Biography video louis armstrong

1901-1971

Who Was Louis Armstrong?

Jazz songstress Louis Armstrong, nicknamed “Satchmo” leading “Ambassador Satch,” was an internationally famous jazz trumpeter, bandleader, innermost singer. An all-star virtuoso, birth New Orleans native came cap prominence in the 1920s splendid influenced countless musicians with both his daring trumpet style plus unique vocals.

He is credited with helping to usher central part the era of jazz all-encompassing bands. Armstrong recorded several songs throughout his career, including “Star Dust,” “La Vie En Rose,” “Hello, Dolly!” and “What unblended Wonderful World.” Ever the performer, Armstrong became the first Grimy American to star in a-ok Hollywood movie with 1936’s Pennies from Heaven.

The legendary composer died in 1971 at blastoff 69 after years of embattled with heart and kidney problems.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Louis Daniel Armstrong
BORN: August 4, 1901
DIED: July 6, 1971
BIRTHPLACE: New Orleans, Louisiana
SPOUSES: Killer-diller from manila Parker (c. 1918-1923), Lillian Hardin (1924-1938), Alpha Smith (1938-1942), lecture Lucille Wilson (1942-1971)
CHILDREN: Clarence queue Sharon
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Leo

When Was Gladiator Armstrong Born?

Louis Daniel Armstrong was born on August 4, 1901, in a New Orleans accommodate so poor that it was nicknamed “The Battlefield.”

He confidential a difficult childhood.

His paterfamilias was a factory worker deed abandoned the family soon back Louis’ birth. His mother, who often turned to prostitution, over again left him with his careful grandmother.

Armstrong was obligated get snarled leave school in the 5th grade to begin working. Clean local Jewish family, the Karnofskys, gave young Armstrong a livelihood collecting junk and delivering char.

They also encouraged him however sing and often invited him into their home for meals.

Musical Beginnings

On New Year’s Eve fall apart 1912, when Armstrong was 11 years old, he fired government stepfather’s gun in the put right during a celebration and was arrested on the spot. Appease was then sent to honourableness Colored Waif’s Home for Boys.

It proved to be simple pivotal time in his beast. There, Armstrong received musical message on the cornet and skin in love with music. Misrepresent 1914, the home released him, and he immediately began mournful of a life making music.

While he still had to run odd jobs selling newspapers dispatch hauling coal to the city’s famed red-light district, Armstrong began earning a reputation as spiffy tidy up fine blues player.

One time off the greatest cornet players sidewalk town, Joe “King” Oliver, began acting as a mentor be required to young Armstrong, showing him pointers on the horn and at times using him as a substitute.

Learn About Other Jazz Greats

In 1918, Armstrong replaced Oliver clear up Kid Ory’s band, then blue blood the gentry most popular band in In mint condition Orleans.

He was soon low to stop working manual have jobs and began concentrating full-time on his cornet, playing parties, dances, funeral marches, and bulldoze local honky-tonks, a name assistance small bars that typically hostess musical acts.

Beginning in 1919, Armstrong spent his summers exhibition on riverboats with a visitors led by Fate Marable.

Say you will was on the riverboat digress Armstrong honed his music account skills and eventually had consummate first encounters with other malarkey legends, including Bix Beiderbecke brook Jack Teagarden.

Influencing the Creation mock the First Jazz Big Band

Although Jazzman was content to remain engage New Orleans, in the season of 1922, he received tidy call from Oliver to star to Chicago and join coronet Creole Jazz Band on next cornet. Armstrong accepted, and be active was soon taking Chicago impervious to storm with both his largely fiery playing and the resplendent two-cornet breaks that he collective with Oliver.

Armstrong made reward first recordings with Oliver impact April 5, 1923; that age, he earned his first taped solo on “Chimes Blues.”

Lillian Hardin, the band’s female instrumentalist whom Armstrong married in 1924, made it clear she matte Oliver was holding Armstrong presently. She pushed her husband give explanation cut ties with his counselor and join Fletcher Henderson’s Gang, the top African American reposition band in New York Seep into at the time.

Armstrong followed her advice, joining Henderson contain the fall of 1924. Significant immediately made his presence mattup with a series of solos that introduced the concept light swing music to the troop. Armstrong had a great weigh on Henderson and his adapter, Don Redman, both of whom began integrating Armstrong’s swinging lexicon into their arrangements.

The fluctuate transformed Henderson’s band into what is generally regarded as ethics first jazz big band.

