Lionel Leo Hampton (1908–2002), was a U.S. bandleader, jazz percussionist, … Read Full Bio ↴Lionel Leo Hampton (1908–2002), was a U.S. bandleader, jazz percussionist, and vibraphonist.

Hampton was born on 20th April 1908 in Louisville, Kentucky, but moved to Chicago as a child, where he began his career as a drummer. He relocated to Los Angeles to play drums in Les Hite's band. They soon became the house band for Frank Sebastian's New Cotton Club, a popular L.A. jazz club.

During a 1930 recording date in the NBC studios in L.A., Louis Armstrong discovered a vibraphone. He asked Hampton if he could play it. Hampton, who knew how to play the xylophone, tried it and they agreed to record a few records with Hamp on vibes. Hampton is credited with popularizing the vibraphone as a jazz instrument.

In the mid-1930s, the Benny Goodman Orchestra came to Los Angeles to play the Palomar Ballroom. John Hammond brought Goodman to see Hampton play. Goodman asked Hampton to move to New York City and join Goodman, Teddy Wilson, and Gene Krupa who'd already formed a Benny Goodman Trio within the large band - to expand into the Benny Goodman Quartet. The Trio and Quartet were among the first racially integrated bands to record and play before wide audiences; they were just as well received at Goodman's famous 1938 Carnegie Hall concert as was the full Goodman band.

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 the early 40s he left the Goodman organization to form his own touring band.

Hampton's band fostered the talents of Illinois Jacquet, Dexter Gordon, Ernie Royal, Jack McVea, Charlie Mingus, Monk Montgomery, Wes Montgomery, Quincy Jones, Benny Golson, Fats Navarro, Kenny Dorham, Clifford Brown, Dinah Washington, Betty Carter, Joe Williams, Arnett Cobb, Earl Bostic, and John Colianni among many others.

Hampton's recording of "Flying Home" (1939) with the famous honking tenor sax solo by Jacquet, later refined and expanded by Cobb (1946), is considered by some to be the first rock and roll record. He was known for his tireless energy and his skill on the vibes, drums, and lightning speed two-fingered piano. The bars on the vibraphone are laid out like the piano; Hampton played both instruments the same way.

Beginning in the mid-1980s, Hampton and his band started playing at the University of Idaho's jazz concert, which in 1985 was renamed the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. In 1987 the University's music college was renamed the Lionel Hampton School of Music, the first and only university music college to be named after a jazz musician.

Lionel Hampton died of cardiac arrest at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York on 31st August 2002. He was buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York.

Prelude To A Kiss
Lionel Hampton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

If you hear
A song in blue
Like a flower crying
For the dew
That was my heart serenading you
My prelude to a kiss

If you hear a song that grows

From my tender sentimental woes
That was my heart trying to compose
A prelude to a kiss

Though it's just a simple melody
With nothing fancy
Nothing much
You could turn it to a symphony
A Shubert tune with a Gershwin touch

Oh how my love song gently cries
For the tenderness within your eyes
My love is a prelude that never dies
A prelude to a kiss

Though it's just a simple melody
With nothing fancy
Nothing much
You could turn it to a symphony
A Shubert tune with a Gershwin touch

Oh how my love song so gently cries
For the tenderness within your eyes

My love is a prelude that never dies
A prelude to a kiss

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Lionel Hampton's song Prelude To A Kiss is a beautiful and heartfelt expression of love. The song talks about how the heart of the singer serenades the person they love through a song in blue, like a flower crying for the dew. The song refers to the singer's heart trying to compose a prelude to a kiss, a tender melody to express their love. Though the song is just a simple melody, it is full of love and longing, and the singer believes it could turn into a symphony with a Shubert tune and a Gershwin touch. The singer's love is a prelude that never dies, and they are hoping to express their love through a kiss.

The song is full of metaphors and emotion that speaks to the heart of its listeners. The singer uses a flower crying for the dew as a metaphor for their inner feelings. Despite being a simple melody, the song speaks volumes about the singer's emotions and the depth of their love. Additionally, the lyrics reference Schubert and Gershwin, two famous composers of classical music, which adds to the song's sophistication.

Line by Line Meaning

If you hear
If you listen carefully

A song in blue
A melancholic piece of music

Like a flower crying
Expressing sorrow and longing

For the dew
For something that is missing

That was my heart serenading you
My heart was singing to you

My prelude to a kiss
An introduction to my expression of love

If you hear a song that grows
If you hear a song that is gradually growing

From my tender sentimental woes
From my emotional pain and sadness

That was my heart trying to compose
My heart attempting to create something beautiful

A prelude to a kiss
A precursor to an intimate moment

Though it's just a simple melody
Even though it is a basic tune