Louis Daniel Armstrong was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and different eras in the history of jazz.
Armstrong was born and raised in New Orleans. Coming to prominence in the 1920s as an inventive trumpet and cornet player, Armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, shifting the focus of the music from collective improvisation to solo performance. Around 1922, he followed his mentor, King Oliver, to Chicago to play in the Creole Jazz Band. In Chicago, he spent time with other popular jazz musicians, reconnecting with his friend Bix Beiderbecke and spending time with Hoagy Carmichael and Lil Hardin. He earned a reputation at "cutting contests" and his fame reached band leader Fletcher Henderson. Henderson persuaded Armstrong to come to New York City, where he became a featured and musically influential band soloist and recording artist. Hardin became Armstrong's second wife and they returned to Chicago to play together and then he began to form his own "Hot" jazz bands. After years of touring, he settled in Queens, and by the 1950s, he was a national musical icon, assisted in part, by his appearances on radio and in film and television, in addition to his concerts.
With his instantly recognizable rich, gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer and skillful improviser, bending the lyrics and melody of a song. He was also skilled at scat singing. Armstrong is renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice, as well as his trumpet playing. By the end of Armstrong's life, his influence had spread to popular music in general. Armstrong was one of the first popular African-American entertainers to "cross over" to wide popularity with white (and international) audiences. He rarely publicly politicized his race, to the dismay of fellow African Americans, but took a well-publicized stand for desegregation in the Little Rock crisis. He was able to access the upper echelons of American society at a time when this was difficult for black men.
Filmography[]
Armstrong appeared in films, such as High Society (1956), alongside Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and Frank Sinatra, and Hello, Dolly! (1969), starring Barbra Streisand. He received many accolades, including three Grammy Award nominations and a win for his vocal performance of Hello, Dolly! in 1964. In 2017, he was posthumously inducted into the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.
Armstrong was a gifted composer who wrote more than fifty songs, some of which have become jazz standards (e.g. "Gully Low Blues", "Potato Head Blues", and "Swing That Music"). His most popular song is "What a Wonderful World".
Songs[]
- "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" (Ray Gilbert, Allie Wrubel) – 2:22
- "Ten Feet Off The Ground" (Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman) – 2:46
- "Heigh-Ho" (Frank Churchill, Larry Morey) – 2:37
- "Whistle While You Work" (Churchill, Morey) – 1:56
- "Chim Chim Cher-ee" (R. M. Sherman, R. B. Sherman) – 6:40
- "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" (Mack David, Al Hoffman, Jerry Livingston) – 2:08
- "'Bout Time" (R. M. Sherman, R. B. Sherman) – 2:53
- "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" (Tom Blackburn, George Bruns) – 3:15
- "The Bare Necessities" (Terry Gilkyson) – 2:26
- "When You Wish Upon a Star" (Leigh Harline, Ned Washington) – 4:25
Biography[]
Early life[]
Louis Armstrong was raised by his grandmother until the age of five when he was returned to his mother. He spent his youth in poverty in a rough neighborhood known as The Battlefield. At age six, he attended the Fisk School for Boys, a school that accepted black children in the racially segregated system of New Orleans.
Career[]
He has studied and mastered in riverboat education. Chicago recordings, has tried being a singer for the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, a talented singer for The Hot Five, fought for the Harlem Renaissance, and has often emerged as a vocalist. Along with showing off his career to All Stars.
Religion[]
When asked about his religion, Armstrong answered that he was raised a Baptist, always wore a Star of David, and was friends with the pope. He wore the Star of David in honor of the Karnoffsky family, who took him in as a child and lent him money to buy his first cornet. He was baptized a Catholic in the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in New Orleans, and he met Pope Pius XII and Pope Paul VI.
Writing[]
Armstrong's gregariousness extended to writing. On the road, he wrote constantly, sharing favorite themes of his life with correspondents around the world. He avidly typed or wrote on whatever stationery was at hand, recording instant takes on music, sex, food, childhood memories, his heavy "medicinal" marijuana use, and even his bowel movements, which he gleefully described.
Legacy[]
Louis (If Louis Armstrong were an alligator...)
The influence of Armstrong on the development of jazz is virtually immeasurable. His irrepressible personality both as a performer and as a public figure was so strong that to some it sometimes overshadowed his contributions as a musician and singer.
As a virtuoso trumpet player, Armstrong had a unique tone and an extraordinary talent for melodic improvisation. Through his playing, the trumpet emerged as a solo instrument in jazz and is used widely today. Additionally, jazz itself was transformed from a collectively improvised folk music to a soloist's serious art form largely through his influence. He was a masterful accompanist and ensemble player in addition to his extraordinary skills as a soloist. With his innovations, he raised the bar musically for all who came after him.
The Flushing Cemetery was the resting place of Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong when he was found dead.
For Disney, a trumpet-playing alley cat named Scat Cat from The Aristocats was inspired by Armstrong as well as a trumpet-playing alligator character called Louis from The Princess and the Frog was named after him in dedication to his legacy.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Louis was once considered for the role of Scat Cat in The Aristocats. However, the role has since been given to Scatman Crothers because Armstrong became ill and was unable to voice the character in the film's development.
- Armstrong's hesitancy to speak out against racism was a frequent bone of contention with his fellow black entertainers, some of whom branded him an "Uncle Tom". In 1957, however, he famously let loose over segregation.
- During the height of the Cold War in the late 1950s, the U.S. State Department developed a program to send jazz musicians and other entertainers on goodwill tours to improve America's image overseas.
- Louis Armstrong was featured in an episode of Great Minds Think 4 Themselves.
- In Meet the Robinsons, Bud Robinson mentions Armstrong, confusing him with Neil Armstrong. Coincidentally, a character named Mr. Armstrong appears as a friend of Grandfather in the original book A Day with Wilbur Robinson. However, it is unknown if the character was truly Louis Armstrong or just someone based on him, as the book was written about twenty years after his death and was never stated what year it took place.
- In the 2020 Disney/Pixar film Soul, a poster of Louis Armstrong can be seen at the beginning of the movie, where Joe Gardner teaches his students about a memory when his father took him to experience jazz at the Half Note Club.
