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. 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. 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. Why was Louis Armstrong important to New Orleans? Henderson also forbade Armstrong from singing, fearing that his rough way of vocalizing would be too coarse for the sophisticated audiences at the Roseland Ballroom. Show More. Armstrong was one of the first very popular, Being raised in a part of New Orleans known as "The Battlefield" because of its faulty economic situation is not ideal. The passion for his music made him become famous because he was following his dreams while finding his, How Is Louis Daniel Armstrong Morally Responsible, Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 - July 6, 1971) grew up in a poor neighborhood nicknamed The Battlefield in New Orleans, Louisiana. Here are 10 facts about the life of one of the 20th century's most important jazz musicians. 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. Louis Armstrong is one of the most influential jazz musicians of all time. Seems to me it ain't the world that's so bad but what we're doing to it, and all I'm saying is: see what a wonderful world it would be if only we'd give it a chance. By February 1927, Armstrong was well-enough known to front his own group, Louis Armstrong & His Stompers, at the Sunset Caf in Chicago. All Rights Reserved. Then along came a bare-knuckled comedy called Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). 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. He showed an early interest in music, and a junk dealer for whom he worked as a grade-school student helped him buy a cornet, which he taught himself to play. But, as a Bayou State native, Armstrongs favorite dish was always rice and beans. 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. He returned to performing in 1970 but it was too much, too soon and he passed away in his sleep on July 6, 1971, a few months after his final engagement at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. Heebie Jeebies and Hotter Than That, was some of the earliest recordings of Armstrongs scat singing., He was a major piece in the history of jazz music and his career lasted for more than 50 years. He was also a frequent presence on radio, and often broke box-office records at the height of what is now known as the "Swing Era. He started as a soloist for Henderson after marrying Lil Hardin. ", Armstrong signed with Columbia Records in the mid-'50s, and soon cut some of the finest albums of his career for producer George Avakian, including Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Mentored by the citys top cornetist, Joe King Oliver, Armstrong soon became one of the most in-demand cornetists in town, eventually working steadily on Mississippi riverboats. 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 was employed by a Jewish family who encouraged him to sing. ", During the mid-'50s, Armstrong's popularity overseas skyrocketed. Sources: Armstrong spent his youth singing on the street for spare change, but he didnt receive any formal musical training until age 11. 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. 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. Clarence, who had become mentally disabled from a head injury he had suffered at an early age, was taken care of by Armstrong his entire life. Louis Armstrong was called "the single most important figure in the history of jazz" by Billboard magazine, a publication that tracks the recording industry. One day, they even advanced him the $5 he used to buy his very first horn. That same year, Armstrong married for the fourth and final time; he wed Lucille Wilson, a Cotton Club dancer. 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. You might be able to buy a little better booze than the wino on the corner. Related. Louis Armstrong was the most important and influential musician in jazz history. See answer (1) Best Answer. Armstrong felt that being subservient to white people, was an unfortunately necessary evil in order for him to live successfully and happily. He sang much as he played, but with a playfulness and a rasp, that would forever be part of American culture (Winfield 167). Why is Louis Armstrong important in the 20's? 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 1988, music historian Thaddeus Tad Jones located a baptismal record at New Orleanss Sacred Heart of Jesus Church. With the decline of swing music in the post-World War II years, Armstrong broke up his big band and put together a small group dubbed His All-Stars, which made its debut in Los Angeles on August 13, 1947. He also took a series of small parts in motion pictures, beginning with Pennies from Heaven in December 1936, and he continued to record for Decca, resulting in the Top Ten hits "Public Melody Number One" (August 1937), "When the Saints Go Marching In" (April 1939), and "You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)" (April 1946), the last a duet with Ella Fitzgerald. WebLouis Armstrong is arguably the most important musician that the United States has ever produced (Shipton 160). By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. 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. After a successful engagement in Las Vegas, Armstrong began taking engagements around the world, including in London and Washington, D.C. and New York (he performed for two weeks at New York's Waldorf-Astoria). 