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==Lionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, was born on April 20 1908 and was raised by his grandmother. Shortly after he was born, he and his mother moved back to her home town of Birmingham, Alabama. He spent his childhood in Kenosha,Wisconsin before he and his family moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1916. As a youth, Hampton was a member of the Bud Billiken Club, an alternative to the Boy Scouts of America, which was off limits because of segregation. ==

==Lionel began his career playing drums for the Chicago Defender Newsboys’ Band while still a teenager in Chicago. 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 band at Sebastian’s Cotton Club. Later carrier: During the 1960s Hampton’s groups was declined; he was still performing what had succeeded for him during the 1930s 1940s and 1950s. He did not fare much better in the 1970s, though he recorded actively on the Who’s Who Record label. He died on August 31 2002. ==