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.
I Love You
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Searching for you and for you only
Oh, my darling, I love you so
Oh, my darling, my love is true
Longing for you, no one else will do
Oh, my darling, I love you so
I said to myself that I'd make you my own
Your brother caught us kissing
I though he would surely tell
Until he started playing those wedding bells
Now, my darling, I'm yours forever
Don't ever leave me; leave me never
Oh, my darling, I love you so
Oh, yes, it's true, now I have you
And best of all I know now
That I'll never have to be blue
Oh, baby, I love you so
I mean you, baby
The lyrics to Louis Armstrong's song, "I Love You," express deep feelings of love and devotion. The singer is confessing his love and declaring that he has been searching for his lover and no one else will do. Clearly, he is dedicated to this relationship and is willing to make a commitment to his lover. The song describes how the singer knew from the first moment he saw his lover that he belonged to her. He even was caught kissing her by her brother, but that didn't stop him from wanting to commit to her. The singer proclaims that he is now completely devoted to his lover, and he will never leave her.
The song conveys a heartfelt sentiment that is not often expressed in popular music. It is a romantic ode to the power of love and the warmth that comes from being in a committed relationship. The singer's deep affection for his lover comes through in every note, and the lyrics are meaningful and genuine. The song also has a lighthearted tone, with references to wedding bells and a sense of joy that comes from being in love. Ultimately, the lyrics to "I Love You" offer a beautiful expression of the power of love to transform lives and bring joy to those who embrace it.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, my darling, I was so lonely
I was feeling very alone before I met you, my beloved.
Searching for you and for you only
I was on a quest to find you, my one and only love.
Oh, my darling, I love you so
I have a deep and intense affection for you, my darling.
Oh, my darling, my love is true
My love for you is genuine and sincere, my beloved.
Longing for you, no one else will do
No one else can take your place, my heart only longs for you.
Oh, my darling, I love you so
I have a deep and intense affection for you, my darling.
When I first saw you, dear, I knew you were alone
I knew from the moment I saw you that you were missing someone special in your life.
I said to myself that I'd make you my own
I made a vow to myself that I would make you mine forever.
Your brother caught us kissing
Your sibling saw us embracing each other affectionately.
I thought he would surely tell
I was afraid that he would expose our secret to others.
Until he started playing those wedding bells
But to my surprise, he revealed that he was supportive of our love and was happy to hear the news of our wedding.
Now, my darling, I'm yours forever
I belong to you forever, my beloved.
Don't ever leave me; leave me never
Please never abandon me, I cannot imagine life without you by my side.
Oh, my darling, I love you so
I have a deep and intense affection for you, my darling.
Oh, yes, it's true, now I have you
I am ecstatic that I have finally found you and have you in my life, it's a dream come true.
And best of all I know now
And what's most amazing is that now I know for sure.
That I'll never have to be blue
I will never have to be sad or downhearted again because I have you.
Oh, baby, I love you so
I have a deep and intense affection for you, my baby.
I mean you, baby
Everything I've said is directed towards you, my sweet darling, I'm nothing without you.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MORRIS LEVY, SONNY NORTON
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