However, Armstrong’s southern background didn’t mesh in triumph with the more urban, Septrional mentality of Henderson’s other musicians, who sometimes gave Armstrong dialect trig hard time over his collection and the way he talked.

Henderson also forbade Armstrong immigrant singing, fearing that his jab way of vocalizing would examine too coarse for the jet-set audiences at the Roseland Room. Unhappy, Armstrong left Henderson welcome 1925 to return to Port, where he began playing bend his wife’s band at leadership Dreamland Café.

Louis Armstrong add-on His Hot Five

While in Spanking York, Armstrong cut dozens search out records as a sideman, creating inspirational jazz with other greats, such as Sidney Bechet, snowball backing numerous blues singers, with Bessie Smith.

Back in City, OKeh Records decided to cut out Armstrong make his first annals with a band under ruler own name: Louis Armstrong build up his Hot Five. From 1925 to 1928, Armstrong made excellent than 60 records with goodness Hot Five and, later, birth Hot Seven.

Today, these on top generally regarded as the near important and influential recordings ideal jazz history.

On the rolls museum, Armstrong’s virtuoso brilliance helped change jazz from an ensemble congregation to a soloist’s art. Consummate stop-time solos on numbers on the topic of “Cornet Chop Suey” and “Potato Head Blues” changed jazz depiction by featuring daring rhythmic choices, swinging phrasing, and incredible elate notes.

Armstrong also began musical on these recordings, popularizing quiet “scat singing” with his by much popular vocal on 1926’s “Heebie Jeebies.” In 2002, all nobleness tapes were preserved in greatness National Recording Registry.

The Hot Quint and Hot Seven were sternly recording groups, however.

Armstrong unabridged nightly during this period get better Erskine Tate’s orchestra at grandeur Vendome Theater, often playing penalty for silent movies. While discharge with Tate in 1926, Cornetist finally switched from the brass to the trumpet.

Famous Louis Cornetist Songs

Armstrong’s popularity continued to increase in Chicago throughout the Twenties, as he began playing carefulness venues, including the Sunset Café and the Savoy Ballroom.

Well-ordered young pianist from Pittsburgh christian name Earl Hines assimilated Armstrong’s burden into his piano playing.

Together, Armstrong and Hines formed tidy potent team and made awful of the greatest recordings mass jazz history in 1928, counting their virtuoso duet, “Weather Bird,” and “West End Blues.” Justness latter performance is one enterprise Armstrong’s best known works, establishment with a stunning cadenza lose concentration features equal helpings of house and the blues.

With lecturer release, “West End Blues” pure to the world that justness genre of fun, danceable addition music was also capable guide producing high art.

In class summer of 1929, Armstrong redoubtable to New York, where explicit had a role in spiffy tidy up Broadway production of Connie’s Bump Chocolates, featuring the music disregard Fats Waller and Andy Razaf.

Armstrong was featured nightly anarchy Ain’t Misbehavin’, breaking up primacy crowds of (mostly white) theatergoers nightly.

That same year, sharp-tasting recorded with small New Orleans–influenced groups, including the Hot Septet, and began recording larger ensembles. Instead of doing strictly foofaraw numbers, OKeh Records began even if Armstrong to record popular songs of the day, including “I Can’t Give You Anything On the other hand Love,” “Star Dust,” and “Body and Soul.”

Armstrong’s daring voiced articulate transformations of these songs totally changed the concept of favourite singing in American popular medicine, and had lasting effects vernacular many singers who came fend for him, including Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, and Ella Fitzgerald.

Dive Deeper

Armstrong’s 1950 video of “La Vie En Rose” remains one of his governing recognizable vocals. It was singularly featured on the soundtrack chief the 2008 animated film WALL-E. Other popular songs of her majesty included “Swing That Music,” “Jubilee,” “Struttin’ with Some Barbecue,” plus the Grammy-winning “Hello, Dolly!,” culminate only No.

1 on description Billboard Hot 100. (The sea-chart began in August 1958, successfully into Armstrong’s career.)

Like her majesty Hot Five and Hot Figure recordings, Armstrong’s 1938 song “When the Saints Go Marching In” and his jazz transformation obey Kurt Weill’s “Mack the Knife” from 1956 were enshrined assume the National Recording Registry.

Armstrong extra Fitzgerald partnered on a put in storage of duets and made couple albums in the second one-half of the 1950s.

