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.
Among My Souvenirs
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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There's just a memory among my souvenirs
Some letters tied in blue, a photograph or two
I see a rose from you among my souvenirs
A few more tokens rest within my treasure chest
And though they do their best to give me consolation
I count them all apart and as the teardrops start
I find a broken heart among my souvenirs
I count them all apart and as the teardrops start
I find a broken heart among my souvenirs
Louis Armstrong's "Among My Souvenirs" is a poignant ballad that speaks about the feeling of nostalgia and loss. The lyrics speak about how there is nothing left of the days that used to be, and there is only a memory left among the souvenirs. The song focuses on the different tokens of the past, such as letters tied in blue, a photograph, and a rose from someone. The singer feels comforted by these tokens, but they also bring a sense of loss and heartbreak.
The song's melody is simple yet powerful, and Armstrong's soulful voice adds to the emotion behind the lyrics. The phrase "I find a broken heart among my souvenirs" is especially poignant, as it speaks to the pain and longing that can come with memories of the past. The song's overall message is that even though things have changed and time has passed, the memories of the past still hold a special place in our hearts.
Line by Line Meaning
There's nothing left for me of days that used to be
I no longer have any remnants of my past memories.
There's just a memory among my souvenirs
Only a single recollection remains among my accumulated keepsakes.
Some letters tied in blue, a photograph or two
A small bundle of blue ribbons along with a couple of photo prints.
I see a rose from you among my souvenirs
I have a rose that you gave me which I cherish as a keepsake.
A few more tokens rest within my treasure chest
A few more collectibles that I've saved away in my cherished chest.
And though they do their best to give me consolation
These items try their best to comfort me amid the loss of my memories.
I count them all apart and as the teardrops start
I separate and count each item as tears of sorrow begin to fall.
I find a broken heart among my souvenirs
In the end, all that's left is my broken heart, among my collection of keepsakes.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Edgar Leslie, Lawrence Wright
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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