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. With his instantly-recognizable gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser, bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes. He was also skilled at scat singing (vocalizing using sounds and syllables instead of actual lyrics).
Renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as for his trumpet-playing, Armstrong's influence extends well beyond jazz music, and by the end of his career in the 1960s, he was widely regarded as a profound influence on popular music in general. Armstrong was one of the first truly popular African-American entertainers to "cross over", whose skin-color was secondary to his music in an America that was severely racially divided. He rarely publicly politicized his race, often to the dismay of fellow African-Americans, but took a well-publicized stand for desegregation during the Little Rock Crisis. His artistry and personality allowed him socially acceptable access to the upper echelons of American society that were highly restricted for a black man.
Armstrong was born and brought up in New Orleans, a culturally diverse town with a unique musical mix of creole, ragtime, marching bands, and blues. Although from an early age he was able to play music professionally, he didn't travel far from New Orleans until 1922, when he went to Chicago to join his mentor, King Oliver. Oliver's band played primitive jazz, a hotter style of ragtime, with looser rhythms and more improvisation, and Armstrong's role was mostly backing. Slow to promote himself, he was eventually persuaded by his wife Lil Hardin to leave Oliver, and In 1924 he went to New York to join the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra. At the time, there were a few other artists using the rhythmic innovations of the New Orleans style, but none did it with the energy and brilliance of Armstrong, and he quickly became a sensation among New York musicians. Back in Chicago in 1925, he made his first recordings with his own group, Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five, and these became not only popular hits but also models for the first generation of jazz musicians, trumpeters or otherwise.
Other hits followed through the twenties and thirties, as well as troubles: crooked managers, lip injuries, mob entanglements, failed big-band ventures. As jazz styles changed, though, musical purists never lost any respect for him -- although they were sometimes irritated by his hammy onstage persona. Around the late forties, with the help of a good manager, Armstrong's business affairs finally stablilized, and he began to be seen as an elder statesman of American popular entertainment, appearing in Hollywood films, touring Asia and Europe, and dislodging The Beatles from the number-one position with Hello Dolly". Today many people may know him as a singer (a good one), but as Miles Davis said: “You can’t play nothing on modern trumpet that doesn’t come from him."
The 62-year-old Armstrong became the oldest act to top the US charts when "Hello Dolly" reached #1 in 1964. Four years later Satchmo also became the oldest artist to record a UK #1, when "What a Wonderful World" hit the top spot.
All of Me
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yes, can't you see? I'm no good without you
Take my lips, I want to lose them
Take my arms, I'll never use them
Oh baby, your goodbye left me with eyes that cry
How can I go on dear without you?
You took the part that once was my heart
The song "All of Me" by Louis Armstrong and His All Stars speaks of a person's desire to have their loved one take everything that they have because they feel incomplete without them. The first line of the chorus, "All of me, why not take all of me?" conveys the singer's willingness to give their all to their partner because they feel they cannot function without them. The second line, "Baby, can't you see I'm no good without you?" emphasizes this point even further. The chorus ends with a plea to take the singer's lips and arms, which they perceive as useless without their loved one.
The verse talks about the aftermath of the breakup. The singer's eyes are filled with tears, and they don't know how to move on without their partner. The line "You took the part that once was my heart" is particularly poignant, as it speaks to the emotional devastation caused by the end of the relationship. The verse ends with a repetition of the chorus and a plea for their partner to take all of them.
In summary, "All of Me" is a powerful love song that speaks to the depth of emotions that one feels when they have lost the person they love. It is a reminder that sometimes, we are willing to give everything we have to someone else because we cannot imagine life without them.
Line by Line Meaning
All of me, why not take all of me?
I am completely and unreservedly dedicated to you, so why not commit to me fully and without hesitation?
Baby, can't you see I'm no good without you?
My life and happiness are inextricably bound up in your presence and affection, making it impossible for me to exist without you.
Take my lips, I'll never use them
My ability to speak and express myself pales in comparison to the value of your own thoughts and feelings, so here they are for you to utilize as you see fit.
Take my arms, I want to lose them
My embrace and affection are yours to control, and I would gladly surrender them if it meant being closer to you in any way possible.
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry
The pain and heartbreak of your departure have left me emotionally vulnerable and unable to hide my sadness and tears.
Tell me how can I go on, dear, without you?
Your absence has left a void in my life that cannot be filled by anything or anyone else, and I am lost without your love.
You took the part that once was my heart
Your love captured and cherished a significant part of my being that was never given to anyone else before, making it impossible to retrieve or replicate.
So why not take all of me?
If you have already taken so much of me and left me incomplete without your presence, why not accept and possess all of me completely and forever?
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing, Cloud9, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
JUAN JOSE GONZALEZ
All of me
Why not take all of me
Can't you see
I'm no good without you
Take my lips
I want to lose them
Take my arms
I'll never use them
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry
How can I go on dear, without you
You took the part that once was my heart
So why not take all of me
paul murray
As a young girl, I lived about a quarter of a mile from the Newport Jazz festival. I sat on the porch one night with my friends and listened to this man.... I fell in love. Still am to this day!
Claud Piro
Paul? Young girl?
FizzyP
@Claud Piro 1. LOL I'd guess she's from a generation that does things like share email/youtube/facebook accounts because the concept of "partnership"still meant something. 2. Did you just assume Paul's gender?
Claud Piro
@FizzyP you are not paul.
Andrzej Owsikowski
I heard a lot of "All of Me" songs by different artists. This song is quite nice,. But performed by Louis Armstrong, it is just perfect! I really don't know how he did it, but his version of this song is just awesome!
Jason Dessing
A music track of great value and significance to musical history. Pops at his best! Astounding sound quality for a 1932 track. Cute idea with the hand-written lyrics!
taylorFc3129
it makes my day to know people still appreciate this music as much as i do :)
Antonio Tricolor
O que louis fazia com este trompete, ninguem nunca fez nem fara, sua voz inesquecivel e interpretaçao fantastica.
pablo lags
Genio de los Genios, Creo que Dios ya no enviara a la tierra alguien tan especial como Louis. Fue unico e irrepetible
Fantasticifaction
By far the most impressive voice ever.