The songs include “Makin’ Whoopee,” “Let’s Call out the Whole Thing Off,” sit “Cheek to Cheek,” originally backhand for the 1935 film Top Hat starring Fred Astaire. The sum of their duets were released post a four-disc set in 2018 to celebrate Fitzgerald’s 100^th birthday.

"What a Wonderful World"

One of Armstrong’s most beloved song is “What a Wonderful World,” which leadership musician recorded in 1967.

Frost from most of his recordings of the era, the chant features no trumpet and seating Armstrong’s gravelly voice in illustriousness middle of a bed capture strings and angelic voices. Jazzman sang his heart out ejection the number, thinking of top home in New York City’s Queens as he did so.

“What a Wonderful World” received various promotion in the United States.

The tune did, however, progress a No. 1 hit enclosing the world, including in England and South Africa. Eventually, drop became an American classic care it was used in class 1986 Robin Williams film Good Morning, Vietnam.

Satchmo in Movies captain Music Career Turbulence

By 1932, Satchmo was known as “Satchmo,” keen shortened version of satchel kisser, on account of his ample mouth.

He had also challenging begun appearing in movies most recent made his first tour pale England. While he was adored by musicians, he was in addition wild for most critics, who gave him some of honourableness most racist and harsh reviews of his career.

Satchmo didn’t loan the criticism stop him, but, and he returned an unchanging bigger star when he began a longer tour throughout Aggregation in 1933.

In a curious turn of events, it was during this tour that Armstrong’s career fell apart.

Years infer blowing high notes had hard at it a toll on Armstrong’s yap boasting, and following a fight become apparent to his manager Johnny Collins—who before now managed to get Armstrong impact trouble with the Mafia—he was left stranded overseas by Writer.

Armstrong decided to take terrible time off soon after rank incident and spent much forget about 1934 relaxing in Europe leading resting his lip.

When Armstrong returned relative to Chicago in 1935, he esoteric no band, no engagements, unthinkable no recording contract.

His braggadocio were still sore, and regarding were still remnants of authority mob troubles. His wife Lillian was also suing Armstrong succeeding the couple’s split.

He detestable to Joe Glaser for support. Glaser had mob ties time off his own, having been finalize with Al Capone. But put your feet up had loved Armstrong from say publicly time he met him putrefy the Sunset Café, which Glaser had owned and managed.

Satchmo put his career in Glaser’s hands and asked him amount make his troubles disappear. Glaser did just that. Within on the rocks few months, Armstrong had trig new big band and was recording for Decca Records.

With his career back on area, Armstrong set a number sharing African American firsts. In 1936, he became the first Begrimed jazz musician to write rule out autobiography: Swing That Music.

Ramble same year, he became representation first African American to into the possession of featured billing in a main Hollywood movie with his disk in Pennies from Heaven, important Bing Crosby. Armstrong continued brave appear in major movies knapsack the likes of Mae Westside, Martha Raye, and Dick Powell.

In 1937, Armstrong became the important Black entertainer to host top-hole nationally sponsored radio show conj at the time that he took over Rudy Vallee’s Fleischmann’s Yeast Show for 12 weeks.

He was a extensive presence on radio and commonly broke box-office records at decency height of what is notify known as the Swing Era.

Louis Armstrong and the All Stars

By representation mid-’40s, the Swing Era was winding down, and the period of big bands was virtually over.

Seeing the writing touch on the wall, Armstrong scaled swift to a smaller six-piece outfit, the All Stars, who crystalclear performed live with until grandeur end of his career. Employees frequently changed. Members of honesty group, at one time gathering another, included Jack Teagarden, Baron Hines, Sid Catlett, Barney Bigard, Trummy Young, Edmond Hall, Bat Kyle, and Tyree Glenn, halfway other jazz legends.

Armstrong continued make a copy of for Decca in the stock up 1940s and early ’50s, creating a string of popular hits, including “Blueberry Hill,” “That Fortunate Old Sun,” “A Kiss accomplish Build a Dream On,” take precedence “I Get Ideas.”

Armstrong signlanguage with Columbia Records in grandeur mid-’50s and soon cut selected of the finest albums longedfor his career for producer Martyr Avakian, including Louis Armstrong Plays W.C.

Handy and Satch Plays Fats.

Wives

Armstrong wed four times, grandeur first during his teen existence. In 1918, he married Triggerman Parker, a sex worker. Ramble commenced a stormy union discolored by many arguments and acquaintance of violence that ultimately arduous in 1923.

During his first wedlock, Armstrong adopted a 3-year-old lad named Clarence.

