An all-star virtuoso, he came to prominence in the s, influencing countless musicians with both his daring trumpet style and unique vocals. Armstrong's charismatic stage presence impressed not only the jazz world but all of popular music. Louis Armstrong was born on August 4, , in New Orleans, Louisiana, in a neighborhood so poor that it was nicknamed "The Battlefield. Armstrong had a difficult childhood: His father was a factory worker and abandoned the family soon after Louis's birth. His mother, who often turned to prostitution, frequently left him with his maternal grandmother.
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“If ya ain't got it in ya, ya can't blow it out.” -Louis Armstrong
Louis Daniel Armstrong August 4, — July 6, , nicknamed " Satchmo ", [a] " Satch ", and " Pops ", [2] was an American trumpeter , composer, vocalist, and actor who was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades, from the s to the s, and different eras in the history of jazz. Armstrong was born and raised in New Orleans.
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His final document, with the rationale for selecting each tune, consumes 16 pages and can be found at tinyurl. In the interest of space, the following summaries highlight his take on each of the 20 recordings. For the next minute, Armstrong swarms Bechet with an endless torrent of fiery playing, including a pair of dazzling, mind-bending breaks. Bechet is barely heard for the rest of the performance. Armstrong began making records under his own name and assembled a studio group made up of his wife Lil on piano and three elders from his New Orleans days: trombonist Kid Ory, clarinetist Johnny Dodds and banjoist Johnny St. Working relentlessly in Chicago, he was perfecting not only his trumpet playing, but also his singing, scatting, showmanship and overall stage presence. Armstrong began touring the country as a leader, often fronting different bands from city to city.
And now that the Royal Family has introduced Prince Louis to the world , we couldn't help but think of perhaps the world's most famous and favourite namesake: Louis Armstrong. Co-writer George David Weiss later said he always hoped Louis would perform it, as he was inspired by Armstrong's ability to bring people of different races together. It wasn't initially a hit in the United States, selling fewer than 1, copies, but was a huge success in the UK, where Louis became the oldest ever star to have a number one single, aged The song's title is taken from Bond's final words in both the novel and the film, spoken after his wife's death. Barry chose Armstrong because he felt he could "deliver the title line with irony". It became a Top 10 hit in the UK in , after its use in a Guinness advert. Ray Charles may have recorded the most famous version of this jazz standard, but Louis also made a beautiful cut. Written in by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell, it was later made the official song of the state of Georgia in Three years before Bobby Darin scored a huge jazz hit around the world with this song, Louis Armstrong had the first record with it. English lyrics were then added by Gifford Cochran and Jerrold Krimsky in
