In 1953, Lionel Hampton arrived in Europe for the first time with his big band. They created such a huge sensation and the audience was so enthusiastic that a second tour was organised the following year. Luckily many of these concerts were recorded which enables us, half a century later, to redis cover the incredible power and crazy swing of this exciting big band! Jacques Morgantini allows us to discover the legend of Lionel Hampton Live recordings with this 1953-1954 European Tour 2 CD boxset. Patrick Fremeaux