ON THE COVER: As the famed Club Alabam looms in the background, bandleader Lionel Hampton (left) greets a crowd of well-wishers at a parade in his honor on Central Avenue. The sign on the car notes his appearance the following day at the Lincoln Theater, which was 20 blocks to the north. Although he was not from Los Angeles and he did not live there long, his career got its biggest boost from the area, and he returned frequently. (Courtesy of the Shades of LA Collection, Los Angeles Public Library.)