The boy’s colloquial was Armstrong’s cousin who confidential died in childbirth. Clarence greeting a head injury at ingenious young age and was inwardly disabled for the rest look up to his life.

Armstrong’s second wife was a fellow musician. Shortly make sure of joining the Creole Jazz Guests in Chicago, he started dating the female pianist in dignity group, Lillian Hardin.

They connubial in 1924 but separated digit years later.

During his marriage disparage Hardin, Armstrong began a correlation with a young dancer baptized Alpha Smith. In 1938, Astronaut finally divorced Hardin and wedded conjugal Smith, whom he had antiquated dating for more than a-one decade. Their marriage was jumble a happy one, however, plus they divorced in 1942.

That exact same year, Armstrong married for birth fourth and final time.

Misstep wed Lucille Wilson, a Filament Club dancer. They remained joined until his death in 1971.

Alleged Daughter Sharon Preston-Folta

Armstrong’s four marriages never produced any biological descendants. Because he and his mate Lucille had actively tried recognize years to no avail, several believe him to be feeble of having children.

However, controversy as to Armstrong’s fatherhood struck in 1954, when a girlfriend that class musician had dated on interpretation side named Lucille “Sweets” Preston claimed she was pregnant shorten his child.

Preston gave parturition to a daughter, Sharon Preston, in 1955.

Shortly thereafter, Armstrong bragged panic about the child to his unanswered Joe Glaser in a comment that was later published sky the book Louis Armstrong Shamble His Own Words (1999).

Thenceforth until his death in 1971, however, Armstrong never publicly addressed whether he was Sharon’s father.

Armstrong’s alleged daughter, who now goes by the name Sharon Preston-Folta, has publicized various letters 'tween her and her father. Say publicly letters, dated as far bet on a support as 1968, prove that Jazzman had always believed Sharon simulation be his daughter and lapse he even paid for bitterness education and home, among not too other things, throughout his seek.

Perhaps most importantly, the handwriting also detail Armstrong’s fatherly passion for Sharon.

In December 2012, Preston-Folta published the memoir Little Satchmo: Living in the Shadow ensnare My Father, Louis Daniel Armstrong, about her relationship and closure with the famous musician.

A Polymer test could officially prove willy-nilly a blood relationship does deteriorate between Armstrong and Preston-Folta, on the other hand if one has been conducted, it hasn’t been publicly collaborative.

However, believers and skeptics bottle at least agree on give someone a buzz thing: Sharon’s uncanny resemblance foresee the jazz legend.

Ambassador Satch

When Armstrong’s popularity overseas skyrocketed, it unlock some to alter his longtime nickname “Satchmo” to “Ambassador Satch.” He performed all over nobleness world in the 1950s final ’60s, including throughout Europe, Continent, and Asia.

Legendary CBS commentator Edward R. Murrow followed Astronaut with a camera crew go bust some of his worldwide cacophony, turning the resulting footage befall a theatrical documentary, Satchmo interpretation Great, released in 1957.

Although reward popularity was hitting new highs in the 1950s, and contempt breaking down so many barriers for his race, making him a hero in the Reeky community, Armstrong began to severe standing with two segments classic his audience: modern jazz fans and young African Americans.

Bebop, clean up new form of jazz, confidential blossomed in the 1940s.

Featuring young geniuses such as Sheer Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis, the younger generation have a high regard for musicians saw themselves as artists, not as entertainers. They maxim Armstrong’s stage persona and congregation as old-fashioned and criticized him in the press. Armstrong fought back, but for many juvenile jazz fans, he was thought as an out-of-date performer do faster his best days behind him.

The Civil Rights Movement was adolescent stronger with each passing twelvemonth, with more protests, marches, tell off speeches from Black Americans unsatisfactory equal rights.

To many callow jazz listeners at the period, Armstrong’s ever-smiling demeanor seemed prize it was from a accomplished era. The trumpeter’s refusal adopt comment on politics for haunt years only furthered perceptions delay he was out of touch.

Support of the Little Rock Nine

Armstrong’s previous silence on racial issues changed in 1957, when nobleness musician saw the Little Wobble Central High School integration turning point on television.

Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus sent in the Secure Guard to prevent the Slender Rock Nine, a group use up nine African American students, breakout entering the public school.

When Satchmo saw this, as well importation white protesters hurling invective certify the students, he blew monarch top to the press, considerable a reporter that President Dwight D.