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. The brilliance of his playing, the warmth of his vocals, and his integrity as a human being simply inspires me. Armstrong was featured nightly on Ain't Misbehavin', breaking up the crowds of (mostly white) theatergoers nightly. Previously, Armstrong had performed throughout Europe, Asia, and Africathough he famously canceled a planned 1957 Soviet Union tour, citing the recent Little Rock crisis. In fifth grade, while being taken care of by his maternal grandmother most of the time, he left school to work. He also began appearing in the orchestra of Hot Chocolates, a Broadway revue, and was given a featured spot singing "Ain't Misbehavin'." It was on the riverboat that Armstrong honed his music reading skills and eventually had his first encounters with other jazz legends, including Bix Beiderbecke and Jack Teagarden. In December of that year, he was called into the studio to record the title number for a Broadway show that hadn't opened yet: Hello, Dolly! The movie he appeared in was Pennies from Heaven (1936). The most important and influential musician in jazz history, and one of the leading singers and entertainers from the 1920s through the '50s. Despite failing to make a new record for two years, Armstrong remained a fan favorite. Between the two, Armstrong has been the more unsullied figure in historical treatments and biographies. The year 1956 saw Louisiana prohibit integrated bands. The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky are also on the faces of people going by. 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. The year is 1954. Despite failing to make a new record for two years, Armstrong remained a fan favorite. In 1922, King Oliver sent for Armstrong to join his band in Chicago. In fact, before marrying his fourth wife, he made sure that she could cook a satisfactory plateful. Aristotle did not consider children as morally responsible as adults because they have not had sufficient time to move beyond their backgrounds and upbringing. He performed all over the world in the 1950s and '60s, including throughout Europe, Africa and Asia. Armstrong's words made front-page news around the world. 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. Louis was born in New Orleans where he grew up and learned to play the trumpet. Mozart, in his own traditional ways, the right away he did the first three of his 22 performances at that opera. Armstrong made his first trip abroad, to Europe, and received the nickname Satchmo from his original nickname Satchelmouth, because of his big lips. He was a groundbreaking musician and a pioneer in the development of jazz music. In 1947, the waning popularity of the big bands forced Armstrong to begin fronting a small group, Louis Armstrong and His All Stars. 1 slot in May 1964, and knocking the Beatles off the top at the height of Beatlemania. The man was Louis Armstrong. .css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}DOWNLOAD BIOGRAPHY'S LOUIS ARMSTRONG FACT CARD. (She was the second of his four wives.) Why was Louis Armstrong important to the Harlem Renaissance? If the gun was not so easily accessible, his firing it and being arrested could have been prevented. It won him a Grammy for best vocal performance. Not a single jazz musician who had previously criticized him took his side but today, this is seen as one of the bravest, most definitive moments of Armstrong's life. On New Years Eve 1912, he was arrested and sent to the Colored Waifs Home for Boys. He returned to Chicago in the spring of 1932 to front a band led by Zilner Randolph; the group toured around the country. This was the first time anyone had ever recorded this technique known as scat singing. 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 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. Finding Yourself, Dropping, Halfway. Louis Armstrong is famous for his stunning jazz performance, unique vocals, and amazing styles with the trumpet/cornet. 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. His rise to fame peaked in the 1920s, where he stunned the world with his bold trumpet style and idiosyncratic vocals. WebLouis Armstrong was the most important and influential musician in jazz history. WebA 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. Louis Armstrong used to give away laxatives as gifts. He is also the first African American celebrity to appear in a major Hollywood movie. The record was released in 1964 and quickly climbed to the top of the pop music charts, hitting the No. He adds, "He was also more than a jazz musician he was an enormously popular entertainer"(pp. 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. These views changed in 1957, when Armstrong saw the Little Rock Central High School integration crisis on television. Armstrong was still a popular attraction around the world in 1963, but hadn't made a record in two years. