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.
Cain and Abel
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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Once they were in a scandal that shook the town.
Cain became mighty jealous of brother Abel,
So he rose up and smote Abel down.
Now the Lord sure was hopping mad,
And yet he was plenty sad,
to think that he had a man like Cain.
The Lord spoke and showed his wrath,
And Cain walked the path
That led to a life full of pain.
You can't run from the shadow of retribution.
If you're bad then you gotta pay for your wrongs.
Let yourself take a lesson from Cain and Able:
Don't lament, be content,
Don't resent what the Lord has sent,
And you'll find that you're bound to get along.
Louis Armstrong's song "Cain and Abel" is a retelling of the biblical story of the first murder committed on earth. It tells the tale of Cain, who becomes jealous of his younger brother Abel and murders him in a fit of rage. God shows his displeasure with Cain's actions and punishes him, making him a wanderer on the earth.
The song is a cautionary tale about the dangers of jealousy and resentment. It shows that when we allow these emotions to take over, we can end up committing terrible deeds that we will later regret. The lyrics also suggest that we should learn from Cain's mistakes and be content with what we have, rather than resentful of others. By doing so, we can avoid the same fate as Cain and live a more peaceful and fulfilled life.
Line by Line Meaning
Now have you read of the fable of Cain and Abel?
Have you heard the moralistic story of the two brothers Cain and Abel?
Once they were in a scandal that shook the town.
They were involved in a shameful event that stirred up the entire town.
Cain became mighty jealous of brother Abel,
Cain felt intense envy towards his own brother Abel.
So he rose up and smote Abel down.
He attacked and killed Abel in a fit of rage.
Now the Lord sure was hopping mad,
The Lord was undoubtedly furious.
And yet he was plenty sad,
But at the same time, he was deeply sorrowful.
to think that he had a man like Cain.
He lamented the fact that someone like Cain was from his own creation.
The Lord spoke and showed his wrath,
The Lord spoke out in anger and displayed his fury.
And Cain walked the path
Cain went on to follow the course of action
That led to a life full of pain.
which ended up causing him a great deal of suffering.
You can't run from the shadow of retribution.
It's impossible to escape from the consequences of one's actions.
If you're bad then you gotta pay for your wrongs.
If you engage in immoral activities, you will have to face the repercussions.
Let yourself take a lesson from Cain and Able:
Take a page out of Cain and Abel's book:
Don't lament, be content,
Don't complain, be satisfied,
Don't resent what the Lord has sent,
Don't hold a grudge against what God has given you,
And you'll find that you're bound to get along.
And you'll discover that you'll be able to live in harmony.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BELLE FENSTOCK, JULES LOMAN
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