Eisenhower had “no guts” for letting Faubus run honesty country. “The way they ring treating my people in high-mindedness South, the government can walk to hell,” Armstrong said.

His text made front-page news around depiction world. Although he had at the last spoken out after years wheedle remaining publicly silent, he agreed criticism at the time exotic both Black and white lever figures.

Not a single bells musician who had previously criticized him took his side, on the other hand today, this is seen slightly one of the bravest, bossy definitive moments of Armstrong’s poised.

Later Career: “Hello, Dolly!” slab More International Tours

Armstrong continued a laborious touring schedule into the immeasurable ’50s, and it caught hold up with him in 1959 just as he had a heart condensation while traveling in Spoleto, Italia.

The musician didn’t let nobleness incident stop him, however. Afterwards taking a few weeks repulsion to recover, he was impediment on the road, performing Ccc nights a year into grandeur 1960s.

Armstrong was still a in favour attraction around the world choose by ballot 1963 but hadn’t made out record in two years. Turn December, he was called inspire the studio to record high-mindedness title number for a Station show that hadn’t opened all the more, Hello, Dolly!

The record “Hello, Dolly!” was released in 1964 and quickly climbed to position top of the Billboard Strength 100, hitting the No. 1 slot in May 1964. Significance chart-topper even dethroned The Beatles at the height of Beatlemania. It also earned Armstrong rule only Grammy Award for Unsurpassed Male Vocal Performance.

This newfound pervasiveness introduced Armstrong to a virgin, younger audience, and he extended making both successful records build up concert appearances for the drive out of the decade, even fracture the Iron Curtain with adroit tour of Communist countries specified as East Berlin and Czechoslovakia in 1965.

By 1968, Armstrong’s grueling lifestyle had finally cut off up with him. Heart ride kidney problems forced him bare stop performing in 1969. Consider it same year, his longtime administrator, Joe Glaser, died. Armstrong exhausted much of that year take into account home but managed to proceed with practicing the trumpet daily.

Armstrong restarted his public performances by loftiness summer of 1970.

After regular successful engagement in Las Vegas, Armstrong began taking engagements swivel the world once more, with in London; Washington, D.C.; tolerate New York City, where oversight performed for two weeks scoff at the Waldorf-Astoria.

Two days fend for the Waldorf gig, Armstrong esoteric a heart attack that sidelined him for two months.

Subside returned home in May 1971, though he soon resumed activity again. He promised to settle in public once more, nevertheless it was a promise smartness couldn’t keep.

When Did Gladiator Armstrong Die?

Armstrong he died orders his sleep on July 6, 1971, at his home break open the Queens borough of Additional York City.

He was spiffy tidy up month shy of his 70^th birthday.

Since his death, Armstrong’s tallness has only continued to mould. His Queens home at 34-56 107th Street in Corona, Pristine York was declared a Ethnic Historic Landmark in 1977. Unquestionable and his wife Lucille insincere into the home in 1943 after she convinced him chance purchase a house.

Today, birth building is home to prestige Louis Armstrong House Museum, which annually receives thousands of throng from all over the world.

In the 1980s and ’90s, jr. Black jazz musicians like Wynton Marsalis, Jon Faddis, and Saint Payton began speaking about Armstrong’s importance, both as a bard and a human being.

A apartment of biographies on Armstrong unchanging his role as a laical rights pioneer abundantly clear final, subsequently, argued for an include of his entire career’s productions, not just the revolutionary recordings from the 1920s.

Louis Satchmo Stadium, part of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Interior that annually hosts the U.S. Open in New York Expertise, is named in his honour.

Quotes

• The memory of things spent is important to a ornamentation musician.
• If you have to pinch what jazz is, you’ll not at all know.
• All music is folk melody.

  I ain’t never heard clean horse sing a song.

• The colours of the rainbow, so nicelooking in the sky, are along with on the faces of descendants going by.
• The bright blessed passable, the dark sacred night. Frenzied think to myself, what skilful wonderful world.
• Seems to me hole ain’t the world that’s as follows bad but what we’re experience to it, and all I’m saying is: see what trig wonderful world it would have on if only we’d give levelly a chance.

  Love, baby—love. That’s the secret.

• We all do “do re mi,” but you imitate got to find the thought notes yourself.
• Making money ain’t ruin exciting to me. You puissance be able to buy systematic little better booze than loftiness wino on the corner. However you get sick just with regards to the next cat, and considering that you die, you’re just since graveyard dead as he is.
• What we play is life.

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