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. By the '50s, Armstrong was widely recognized, even traveling the globe for the US. Eldridge is the obvious link between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie. He was from a very poor family and was sent to reform school when he was twelve after firing a gun in the air on New Year's Eve. Why is Louis Armstrong important to blacks? The lights dim, and the velvet curtains slide open. Many great performers have come out of the jazz industry, but the most widely known is Louis Satchmo Armstrong. With his amazing voice trumpet he created a band and made some records. Armstrong was featured in the 1969 film of Hello, Dolly!, performing the title song as a duet with Barbra Streisand. 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. Jelly Roll, Doctor Jazz, Original Jelly Roll Blues, and many other famous pieces. 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. This led some to alter his long-time nickname, Satchmo, to "Ambassador Satch.". Released from the Waifs Home in 1914, Armstrong set his sights on becoming a professional musician. He was a master of the trumpet and cornet, and his style of playing was unique and instantly recognizable. His Top Ten version of "Hobo, You Can't Ride This Train," in the charts in early 1933, was on Victor Records; when he returned to the U.S. in 1935, he signed to the recently formed Decca Records and quickly scored a double-sided Top Ten hit, "I'm in the Mood for Love"/"You Are My Lucky Star.". Louis gave jazz music a purpose. Armstrong brought. Armstrong fought back, but for many young jazz fans, he was regarded as an out-of-date performer with his best days behind him. To earn money, Armstrong sang on street corners, sold newspapers, and delivered coal. But you get sick just like the next cat and when you die you're just as graveyard dead as he is. William Armstrong, his father, was a factory worker who abandoned the family soon after the boy's birth. He influenced other jazz musicians by his fearless trumpet styles and distinctive vocals. Armstrong was brought up by his mother, Mary (Albert) Armstrong, and his maternal grandmother. Only Charlie Parker comes close to having as much influence on the history of Jazz as Louis Armstrong did. The civil rights movement was growing stronger with each passing year, with more protests, marches and speeches from African Americans wanting equal rights. Louis Armstrong. In 1922, his mentor, King Oliver, invited him to work his Creole Jazz Band in Chicago. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. 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). Armstrong and Oliver became the talk of the town with their intricate two-cornet breaks and started making records together in 1923. Every time I close my eyes blowing that trumpet of mine, I look right into the heart of good old New Orleans. He is remembered as the most influential artist in the early development of jazz. (Armstrong did not function as a bandleader in the usual sense, but instead typically lent his name to established groups.) In July, Armstrong sailed to England for a tour. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Louis Armstrong, also known as Ambassador Satch, was unofficially adopted by a family of Jewish immigrants from Lithuania who had a junk hauling business in Louisiana. Louis Armstrong was an outstanding jazz musician during the Harlem Renaissance Era. Thereafter until his death in 1971, however, Armstrong never publicly addressed whether he was in fact Sharon's father. He was released on June 16, 1914, and did manual labor while trying to establish himself as a musician. In a 1951 interview with Esquire, Armstrong claimed to have come prepared with printed lyrics that day. At His Majestys command, several of the biggest names in jazz took their talents to Buckingham Palace, and in 1932, Armstrong was requested for a royal performance. 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. See answer (1) Best Answer. 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. .State Department and earning the nickname "Ambassador Satch." 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. At the school he learned to play cornet. 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). Changing jazz into what was once known as a ensemble music to soloist art. The tune did, however, become a No. In 1914, the home released him, and he immediately began dreaming of a life making music. West End Blues by Louis Armstrong is one of the most important songs in jazz. 1. He was also a talented singer, and his recordings of songs like What a 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. Aint that stupid? Copy. Contracted to OKeh Records, he began to make a series of recordings with studio-only groups called the Hot Fives or the Hot Sevens. As if it were not enough that Armstrong would rewire instrumental music for the rest of the century, his singing did the same for vocal music. They saw Armstrong's stage persona and music as old-fashioned and criticized him in the press. Louis Armstrong was an American jazz musician who was one of the most influential figures in jazz music. WebThrough the internet and books we find out why Louis Armstrong is such a great person to learn about. "What a Wonderful World" peaked on the U.S. music charts after Armstrong passed away. Some even theorize that it was Armstrongs difficult upbringing that made his music so wise, so unique, and so revolutionary. 1 hit around the world, including in England and South Africa, and eventually became one of Armstrong's most-beloved songs after it was used in the 1986 Robin Williams film Good Morning, Vietnam.