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CNN Saturday Morning News

Interview With Phillip Leshin

Aired August 31, 2002 - 08:33   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: We have been telling you all morning about the death of jazz great Lionel Hampton. Of course, he jammed with the likes of Benny Goodman, Charlie Parker, Quincy Jones in his six decade career.
On the phone with us now with some insight into this is Hampton's manager, Phillip Leshin.

Thanks for being with us this morning.

PHIL LESHIN, LIONEL HAMPTON MANAGER: You're welcome. Glad to be here.

CALLAWAY: Tell us a little bit about Lionel Hampton the man. We all know him as the famous musician, but tell us more about him.

LESHIN: He was a very sweet man, a very talented man and a very generous man. And I have to correct you, his career was 72 years, not 60 years.

CALLAWAY: Wow. We should say more than six decades then, right?

LESHIN: Right. More than seven decades.

CALLAWAY: He was, of course, known for being a famous jazz musician, but you've been with him a long time, haven't you?

LESHIN: Yes, I have.

CALLAWAY: Tell me about that.

LESHIN: Well, I started as his publicist in 1960 and I was with him -- I even played bass with him for a while.

CALLAWAY: Wow.

LESHIN: And then in about 1999 I became his manager, as well. And he had a, he even had a few good years at the end of his life.

CALLAWAY: That's right.

LESHIN: He was touring right up until two years ago. He was touring all over the world.

CALLAWAY: You know, what kind of influence did he really have on jazz? You've, as you said, you've been with him since, you know, 1960. Wow. How did he change jazz?

LESHIN: Well, first of all, he introduced the vibraphone as a jazz instrument. It had, before that it used to be the NBC chimes. And one day when he was in the studio with Louis Armstrong and they were going in for a recording date, Louis pointed to the vibes and he says, what's that? And Lionel said, that's an electric xylophone. They call it the vibes. And he said, can you play 'em? And Lionel said, sure. And they recorded "Memories of You," which in 1930 was a hit song from the Broadway show "Blackbirds" of 1929. And it became a standard. That was the first recorded vibraphone solo.

CALLAWAY: Do you think that's what he's going to be best remembered for?

LESHIN: Well, yes. But he also was a wonderful drummer, I mean a marvelous drummer.

CALLAWAY: You know, he jammed, as we said earlier, with people like Benny Goodman, Charlie Parker. Did he have any favorites, favorite people that he liked to play?

LESHIN: Yes. Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman, those were his two favorites, his idols.

CALLAWAY: Tell me about him and Louis Armstrong. I know he was, as you said, a big fan of his.

LESHIN: He idolized Louis Armstrong. And when he had...

CALLAWAY: Who didn't in jazz, right?

LESHIN: And when he had a chance to play drums with him in 1929, he jumped at it. And from there on his career just took off because he was known as Louis Armstrong's drummer. And he was billed as the fastest drummer in the world playing with the greatest trumpet player.

CALLAWAY: His legacy will live on.

LESHIN: And his legacy will live on. That's for sure. RCA just reissued a whole compilation of his early Victor recordings under his own name, right after he left Benny Goodman. And they should be out this week.

CALLAWAY: Phillip Leshin, thank you for sharing your thoughts this morning on the passing of jazz great Lionel Hampton. And have a good day.

LESHIN: Thank you.

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