By 1968, Armstrong's grueling lifestyle had finally caught up with him. The first recording of What a Wonderful World was produced by ABC Records, which made no attempt to advertise it domestically. He interprets and contributes to the genre of jazz, creates great form through his performance in the Hot Chocolates, and his work represents a whole for equality and the civil rights movement. There are two kinds of music, the good and the bad. During this time, Armstrong adopted a three-year-old boy named Clarence. West End Blues by Louis Armstrong is one of the most important songs in jazz. He was also a talented singer, and his recordings of songs like What a Jelly Roll Morton was a great pianist and arranger from New Orleans., He not only produce one impressive improvised solo after another, but he also raised the bar for jazz vocals. Why was Louis Armstrong important to New Orleans? The most important and influential musician in jazz history, and one of the leading singers and entertainers from the 1920s through the '50s. Rock Icon KISS Is Saying Goodbye (For Real), DOWNLOAD BIOGRAPHY'S LOUIS ARMSTRONG FACT CARD, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads, Name: Louis Armstrong, Birth Year: 1901, Birth date: August 4, 1901, Birth State: Louisiana, Birth City: New Orleans, Birth Country: United States, Best Known For: Louis Armstrong was a jazz trumpeter, bandleader and singer known for songs like "What a Wonderful World, Hello, Dolly, Star Dust and "La Vie En Rose., Astrological Sign: Leo. Their marriage was not a happy one, however, and they divorced in 1942. Instead of doing strictly jazz numbers, OKeh began allowing Armstrong to record popular songs of the day, including "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," "Star Dust" and "Body and Soul.". Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Louis Armstrong is arguably the most important musician that the United States has ever produced (Shipton 160). Why Is Louis Armstrong Important. The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic, American actress, singer, director, producer. Louis was born in New Orleans where he grew up and learned to play the trumpet. The Armstrongs moved into the home, where they would live for the rest of their lives, in 1943. See answer (1) Best Answer. He wrote songs such as The Pearls, Millenburg Joys, Mr. He didn't own an instrument at this time, If one was to go out into the street, walked up to a random stranger and asked them if they knew who Louis Armstrong was, chances are that they would be able to answer you correctly. Jazz is a genre of music that brought a whole community of people together. The single's B-side, and also a chart entry, was "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," sung by Armstrong in the film The Strip. This pop success was repeated internationally four years later with "What a Wonderful World," which hit number one in the U.K. in April 1968. .State Department and earning the nickname "Ambassador Satch." Louis began playing at a young age when he was growing up in New Orleans. Within a span of three years, Armstrong recorded over sixty records. Why was Louis Armstrong so important? He studied music there and played cornet and bugle in the school band, eventually becoming its leader. However, conditions changed when he was requested to record the title number of a broadway show that went on to become a hit. His music was a happiness to individuals and they said he was a gift sent from heaven. With his amazing voice trumpet he created a band and made some records. Louis's Father left him around childbirth, and his mother often used prostitution for money. It was also for Columbia that Armstrong scored one of the biggest hits of his career: His jazz transformation of Kurt Weill's "Mack the Knife. Armstrong had access to guns and decided to borrow a .38 that one of his stepfathers stored in a trunk in the Armstrong home (67). Louis Armstrong was successful in jazz because he learned on his own with daily practice while influencing others with his music by making smiles appear on their face. His mother, who often turned to prostitution, frequently left him with his maternal grandmother. He was by far the most enduringly popular man of all the classical composers, and his influence on following Western art music was very good and intense., Intro On New Years Eve 1912, he was arrested and sent to the Colored Waifs Home for Boys. Copy. By the end of the decade, the popularity of the Hot Fives and Sevens was enough to send Armstrong back to New York, where he appeared in the popular Broadway revue, Hot Chocolates. He soon began touring and never really stopped until his death in 1971. He worked for to get his instrument because his mother couldn't afford to buy him one. Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on August 4, 1901. According to Armstrong, that nights biggest laugh came right before his group started playing You Rascal, You. Without warning, he looked straight up at the monarch and hollered, This ones for you, Rex!, Fresh off the wild success of his Hello, Dolly! cover, Armstrong made a trip to communist East Berlin in 1965, where he gave a two-hour concert that earned a standing ovation. Although the ballad topped the 1968 charts in Great Britain, American sales were abysmal. After a quick trip with a group of people to Venice, Mozart and his daddy returned back to his hometown Salzburg. An early job working for the Jewish Karnofsky family allowed Armstrong to make enough money to purchase his first cornet. With her encouragement, he left Oliver and joined Fletcher Henderson's band in New York, staying for a year and then going back to Chicago in November 1925 to join the Dreamland Syncopators, his wife's group. The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky are also on the faces of people going by. He adds, "He was also more than a jazz musician he was an enormously popular entertainer"(pp. By the summer of 1970, Armstrong was allowed to perform publicly again and play the trumpet. WebWhy Is Louis Armstrong Important. He influenced countless other musicians and helped to shape the course of jazz. At one point in Heebie Jeebiesa 1926 song released by Armstrong and his "Hot Five bandthe singer vocalizes a series of nonsensical, horn-like sounds. But, as a Bayou State native, Armstrongs favorite dish was always rice and beans. I ain't never heard a horse sing a song. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. He found that the only way to reap the benefits of success and be protected was if there was a white captain to back you in the old days (Armstrong). Armstrong was arrested at eleven years old for disturbing the peace. It did not gain as much notice in the U.S. until 1987, when it was used in the film Good Morning, Vietnam, after which it became a Top 40 hit. Louis Armstrong is one of the first great soloists in the 1920s musicians. In fact, before marrying his fourth wife, he made sure that she could cook a satisfactory plateful. In 1922, King Oliver sent for Armstrong to join his band in Chicago. At the mention jazz music, that person will first think of is likely to be a great figure with a clown image, nicknamed Satchmo. The solos Armstrong performed along with his popular scat singing helped make jazz musicians more popular along with making the fans take notice of Armstrong and jazz itself (Rennert 8). The record was released in 1964 and quickly climbed to the top of the pop music charts, hitting the No. The way they are treating my people in the South, declared Armstrong, the government can go to hell.. In 1924, Armstrong married Hardin, who urged Armstrong to leave Oliver and try to make it on his own. However, conditions changed when he was requested to record the title number of a broadway show that went on to become a hit. Louis Armstrong is one of the most influential jazz musicians of all time. In 1922, his mentor, King Oliver, invited him to work his Creole Jazz Band in Chicago. Born in 1901 in New Orleans, Louisiana, Armstrong had a difficult childhood. Louis Armstrong used to give away laxatives as gifts. But many of his recorded performances are masterpieces, and none are less than entertaining. Armstrong returned home in May 1971, and though he soon resumed playing again and promised to perform in public once more, he died in his sleep on July 6, 1971, at his home in Queens, New York. The story behind the jazz legends final hit and, quite simply, one of the most beautiful songs ever written. In the 1950s, he was sometimes criticized for his onstage persona and called an Uncle Tom but he silenced critics by speaking out against the governments handling of the Little Rock Nine high school integration crisis in 1957. His resurgence in the '60s with hit recordings like 1965's Grammy-winning "Hello Dolly" and 1968's classic "What a Wonderful World" solidified his legacy as a musical and cultural icon. In July, Armstrong sailed to England for a tour. They treat me better all over the world than they do in my hometown, he said. He dropped out of school at 11 to join an informal group, but on December 31, 1912, he fired a gun during a New Year's Eve celebration, and was sent to reform school. He would attend parades, funerals, churches and go to cheap cabarets to be able to hear some of the greats play, Little Louis sung in a vocal quartet in his early teens. It's also worth noting that even though he brought it into popularity, Armstrong in no way invented the technique, which dates back to at least 1906. He began to grow artistically and perfected his improvisational method (Jazz Stars 2). The Hot Five and Hot Seven were strictly recording groups; Armstrong performed nightly during this period with Erskine Tate's orchestra at the Vendome Theater, often playing music for silent movies. He was an all-star virtuoso, and came to prominence in the 1920s playing cornet and trumpet with an excitingly new and improvisational style. That didnt stop him from living his life like a regular boy. Armstrong's popularity continued to grow in Chicago throughout the decade, as he began playing other venues, including the Sunset Caf and the Savoy Ballroom. Armstrongs mentor, King Oliver, had Armstrong move to Chicago to be in his band; in Olivers, Aside from the typical cultural, social, and political factors influencing any musicians style, an early life filled with poverty and hardship also shaped Louis Armstrongs musical development. 