Watch Herbie Hancock Reunite Original Head Hunters Band For 1st Concert In 50 Years

Herbie Hancock celebrated the legacy of his groundbreaking 1973 album Head Hunters at Hollywood Bowl last night by performing with surviving members from the original album for the first time in 50 years. Hancock was joined by the Head Hunters Band of drummer Harvey Mason, woodwind specialist Bennie Maupin and percussionist Bill Summers with bassist Marcus Miller subbing for the late Paul Jackson.

The acclaimed keyboardist and his band were introduced by Basketball Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The five musicians devoted the first set to performing each of the four tracks featured on Head Hunters as well as “Butterfly” and “Palm Grease” from Hancock’s 1974 LP Thrust. Hancock utilized his famed Keytar for Head Hunters classic “Chameleon.”

Herbie Hancock returned for the second set with his current band in tow. Members of the Head Hunters Band augmented the ensemble at various points of the frame. The entire collective shared the stage on the “Chameleon” finale, the second performance of the Head Hunters classic of the evening.

While Maupin and Summers took part in a ’90s Head Hunters Band reunion, Mason had been focusing on studio work since leaving the group shortly after the album came out. Paul Jackson sadly died in 2021.

Watch fan-shot footage of last night’s Head Hunters 50th anniversary concert below: