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.
How High the Moon
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How faint the tune
Somewhere there's heaven
How high the moon
There is no moon above
When love is far away too
Till it comes true
That you love me as I love you
Somewhere there's music
How near, how far
Somewhere there's heaven
It's where you are
The darkest night would shine
If you would come to me soon
Until you will, how still my heart
How high the moon
Somewhere there's music
How faint the tune
Somewhere there's heaven
How high the moon
The darkest night would shine
If you would come to me soon
Until you will, how still my heart
How high the moon
The lyrics to Louis Armstrong's song How High the Moon evoke the feeling of being lost in thought, imagining a world where love is present and music is always playing. The opening lines "Somewhere there's music, How faint the tune" create a dreamlike atmosphere, as if the music is just out of reach. "Somewhere there's heaven, How high the moon" suggests a place where everything is perfect and wonderful, where love and hope reign. The song is about longing for love, waiting for it to come, and being in a state of suspended animation until that happens.
The next verse continues the theme of longing and waiting: "There is no moon above, When love is far away too, Till it comes true, That you love me as I love you." The absence of the moon represents the emptiness and despair that comes with a loveless life. When love finally arrives, everything changes and joy fills the heart. The line "It's where you are" suggests that love is not just a feeling, but a person, someone who brings light to the darkness.
The final verse repeats the previous ones, emphasizing the longing for love and the hope that it will arrive soon. "The darkest night would shine, If you would come to me soon, Until you will, how still my heart, How high the moon." The song ends with a plea for love to arrive and the promise that when it does, everything will be perfect.
Line by Line Meaning
Somewhere there's music
There is music somewhere in the world that I may not be able to hear right now, but it exists.
How faint the tune
The melody of that music may be very soft or low, so it's hard to detect from far away.
Somewhere there's heaven
There is a place or a state of mind that feels heavenly, although it might not be within my reach at the moment.
How high the moon
This heaven is so awesome and perfect, it feels like it's as high and unreachable as the moon.
There is no moon above
In reality, the moon itself might not be present, just as I might not be feeling the presence of love or happiness.
When love is far away too
Love, that special feeling of connection and affection, can also be distant and out of reach at times.
Till it comes true
But I am hopeful that one day love will come to me, just like the moon might appear again in the sky.
That you love me as I love you
That hope is related to love being reciprocated, as I want the person I care about to feel the same way towards me.
How near, how far
Love and happiness can seem close or far, depending on the circumstances and my own mood or perception.
It's where you are
But ultimately, wherever the person I care about is, that's where heaven is, as they bring joy and comfort to my life.
The darkest night would shine
Even in the worst situations, if that person were to be with me, everything would seem brighter and better.
If you would come to me soon
I wish they could come to me as soon as possible, so we could overcome any obstacles together.
Until you will, how still my heart
Yet in the meantime, I feel anxious and uneasy, as my heart is waiting and longing for them.
How high the moon
Even though the distance between us might feel overwhelming, the love I have for them keeps my spirits up and my hopes high.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Morgan Lewis, Nancy Hamilton
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
eposhivanik
There isn't more sexier musicians than the bassists, and no more sexier musical instrument than bass... What a powerful and gentle sound at the same time...
Yako Milisich
yesssssssss
Honey Bee
Quite possibly the greatest bass solo in the history of live music!
familykorn
Simply the best bass solo I have ever heard
Christophe Cousin
Observe how Louis Armstrong stayed behind even when playing again...respect !
Marianne Cousin
Exceptionnel !!!!
2dasimmons
Tremendous. He really was THE king of jazz.
rutgervz
true leaders do that
Marginal
It was also necessary. If you ever heard and saw Louis in person, his sound would have dominated. Recall the first time , in the 'old tin shed' (Sydney Stadium, Rushcutters Bay) in Sydney when he walked onto the stage playing. I looked and asked myself - where does he hide the microphone? He did not need one. If you read about his 'Hot Five' and 'Hot Seven' recordings, he had to stay way behind the band since there was only one mike.
Peter Kerville
I count myself very fortunate to have been in the audience in the Sydney Stadium (an old boxing venue) at the age of 20, for Louis' performance.