1. Armstrong had a great influence on Henderson and his arranger, Don Redman, both of whom began integrating Armstrong's swinging vocabulary into their arrangementstransforming Henderson's band into what is generally regarded as the first jazz big band. Armstrong soon began dating the female pianist in the band, Lillian Hardin. WebImportance of Louis Armstrong. Louis Armstrong was the greatest of all Jazz musicians. While he still had to work odd jobs selling newspapers and hauling coal to the city's famed red-light district, Armstrong began earning a reputation as a fine blues player. He spread jazz throughout the world. WebBy the '50s, Armstrong was an established international celebrity--an icon to musicians and lovers of jazz--and a genial, infectiously optimistic presence wherever he appeared. He performed less frequently in the late '60s and early '70s, and died of a heart ailment in 1971 at the age of 69. The lights dim, and the velvet curtains slide open. In the summer of 1929, Armstrong headed to New York, where he had a role in a Broadway production of Connie's Hot Chocolates, featuring the music of Fats Waller and Andy Razaf. WebLouis Armstrong was a key asset to the Harlem Renaissance due to his inspiring music and playing his instruments for African Americans people during this period. He turned to Joe Glaser for help; Glaser had mob ties of his own, having been close with Al Capone, but he had loved Armstrong from the time he met him at the Sunset Caf (Glaser had owned and managed the club). Louis gave jazz music a purpose. Armstrong was featured in the 1969 film of Hello, Dolly!, performing the title song as a duet with Barbra Streisand. His mother, Mayann, was 15 years old when he was born and his father, Willie, abandoned them soon after. Armstrong completed his contract with Decca in 1954, after which his manager made the unusual decision not to sign him to another exclusive contract but instead have him freelance for different labels. Ironically, Armstrong later wrote the whole thing off as a big blunder on his part. This newfound popularity introduced Armstrong to a new, younger audience, and he continued making both successful records and concert appearances for the rest of the decade, even cracking the "Iron Curtain" with a tour of Communist countries such as East Berlin and Czechoslovakia in 1965. Throughout the years, jazz musicians have created many new styles, new arrangements, and put this genre of music on the map., He affected the heading of jazz music and spontaneous creation. WebHe overcame poverty to become one of the most important people in the history of music. He spent the next several years in Europe, his American career maintained by a series of archival recordings, including the Top Ten hits "Sweethearts on Parade" (August 1932; recorded December 1930) and "Body and Soul" (October 1932; recorded October 1930). Why is Louis Armstrong important to blacks? He was known for both his joyous ways with the trumpet and his peculiarly touching and funny vocal style. The book was titled Swing That Music. Armstrong spent the last decade of his life similarly that he had spent the four past enthralling groups of onlookers all through the world., Louis Blues, Overall Armstrong wrote and performed some of the most popular and well known jazz songs of all time. Some even theorize that it was Armstrongs difficult upbringing that made his music so wise, so unique, and so revolutionary. St. Louis Cardinals prospect Jordan Walker tracks down a flyball during fielding practice at the Cardinals spring training complex in Jupiter, Fla. on Friday, Feb. 17, 2023. In addition Armstrong was also an influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser, bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes., On the 26th day of December in 1788 there was a very great success. Here are 10 facts about the life of one of the 20th century's most important jazz musicians. Even the scepter of Uncle Tom that shadowed the outsized Satchmo during his career, and that Ellington essentially concurred with in an interview with Carter Harman in 1964, has faded. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Rock Icon KISS Is Saying Goodbye (For Real), Rihanna and 10 Other Great Pregnant Performances, Burt Bacharachs Legacy: 5 Notable Collaborations, 2023 Grammy Awards: Six Winners Who Made History. Then along came a bare-knuckled comedy called Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). But you get sick just like the next cat and when you die you're just as graveyard dead as he is. Armstrong was an African American child growing up in the slums of New Orleans, close to abandonment, impoverished, and with too few constant people, resources, or homes. In 1993, it gained renewed popularity when it was used in the film Sleepless in Seattle. Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus sent in the National Guard to prevent the Little Rock Nine nine African American students from entering the public school. Wiki User. The first important trend in New York Jazz was Hot Jazz that was an incendiary style introduced by Louis Armstrong (Winfield 170). Perhaps most importantly, the letters also detail Armstrong's fatherly love for Sharon. The man was Louis Armstrong. He weathered the bebop period of the '40s, growing ever more beloved worldwide. In April, he reached the charts with his first vocal recording, "Big Butter and Egg Man," a duet with May Alix. Without the jazz musicians, jazz music would not have been possible. In America, Armstrong had been a great Civil Rights pioneer, breaking down numerous barriers as a young man. They danced to the jazz music with a whole new style. During his time there, he learned how to play the bugle cornet, an instrument that is similar to the trumpet. By the start of 1932, he had switched from the "race"-oriented OKeh label to its pop-oriented big sister Columbia, for which he recorded two Top Five hits, "Chinatown, My Chinatown" and "You Can Depend on Me" before scoring a number one hit with "All of Me" in March 1932; another Top Five hit, "Love, You Funny Thing," hit the charts the same month. Beginning in 1919, Armstrong spent his summers playing on riverboats with a band led by Fate Marable. Armstrong was obligated to leave school in the fifth grade to begin working. He took up work in Joe (King) Olivers house, doing chores in exchange for musical lessons, developing into a. Louis Armstrong is a man of many talents and skills known for creating a new environment, especially in his home town of New Orleans. In 1947, the waning popularity of the big bands forced Armstrong to begin fronting a small group, Louis Armstrong and His All Stars. If you have to ask what jazz is, you'll never know. those works included Cotton Tail and Ko-Ko. Some of his most popular songs included "It Don 't Mean a Thing if It Ain 't Got That Swing," "Sophisticated Lady," "Prelude to a Kiss," "Solitude," and "Satin Doll (Duke Ellington Biography). Different from most of his recordings of the era, the song features no trumpet and places Armstrong's gravelly voice in the middle of a bed of strings and angelic voices. Wiki User. Armstrongs unique singing and masterful improvisation transitioned jazz from the traditional style to a newer, more rhythmic style. Louis Armstrong was the first black man in the U.S. to host a radio show. In the 1980s and '90s, younger African American jazz musicians like Wynton Marsalis, Jon Faddis and Nicholas Payton began speaking about Armstrong's importance, both as a musician and a human being. He also learned to sing. He was especially known for his spectacular trumpet playing, unmistakable voice, and exceptionally recognizable, broad smile., In three years they recorded over 60 records, which now are considered the most influential recordings in jazz history. In September, his recording of that song entered the charts, becoming a Top Ten hit. He performed in Europe for the first time in 1932 and returned in 1933, staying for over a year because of a damaged lip. He began touring the country in the 1940s. Copy. What made jazz continuously popular was the way it progressed. While in New York, Armstrong cut dozens of records as a sideman, creating inspirational jazz with other greats such as Sidney Bechet, and backing numerous blues singers including Bessie Smith. If the gun was not so easily accessible, his firing it and being arrested could have been prevented. Louis Armstrong was to jazz music what Bach is to classical music, Presley is to rock music (Berrett 230). After they married in 1924, Hardin made it clear that she felt Oliver was holding Armstrong back. The tune did, however, become a No. Why was Louis Armstrong important to the Harlem Renaissance? Despite failing to make a new record for two years, Armstrong remained a fan favorite. Contracted to OKeh Records, he began to make a series of recordings with studio-only groups called the Hot Fives or the Hot Sevens. Though he was the product's biggest cheerleader, Armstrong neither requested nor received any payment from its manufacturers. A YouTube poster named pandasthumb describes the piece. Being in many bands before he was not new to this. Jelly Roll, Doctor Jazz, Original Jelly Roll Blues, and many other famous pieces. We contributed Louis Armstrong. All Rights Reserved. He played dramatic works of simple structure in Orleans jazz style and with the accompaniment of Dick jazz music. In fifth grade, while being taken care of by his maternal grandmother most of the time, he left school to work. His rise to the top, though not overnight, occurred quickly, he played with mostly all the major bands in New Orleans over the next few years (Friedwald 350). By 1932, Armstrong, who was now known as Satchmo, had begun appearing in movies and made his first tour of England. Because of his long improvised solos, he inspired jazz so that long solos became an important part of jazz pieces and performances. A jazz pioneer, Louis Armstrong was the first important soloist to emerge in jazz, and he became the most influential musician in the music's history. During this period, Armstrong set a number of African American "firsts." Armstrong was brought up by his mother, Mary (Albert) Armstrong, and his maternal grandmother. WebThrough the internet and books we find out why Louis Armstrong is such a great person