. Hamp started out as a drummer, playing with the Chicago
Defender Newsboys' Band as a youth. His original idol was Jimmy
Bertrand, a '20s drummer who occasionally played xylophone. Hampton
played on the West Coast with such groups as Curtis Mosby's Blue
Blowers, Reb Spikes, and Paul Howard's Quality Serenaders (with whom he
made his recording debut in 1929) before joining Les Hite's band, which
for a period accompanied Louis Armstrong.At a recording session in 1930, a vibraphone happened to be in the studio, and Armstrong asked Hampton (who had practiced on one previously) if he could play a little bit behind him and on "Memories of You" and "Shine"; Hamp became the first jazz improviser to record on vibes.
It would be another six years before he found fame. Lionel Hampton, after leaving Hite, had his own band in Los Angeles' Paradise Cafe, until one night in 1936 when Benny Goodman came into the club and discovered him. Soon, Hampton recorded with B.G., Teddy Wilson, and Gene Krupa as the Benny Goodman Quartet, and six weeks later he officially joined Goodman. An exciting soloist whose enthusiasm even caused B.G. to smile, Hampton became one of the stars of his organization, appearing in films with Goodman, at the famous 1938 Carnegie Hall concert, and nightly on the radio. In 1937, he started recording regularly as a leader for Victor with specially assembled all-star groups that formed a who's who of swing; all of these timeless performances (1937-1941) were reissued by Bluebird on a six-LP set, although in piecemeal fashion on CD...
Personnel:
Lionel Hampton, George Koenig, Vido Musso, Jess Stacy, Allen Reuss, Harry Goodman, Gene Krupa, Cootie Williams, Lawrence Brown, Mezz Mezzrow, Johnny Hodges, Cozy Cole, Buster Bailey, John Kirby, Jonah Jones, Eddie Barefield, Billy Taylor, Harry James, Benny Carter, Joe Jones, Budd Johnson, Russell Procope, Milt Hinton, Chu Berry, Ziggy Elman, Clayde Hart, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, Charlie Christian, Earl Bostic, Edmund Hall, Nat "King" Cole, Oscar Moore, Wesley Prince, etc.
Recorded in New York, Hollywood & Chicago ; between February 8, 1937 & July 17, 1940.
CD1
01. My Last Affair (Johnson) 2:51
02. Jivin' The Vibes (Hampton) 2:23
03. The Mood That I'm In (Silver, Sherman) 2:43
04. Hampton Stomp (Hampton) 3:11
05. Buzzin' Around With Bee (Hancock) 3:07
06. Whoa Babe (Clinton) 2:55
07. Stompology (Hampton) 3:02
08. On The Sunny Side Of The Street (McHugh, Fields) 3:16
09. Rhythm Rhythm (I Got Rhythm) (Gershwin, Gershwin) 2:53
10. China Stomp (Chinatown my Chinatown) (Schwartz, Jerome) 2:49
11. I Know That You Know (Youmans, Caldwell) 2:58
12. I'm Confessin' (That I Love You) (Reynolds, Daugherty, Neiburg) 3:29
13. Drum Stomp (Crazy Rhythm) (Fisher) 3:10
14. Piano Stomp (Shine) (Dabney, Mack, Brown) 2:57
15. I Surrender Dear (Clifford, Barris) 3:24
16. The Object Of My Affection (Tomlin, Poe, Grier) 3:12
17. Judy (Carmichael, Lerner) 3:06
18. Baby Won't You Please Come Home (Warfield, Williams) 2:57
19. Everybody Loves My Baby (Palmer, Williams) 2:52
20. After You've Gone (Layton, Creamer) 3:07
21. I Just Couldn't Take It Baby (Holiner, Nichols) 3:09
22. You're My Ideal (Waller, Williams) 3:18
23. The Sun Will Shine Tonight (Rose, Fetter, Lehat) 3:14
24. Ring Dem Bells (Ellington, Mills) 3:22
CD2
01. Don't Be That Way (Goodman, Sampson, Parish) 2:35
02. In The Mood For Swing (Carter, Williams) 2:49
03. Shoe Shiner's Drag (Roll Morton) 3:24
04. Any Time At All (Dorsey, Van Heusen) 3:19
05. Muskrat Ramble (Armstrong, Gilbert, Ory) 3:22
06. Down Home Jump (Hampton) 3:17
07. Rock Hill Special (Hampton) 2:51
08. Fiddle Tiddle (Goodman, Hampton) 3:24
09. I Can Give You Love (Hampton, Evans) 2:51
10. High Society (Piron, Williams) 3:18
11. It Don't Mean A Thing (Ellington, Mills) 3:16
12. Johnny Get Your Horn And Blow It (Hathaway, Hirsch, Hampton) 3:13
13. Sweethearts On Parade (Lombardo, Newman) 3:03
14. Shufflin' At The Hollywood (Hampton, Reuss) 3:06
15. Dension Swing (Hampton) 3:17
16. Wizzin' The Wizz (Hampton) 2:26
17. If It's Good (Hirsch, Marks) 2:54
18. Stand By For Further Announcement (Brown, Stept, Tobias) 2:58
19. Ain'cha Comin' Home (Bernardi, Hampton, Hathaway) 3:19
20. Big Wig In The Wignam (Katz, Young) 2:32
21. Memories of You (Blake, Razaf) 3:16
22. The Jumpin' Jive (Calloway, Froeba, Palmer) 3:17
23. Twelfth Street Rag (Bowman, Razaf) 3:11
24. When Lights Are Low (Carter, Williams) 2:13
CD3
01. One Sweet Letter from You (Warren, Clare, Brown) 3:21
02. Hot Mallets (Hampton) 2:16
03. Early Session Hop (Wilson, Harding) 2:41
04. I'm On My Way From You (Hampton, Burley) 3:11
05. Haven't Nameds It Yet (Hampton, Christian) 3:02
06. The Heebie Jeebies (Atkins, Hampton) 2:44
07. The Munson Street Breakdown (Hampton) 3:20
08. I've Found A New Baby (Palmer, Williams) 2:55
09. I Can't Get Started (Duke, Gershwin) 2:55
10. Four Or Five Times (Gay) 2:53
11. Gin For Christmas (Hampton) 2:33
12. Dinah (Akst, Young, Lewis) 2:49
13. My Buddy (Mondello) 2:48
14. Singin' The Blues Till My Daddy Comes Home () 2:57
15. Shades Of Jade (Mondello) 3:29
16. Till Tom Special (Goodman, Hampton) 3:25
17. Flying Home (Goodman, Hampton) 2:59
18. Save It Pretty Mama (Davis, Denniker, Redman) 3:25
19. Tempo And Swing (Hampton) 3:25
20. House Of Morgan (Hampton) 3:13
21. I'd Be Lost Without You (Donaldson, Forrest, Wright) 3:01
22. Central Avenue Breakdown (Hampton) 3:07
23. Jack The Bellboy (Hampton) 2:54
24. Dough-rey-mi (Cole, Hampton, Southern) 3:07
