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.
Don’t Get Around Much Anymore
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Heard they crowded the floor
Couldn't bear it without you
Don't get around much anymore
Though I'd visit the club
Got as far as the door
They'd have asked me about you
Darling, I guess my mind's more at ease
But nevertheless why stir up memories?
Been invited on dates
Might have gone but what for?
Awf'lly diff'rent without you
Don't get around much anymore
Louis Armstrong’s “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” is a song that reflects on the singer's withdrawal from his old life of socializing and partying due to the absence of his love interest. The song starts with the singer explaining how he missed the Saturday dance and heard they crowded the floor, but he couldn't bear the scene without her, suggesting she was an important part of his life. He then explains that he visits the club and gets as far as the door, but didn't go in because they would have asked him about her. The song suggests that the singer's life without the love interest is unfulfilling and that he has withdrawn from his previous lifestyle.
The singer mentions how he has been invited on dates but did not attend because it's "awf'lly different" without her. The song's mood is melancholy and reflects a sense of loss due to the love interest's absence. The singer can't enjoy the things he used to enjoy before he met her because being without her feels unfulfilling.
In summary, the song speaks to the importance of love in people's lives, and how missing someone could make everything else, including enjoyable activities, feel unfulfilling.
Line by Line Meaning
Missed the Saturday dance
I didn't go to the dance on Saturday.
Heard they crowded the floor
I heard the dance was popular and well-attended.
Couldn't bear it without you
I didn't want to go without you because I miss you too much.
Don't get around much anymore
I don't go out and socialize as often as I used to since you're not here.
Though I'd visit the club
I considered going out to the club.
Got as far as the door
I only made it as far as the entrance.
They'd have asked me about you
I knew people at the club would ask about you and it would only remind me that you're not here.
Darling, I guess my mind's more at ease
I feel more relaxed and at peace now.
But nevertheless why stir up memories?
But why bring up the past and revisit old memories?
Been invited on dates
I've received invitations to go on dates with other people.
Might have gone but what for?
I considered going, but it wouldn't be the same without you here with me.
Awf'lly diff'rent without you
Everything feels so different and less enjoyable without you by my side.
Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Duke Ellington, Bob Russell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ganzano
You can literally HEAR the smile as he sings.
@fergieNH
Who could thumbs down this! The quality of the recording itself is amazing. And the talent is amazing!
@stevenwiederholt7000
Lot of stupid people out there.
@AD-yi3qz
I agree. They don't write music like this anymore.
@shaabella
Paul Ferg
@livecozen
Just NEVER gets old :)
@tommyboyindy1157
Duke plays behind the beat but holds it all together. What a brilliant artist.
@IIoveasl10
Two great musicians!
@IIoveasl10
I love that version! Although Duke's original version is great too!
@isorokudono
Judy Garland and Johnny Mercer is pretty good too.