to learn about. There was a cheerful impatience in his playing, an optimistic confidence that led him to risk going over the top (Shipton 157). Louis Armstrong recorded many popular songs like La Vie en Rose, and his theme song When its Sleepy Time Down South. His influence, both as an artist and There, under the tutelage of Peter Davis, he learned how to properly play the cornet, eventually becoming the leader of the Waifs Home Brass Band. He attended Colored Waifs Home in 1913 for eighteen months. Louis did his first performance on stage in 1930 to spread his Jazz style. Encyclopdia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them. The material may show why Armstrong was not just a giant of jazz music, but a civil rights leader as well. Armstrong continued recording for Decca in the late 1940s and early '50s, creating a string of popular hits, including "Blueberry Hill," "That Lucky Old Sun," "La Vie En Rose," "A Kiss to Build a Dream On" and "I Get Ideas. When Louis Armstrong was placed in a boys home as a young boy, he was presented with the opportunity to play the cornet. He returned to Broadway in the short-lived musical Swingin' the Dream in November 1939. A series of new biographies on Armstrong made his role as a civil rights pioneer abundantly clear and, subsequently, argued for an embrace of his entire career's output, not just the revolutionary recordings from the 1920s. He sang much as he played, but with a playfulness and a rasp, that would forever be part of American culture (Winfield 167). In 1936, Louis Armstrong became the first African American jazz musician to write an autobiography, Swing That Music. As a trumpet virtuoso, his playing, beginning with the 1920s studio recordings he made with his Hot Five and Hot Seven ensembles, charted a future for jazz in highly imaginative, emotionally charged improvisation. However, conditions changed when he was requested to record the title number of a broadway show that went on to become a hit. It is said that during a session, Armstrong dropped his sheet music and started mimicking the sounds of the horn with his voice. Louis Armstrong (Aug 4th, 1901 - Jul 6th, 1971) was an American trumpeter, composer, singer and occasional actor who became one of the most influential figures in jazz. He was an extraordinary musician and he impacted jazz music immensely. His fame rose when he composed several masterworks in the 1940s. "Hotter Than That" was in the Top Ten in May 1928, followed in September by "West End Blues," which later became one of the first recordings named to the Grammy Hall of Fame. Though Armstrong was content to remain in New Orleans, in the summer of 1922, he received a call from Oliver to come to Chicago and join his Creole Jazz Band on second cornet. A few weeks later after his birth his father leaves his mother alone with a family. When Armstrong saw this as well as white protesters hurling invective at the students he blew his top to the press, telling a reporter that President Dwight D. Eisenhower had "no guts" for letting Faubus run the country, and stating, "The way they are treating my people in the South, the government can go to hell.". Dancers loved Hendersons music making Louis Armstrong a celebrity so when he left his old band, this would be a step up. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. WebHe had a string of pop hits beginning in 1949 and started making regular overseas tours, where his popularity was so great, he was dubbed Ambassador Satch. In America, Armstrong had been a great Civil Rights pioneer, breaking down The latter performance is one of Armstrong's best known works, opening with a stunning cadenza that features equal helpings of opera and the blues; with its release, "West End Blues" proved to the world that the genre of fun, danceable jazz music was also capable of producing high art. With his daring rhythmic choice, swinging vocabulary, and incredibly high notes; changing jazz history once again. Armstrong could make an audience cheer, but Roy Eldridge, made those top and bottom notes feel like a natural part of what the horn should do (Friedwald 21). He performed all over the world in the 1950s and '60s, including throughout Europe, Africa and Asia. They also encouraged him to sing and often invited him into their home for meals. The song for which Pops is most widely remembered, What a Wonderful World, was almost never his song at all. Louis Armstrong was the greatest of all Jazz musicians. In 1988, music historian Thaddeus Tad Jones located a baptismal record at New Orleanss Sacred Heart of Jesus Church. In a strange turn of events, it was during this tour that Armstrong's career fell apart: Years of blowing high notes had taken a toll on Armstrong's lips, and, following a fight with his manager Johnny Collins who already managed to get Armstrong into trouble with the Mafia he was left stranded overseas by Collins. Between 1952 and 1955, Armstrong shed 100 pounds. Love, baby - love. Outraged, Armstrong refused to stage another concert within the state's borders. WebLouis Armstrong was the protean genius that made African American classical music mislabeled as jazz the most important music event of the 20th century.