In the late 50s big band jazz was still the hottest ticket around for European audiences and nobody was better at rallying a troupe, or seducing a crowd, than the one-and-only Lionel Hampton. He’d made his name in the 30s, playing with the likes of Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman, before establishing himself as a giant of the genre in the 40’s and taking names like Quincy Jones, Dinah Washington, Charles Mingus and Dizzy Gillespie under his wing. For this pioneering vibraphonist, pianist and composer, there were few noteworthy characters that he didn’t end up influencing.
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