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.
Blue Skies
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Nothin' but blues skies do I see
Bluebirds singin' a song
There's nothin' but bluebirds all day long
Seems like all the days are hurryin' by
When you're in love, my, how they fly
Those blue days - all of them gone
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
Seems like all them days are hurryin' by
'Cause when you're in love, then, my, how they fly
Them blue days - all of 'em gone
And there's nothin' but blue skies from now on
The song "Blue Skies" by Louis Armstrong is an upbeat, optimistic tune about how love can change one's perspective on life. The first stanza talks about how the blue skies are literally smiling at the singer, and that they can only see blue skies around them. The blue skies here are a metaphor for the positive outlook the singer has on life. The second stanza introduces bluebirds, which are also a symbol of happiness and joy. The singer notes that these bluebirds are singing a song all day long, further emphasizing the happiness that love has brought into their life.
In the following stanzas, the singer talks about how time seems to fly by when you're in love, and how all the blue days from their past are now gone. The repetition of "nothin' but blue skies from now on" reinforces the idea that the singer's life is now filled with positivity and joy thanks to being in love. The song ends on a very optimistic note, with the singer implying that they will only experience blue skies for the rest of their life.
Overall, "Blue Skies" is a simple yet catchy tune that celebrates the transformative power of love. Through its repetition of key words and phrases, it reinforces the idea that love can help us see the world in a whole new light.
Line by Line Meaning
Blue skies smilin' at me
The singer notices the clear and bright blue skies and feels happy about it.
Nothin' but blues skies do I see
The singer only sees blue skies, meaning there are no clouds or negative thoughts on their mind.
Bluebirds singin' a song
The singer hears the cheerful chirping of the bluebirds and everything seems full of life.
There's nothin' but bluebirds all day long
The artist continues to hear the bluebirds' songs, which seems to carry on throughout the day.
Seems like all the days are hurryin' by
The days seem to be going by really quickly.
When you're in love, my, how they fly
The singer suggests that when you're in love, time goes by even faster.
Those blue days - all of them gone
The singer reflects on how all the gloomy and sad days are now in the past.
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
The artist is confident that nothing negative will happen in the future and it will only be clear skies ahead.
Seems like all them days are hurryin' by
The days continue to go by quickly.
'Cause when you're in love, then, my, how they fly
The artist reiterates that time goes by even faster when you're in love.
Them blue days - all of 'em gone
Another reminder that all the negative and sad days are in the past.
And there's nothin' but blue skies from now on
The artist is certain that only positive things are in store for the future.
Lyrics © Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Irving Berlin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Anonymous
on What A Wonderful World
What A Wonderful World - Casey Abrams - Lyrics
I see trees of green
Red roses too
I see them bloom
For me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
I see skies of blue
And clouds of white
The bright blessed day
The dark sacred night
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
The colors of the rainbow
So pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces
Of people going by
I see friends shaking hands
Singing how do you do
They're really singing
I love you
I hear babies cry
I watch them grow
They'll learn much more
Than I'll ever know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Musical Interlude
The colors of the rainbow
So pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces
Of people going by
I see friends shaking hands
Singing how do you do
They're really singing
I love you
I hear babies cry
I watch them grow
They goin’ learn much more
Than I'll ever know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
I think to myself
What a wonderful world