Track Listing
1. M.C. Chick Niles)Lover Man- Gerald Wiggins Trio - (studio)
2. Land of Dreams- Gerald Wiggins Trio - (studio)
3. So Wonderful-Herry Sweets Edison With Gerald Wiggins Trio - (studio)
4. I Wish I Know- Harry Sweets Edison With Gerald Wiggins Trio - (studio)
5. There Will Never Be Another You- Harry Sweets Edison With Gerald - (studio)
6. It Must Have Been Something I Dreamed Last Night- Erine Andrews - (studio)
7. Everybody's Somebody's Fool- Arnie Andrews With the Gerald Wiggi - (studio)
8. Fire & Rain- Arnie Andrews With Gerald Wiggins Trio - (studio)
9. Don't Toch Me- Arnie Andrews With Gerald Wiggins Trio - (studio)
10. Introduction by: Steve Allen-Blues- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
11. Brand New Baby- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
12. Soul Serenade- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
13. Blues Franklin Flat- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
14. Where or When- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
15. When I Fall in Love- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
16. Hamp's Boggie Woggie- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
17. Night in Tunisia- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
18. Flying Home- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
19. Wonderful World- Lionel Hampton and His Band - (studio)
| Details | | Playing Time: | 68 min. | | Distributor: | CD Baby (distributor) | | Recording Type: | Live | | Recording Mode: | Stereo | | SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes
It is often hard for a jazz giant to accept the idea of retiring from public performing; Lionel Hampton did not want to allow his major stroke to keep him off the stage. This 1998 concert, features several acts on the first disc. Pianist Gerry Wiggins (in a trio with Andy Simpkins and Paul Humphrey) starts things off with two brisk performances, adding trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison for several more, while the trio also backs vocalist Ernie Andrews and tenor saxophonist Teddy Edwards. All are swinging performances. The problems begin with disc two. Emcee Steve Allen's joke about Hampton taking a lot of time to get to the stage falls rather flat, a rather rare lapse in taste for Allen, who was obviously aware of the vibraphonist's health problems. But it is immediately clear as the band begins to roar that the leader is a shell of himself as a performer, as his weak one-handed playing sounds like someone going for a final hurrah. Hampton was rather wealthy so he clearly didn't play this concert for financial concerns, as other ailing jazz musicians had done in the past. But any longtime fan of Hampton wants to remember him at his very best, which he gave until his major illness robbed him of his on-stage youth and virtuoso playing style. ~ Ken Dryden
This two-CD set documenting a 1998 benefit concert is a treat. The first set features the underappreciated pianist Gerry Wiggins (with bassist Andy Simpkins in one of his last recorded performances and drummer Paul Humphrey) in a brief but dazzling set kicking off with a spunky arrangement of "Lover." Trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison, who adds humorous spoken introductions to "I Wish I Knew" and "There Will Never Be Another You," sounds a bit fragile at times on his horn, but his spirit carries him through what was likely his final recording prior to his death. Singer Ernie Andrews and tenor saxophonist Teddy Edwards join the Wiggins trio for the remainder of the first set, of which the ballad "Everybody's Somebody's Fool" (written by Lionel Hampton) is the highlight.Steve Allen introduces Hampton at the start of the second set by joking about the bandleader's slow entrance onto the stage (no doubt due to his earlier stroke). At the age of 89 at the time of the concert and still recuperating from his illness, the vibraphonist obviously doesn't play with the authority that he did just a few years earlier, but his mere presence seems to inspire his bandmembers to swing hard throughout their set. In addition to the expected hits like "Hamp's Boogie Woogie" and "Flying Home," there's a driving take of "A Night in Tunisia" and a richly textured chart of "Where or When." The sign-off features Hampton's reflective vocal on Louis Armstrong's pop hit of the 1960s, "What a Wonderful World." It's obvious that Lionel Hampton, who could have easily quit the road decades earlier due to his success as a bandleader, clearly still enjoys leading a band. ~ Ken Dryden
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