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: βYou canβt play nothing on modern trumpet that doesnβt 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.
Home
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Look at them syncopators
Goin' home, oh going home
Look at those demonstrators
Talk of town
Green and brown
Pickin' 'em up and layin' 'em down
That's what they like to call' em
They're in a class of their own
The only way for them to lose is to cheat 'em
You may try but you'll never beat 'em
Strut that stuff
They don't do nothin' different
Cake walkin' babies from home
In Louis Armstrong's song Home, the lyrics are depicting jubilant and boisterous African Americans parading down the street, dancing to the rhythm of their own beat. The song is essentially an homage to the uniquely American style of dance known as the "cake walk", where African American slaves would mock the intricate dances of their oppressors in a display of subverted power. As the song progresses, Armstrong takes swipes at those who ridicule the dancers, calling them "prancing fools" who don't know what they're missing out on.
Overall, the song is a celebration of home, community, and cultural identity. It's a reminder that, despite the challenges and injustices faced by African Americans at the time, they were still able to come together and find joy and belonging in the midst of it all.
Line by Line Meaning
There they come, oh here we come
We are approaching and there are others coming as well.
Look at them syncopators
Observe those who play syncopated music.
Goin' home, oh going home
We are leaving to go home.
Look at those demonstrators
See those who are showing support for something.
Talk of town
The subject of discussion among many people in the town.
Green and brown
These are colors that are prevalent or significant in the town.
Pickin' 'em up and layin' 'em down
Referring to moving the feet while walking or dancing.
Prancin' fools (oh prancin' fools)
Those who are dancing wildly or showing off with their movements (in a playful way).
That's what they like to call' em
This is a nickname given to them (prancin' fools).
They're in a class of their own
Their dancing abilities are unique and set them apart from others.
The only way for them to lose is to cheat 'em
They are very skilled dancers and the only way to beat them would be to break the rules or cheat.
You may try but you'll never beat 'em
You can attempt to beat them, but it is unlikely you will succeed.
Strut that stuff
Show off one's dancing skills or style.
They don't do nothin' different
Despite their unique dancing abilities, they do not do anything that is drastically different from others.
Cake walkin' babies from home
This could be referring to the dancers being comfortable or familiar with their dancing style, similar to how walking is natural for babies who have not yet learned to dance.
Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CLARENCE WILLIAMS, CHRIS SMITH, HENRY TROY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
uppercut grandma
I like how they got a guy with the exact opposite voice of Louis to do the house tour.
Ant "D"
Great history. This is a great "virtual" tour. Guess I have to put this on my bucket list next time Im in New York,
Sue Chef
My husband and I visited just before the pandemic, very charming place like its occupants. Highly recommended.
KIRDOUSAN
A casa do Armstrong Γ© muito mais bonita do que a casa do Elvis Presley!! Armstrong tinha bom gosto!
boomerang905
Great taste Mr. Armstrong.
boomerang905
Addis Mitchell π
boomerang905
Addis Mitchell morning!
Kelly K
I donβt think heβs pronouncing Louis the way Armstrong preferred
MrCabimero
To all the people who are making derogatory comments about the narrator- lighten up. It's 2022, so how about accepting people for who they are, even if they sound different than you. The world is falling apart right now, and all you can do is pick on someone? Get a life.
To the narrator, thanks for the tour. I have passed by the outside years ago; I lived in Queens. Nice to see how well it has been kept all these years later.
Celestine Green
Lovely and I like that it's a brick house