Connections Through Music: the Six Degrees of Col. Bruce Hampton

Throughout my life, I’ve found that music can be one of the best ways to connect with people. You can nearly always find a song or album to bond over, and that doesn’t always mean a multi-platinum seller. It can be an artist way out on the fringes.

I told fellow Mentone Ukes member Hank Van Apeldoorn that I read a book about someone who called himself Col. Bruce Hampton and played most of his life in Atlanta. He was very influential in the jam band scene and had a knack for finding amazing musicians but he wasn’t well-known to the public. I mentioned this to Hank because I knew he had lived in Atlanta and was aware of semi-obscure artists like Hampton. He was not only aware of him but knew him and the members The Hampton Grease Band through his connection with WRAS, Georgia State’s FM radio station. Hank also lived in the same neighborhood as one of the band members, the great guitarist Glenn Phillips. Phillips still plays live. I’ve met him, and he is an all-around great guy.

Another connection to Hampton is with Ukes member Romey Atchley, who is a follower of the Grateful Dead. Her husband David writes for the music site GratefulWeb. Romey mentioned that David was going to interview bassist extraordinaire Oteil Burbridge for an article. Oteil has played with the Allman Brothers Band and Dead & Company, but his first big break was playing with Hampton band The Aquarium Rescue Unit. Oteil still talks about Hampton being a mentor in music and life who made him laugh about how crazy the world is. Duane Allman got Hampton his first record deal. Without that, Burbridge would have never met Hampton or played with the Allman Brothers.

Despite never having a hit record and being virtually unknown to those outside the music scene, Hampton collaborated with some of the biggest names in music. On May 1, 2017, at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, members of the Allman Brothers Band, the Rolling Stones, R.E.M., Phish, Widespread Panic, Blues Traveler, Todd Snider, 88-year-old jazz pianist Johnny Knapp who played with Billie Holiday, and 14-year-old guitar prodigy Brandon Niederauer all gathered to perform and celebrate the life of Hampton on the day after his 70th birthday. The various famous and not-so-famous artists all played sets, and the encore was Hampton performing the Bobby “Blue” Bland song “Turn on Your Love Light,” the first song he ever sang in public.

During a solo by Niederauer, Hampton collapsed onstage. The band, thinking it was one of the theatrical stunts he was known for, kept playing for several minutes before EMTs went onstage and tried to revive him. An hour later he was gone. Col. Bruce Hampton died doing the one thing he loved most and connected artists and fans together one last time.

BY HANK ALLEN