Composer, arranger and trombonist Locksley Wellington “Slide” Hampton has been an important part of the music scene since the mid-'50s. Born (1932) into a musical family with 12 children, he is a rare left-handed trombone player. By age 12, he was playing with his family's jazz band, the Duke Hampton Band. By age 20, he was performing with the Lionel Hampton Band.

After working with Buddy Johnson and Lionel Hampton, he became an important force in Maynard Ferguson's big band of 1957-1959, playing and arranging tunes like "The Fugue," "Three Little Foxes" and "Slides Derangement." In 1962, he formed the Slide Hampton Octet, with horn players Booker Little, Freddie Hubbard, and George Coleman. The band toured the U.S. and Europe and recorded on several labels. After traveling with Woody Herman to Europe in 1968, Slide settled overseas where he stayed very active. As his reputation grew, he soon began working with bands led by Art Blakey, Tadd Dameron in 1969, Barry Harris, Thad Jones, Mel Lewis, and Max Roach, contributing both original compositions and arrangements.

Since returning to the U.S. in 1977, Hampton has worked with his World of Trombones (which features nine trombonists), played in a co-op quintet called Continuum, and been involved in several Dizzy Gillespie tribute projects. During these years, he taught at a number of universities, including Harvard and DePaul.

Slide was a 1998 Grammy Award winner for Best Jazz Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s), and was also a winner in 2005 for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. He also received a nomination in 2006. In 2005, the National Endowment for the Arts honored Slide with its highest honor in jazz, the NEA Jazz Masters Award.