Col. Bruce Hampton & the Aquarium Rescue Unit were one of the many projects of guitarist, singer, and songwriter Col. Bruce Hampton, previously best known as the leader of the Hampton Grease Band. Hampton's work with the Aquarium Rescue Unit mixed rock, jazz, blues, Latin, funk, bluegrass, and psychedelia with playful abandon. The group's emphasis on chops and improvisation led them to be associated with the jam band scene; they joined the H.O.R.D.E. tour and collaborated with Béla Fleck and Blues Traveler's John Popper. The band released three albums: two concert recordings (issued in 1992 and 2007, respectively) and 1993's Mirrors of Embarrassment. Though Hampton left the group in 1993, the remaining bandmembers continued to tour and record under the Aquarium Rescue Unit name. ~ Anthony Tognazzini