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.
Boog It
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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Boog it, in the mellow track,
Boog it, dig it comin' back,
Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!
Boog it, everybody out,
Boog it, who ya hunchin' now?
Boog it, everybody bow,
You do like shinin' a window,
But you ain't got no window!
So you just picture a window,
And boog it, boog it, slow and easy.
Boog it, now you dig it Jack,
Boog it, that's the mellow track,
Boog it, got it comin' back,
Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!
Boog it, slow and eay, you-
Boog it, now you dig it Jack,
Boog it, that's the mellow track,
Boog it, got it comin' back,
Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!
Louis Armstrong's song "Boog It" is a fun and upbeat tune that expresses the joy that comes with being carefree and letting yourself enjoy the moment. The chorus repeats the phrase "Boog it" which can be interpreted as a variation of "let's get down" or "let's have fun." The song celebrates the art of dancing and encourages listeners to let go of their inhibitions and join in the fun.
The first verse "Boog it, nothin' to it Jack/ Boog it, in the mellow track/ Boog it, dig it comin' back/ Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!" establishes the mood for the song. It is a cheerful and playful invitation to dance to the rhythm that is described as "mellow." The final phrase "Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!" is most likely nonsense syllables used for rhythmic effect and to emphasize the festive atmosphere.
The second verse "Boog it, everybody out/ Boog it, who ya hunchin' now?/ Boog it, everybody bow/ Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!" continues with the idea of including everyone to join in the fun. The tone becomes more insistent as the song encourages the audience to "bow" to the rhythm and become a part of the celebration.
Line by Line Meaning
Boog it, nothin' to it Jack,
Let's dance and have a good time, it's easy and uncomplicated.
Boog it, in the mellow track,
Dance along with the relaxed and smooth music.
Boog it, dig it comin' back,
Enjoy the satisfaction that comes with dancing to great music and doing it again.
Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!
Expressing the joy of dancing with silly and rhythmic sounds.
Boog it, everybody out,
Time for everyone to start dancing.
Boog it, who ya hunchin' now?
Who are you trying to impress or dance alongside?
Boog it, everybody bow,
Acknowledging the end of the dance and everyone taking a bow.
You do like shinin' a window,
You have the skill of making something shine.
But you ain't got no window!
But you don't have a window to shine.
So you just picture a window,
Imagining a window to shine instead.
And boog it, boog it, slow and easy.
Dance at your own comfortable pace and enjoy it.
Boog it, slow and eay, you-
Dancing at a relaxed pace and feeling good about it.
Boog it, now you dig it Jack,
Now that you're comfortable, you're enjoying the dance, Jack.
Boog it, that's the mellow track,
The relaxed music provides a perfect backdrop for this fun dance.
Boog it, got it comin' back,
Having learned the dance, you'll be back to do it again soon.
Fim fam skim skam jim jam rock!
Having fun with the silly and rhythmic accompaniment of the dance.
Lyrics © REGENT MUSIC CORPORATION, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Buck Ram, Cab Calloway, Jack Palmer
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