Similarly, many of his most influential recordings, like 1928's "West End Blues" and 1955's "Mack the Knife," have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Armstrong had gained sufficient individual notice to make his recording debut as a leader on November 12, 1925. If the gun was not so easily accessible, his firing it and being arrested could have been prevented. He was one of America's most significant artists by the late 1930s, and had created a sensation in Europe with live performances and records. Aristotle did not consider children as morally responsible as adults because they have not had sufficient time to move beyond their backgrounds and upbringing. 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. Born, August 4, 1901 he started off in a harder life than most people usually do. 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. Armstrong moved to Chicago to join Oliver's band in August 1922 and made his first recordings as a member of the group in the spring of 1923. During this period, Armstrong set a number of African American "firsts." The man was Louis Armstrong. By February 1927, Armstrong was well-enough known to front his own group, Louis Armstrong & His Stompers, at the Sunset Caf in Chicago. 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. Their marriage was not a happy one, however, and they divorced in 1942. The pistol should have been stored in a locked, Armstrong did not define himself by his background and could have grown up to be just another poor child from a broken home. Another one of Armstrongs notable qualities, scat singing (wordless singing/mummering) was also popularized during this. His distinctive sound and style have had a lasting impact on the genre, and he was a major influence on subsequent generations of jazz musicians. He also began singing on these recordings, popularizing wordless "scat singing" with his hugely popular vocal on 1926's "Heebie Jeebies.". The most important and influential musician in jazz history, and one of the leading singers and entertainers from the 1920s through the '50s. Louis Armstrong recorded many popular songs like La Vie en Rose, and his theme song When its Sleepy Time Down South. From 1925 to 1928, Armstrong made more than 60 records with the Hot Five and, later, the Hot Seven. Seeing "the writing on the wall," Armstrong scaled down to a smaller six-piece combo, the All Stars; personnel would frequently change, but this would be the group Armstrong would perform live with until the end of his career. Mob bosses from New York City and Chicago threatened Louis Armstrong in attempts to control his management contract. He wrote songs such as The Pearls, Millenburg Joys, Mr. In recent years, Armstrong's alleged daughter, who now goes by the name Sharon Preston Folta, has publicized various letters between her and her father. Because of his long improvised solos, he inspired jazz so that long solos became an important part of jazz pieces and performances. Armstrong used to say that hed been born on July 4, 1900. Louis Armstrong was a pivotal musician in the twentieth century, but it was his contributions and his role he made during the Harlem Renaissance movement that is most substantial. "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. The letters, dated as far back as 1968, prove that Armstrong had indeed always believed Sharon to be his daughter, and that he even paid for her education and home, among several other things, throughout his life. Then, at the age of five, he was returned to the care of his mother, who at the time worked as a laundress. With the assistance of the jazz musicians, the music industry, Making his voice sound like a musical instrument and singing nonsense syllables with no words created Scat singing. 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. With his amazing voice trumpet he created a band and made some records. It won him a Grammy for best vocal performance. He began touring the country in the 1940s. Though he was the product's biggest cheerleader, Armstrong neither requested nor received any payment from its manufacturers. He embarked on his first European tour since 1935 in February 1948, and thereafter toured regularly around the world. Armstrong's daring vocal transformations of these songs completely changed the concept of popular singing in American popular music, and had lasting effects on all singers who came after him, including Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. Armstrong's four marriages never produced any children, and because he and wife Lucille Wilson had actively tried for years to no avail, many believed him to be sterile, incapable of having children. 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. WebCourtesy of the Louis Armstrong Archive Queens College, CUNY. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. When Louis Armstrong was placed in a boys home as a young boy, he was presented with the opportunity to play the cornet. Armstrong defined what it was to play Jazz. https://www.britannica.com/facts/Louis-Armstrong, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum (1990), jazz: The cornetist breaks away: Louis Armstrong and the invention of swing. While only a DNA test could officially prove whether a blood relationship does exist between Armstrong and Sharon and one has never been conducted between the two believers and skeptics can at least agree on one thing: Sharon's uncanny resemblance to the jazz legend. Why Is Louis Armstrong Important. After his time in Colored Waifs Home, he wanted to become a musician. Louis Armstrong is arguably the most important musician that the United States has ever produced (Shipton 160). Armstrong fronted the Luis Russell Orchestra for a tour of the South in February 1930, and in May went to Los Angeles, where he led a band at Sebastian's Cotton Club for the next ten months. 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 This led some to alter his long-time nickname, Satchmo, to "Ambassador Satch.". Millions of people, starting in the 1930s until today, have agreed with Louis Armstrongs famous words and have been huge fans of the famous musician. Legendary CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow followed Armstrong with a camera crew on some of his worldwide excursions, turning the resulting footage into a theatrical documentary, Satchmo the Great, released in 1957. "What a Wonderful World" peaked on the U.S. music charts after Armstrong passed away. The joyous tune perfectly and ironically clashed with the wartime horrors depicted in one montage, so director Barry Levinson added it to his films soundtrack. A local Jewish family, the Karnofskys, gave young Armstrong a job collecting junk and delivering coal. He has many nicknames in which some are Satchmo and Pops. His style was unique and his talent was undeniable. In 1922, his mentor, King Oliver, invited him to work his Creole Jazz Band in Chicago. The many years of constant touring eventually wore down Armstrong, who had his first heart attack in 1959 and returned to intensive care at Beth Israel Hospital for heart and kidney trouble in 1968. Every time I close my eyes blowing that trumpet of mine, I look right into the heart of good old New Orleans. Armstrong practiced his instrument and eventually he became the jazz great everyone knows today. Career highlights, compiled by the Louis Armstrong House Museum: Outraged, Armstrong refused to stage another concert within the state's borders. He was born into poverty on August 4, 1901 in the streets of Back o Town (Meckna). Armstrong had a difficult childhood: His father was a factory worker and abandoned the family soon after Louis's birth. He made his film debut in Ex-Flame, released at the end of 1931. The civil rights movement was growing stronger with each passing year, with more protests, marches and speeches from African Americans wanting equal rights. Additionally, he became the first African American entertainer to host a nationally sponsored radio show in 1937, when he took over Rudy Vallee's Fleischmann's Yeast Show for 12 weeks. Mozart had written over 600 pieces of works, many acknowledged his pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, operatic, and choral music. Some even theorize that it was Armstrongs difficult upbringing that made his music so wise, so unique, and so revolutionary. In 1936, he became the first African American jazz musician to write an autobiography: Swing That Music. Given that Armstrong was only 11, it was (one of) his stepfathers who was responsible for the whole series of events. His influence, both as an artist and 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.. WebToday, Louis Armstrong holds the title as the worlds greatest jazz player. Together, Armstrong and Hines formed a potent team and made some of the greatest recordings in jazz history in 1928, including their virtuoso duet, "Weather Bird," and "West End Blues.". Though his popularity was hitting new highs in the 1950s, and despite breaking down so many barriers for his race and being a hero to the African American community for so many years, Armstrong began losing his standing with two segments of his audience: Modern jazz fans and young African Americans. Since New Orleans style jazz known to man, it was one of the broadest genres of jazz. Each of the books on jazz music will mention his name. His music had had a major effect on "swing" and the big band sound. Satch Plays Fats, a tribute to Fats Waller, became a Top Ten LP for Columbia in October 1955, and Verve Records contracted Armstrong for a series of recordings with Ella Fitzgerald, beginning with the chart LP Ella and Louis in 1956. Eldridge is the obvious link between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie. The record was released in 1964 and quickly climbed to the top of the pop music charts, hitting the No. He was an extraordinary musician and he impacted jazz music immensely. He faced tremendous adversity, ignorance and hatred in his life, and fought back without sinking to the level of those who opposed him. We all do 'do re mi,' but you have got to find the other notes yourself. Armstrong continued to appear in major films with the likes of Mae West, Martha Raye and Dick Powell. His fame rose when he composed several masterworks in the 1940s. In addition, his mother did not have a stable job and with his father long out of the picture, life was hard for young Armstrong. Despite failing to make a new record for two years, Armstrong remained a fan favorite. After a quick trip with a group of people to Venice, Mozart and his daddy returned back to his hometown Salzburg. WebLouis Armstrongs ability to use his career to change the music and jazz industry forever is another great example of why Louis Armstrong exhibits the right.