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 Only Have Eyes For You
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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I don't know if it's cloudy or bright
'Cause I only have eyes for you, dear
The moon may be high
But I can't see a thing in the sky
'Cause I only have eyes for you
Or on a crowded avenue
You are here, so am I
Maybe millions of people go by
But they all disappear from view
And I only have eyes for you
Yeah, are the stars out tonight?
I don't know if it's cloudy or bright
'Cause I only have eyes for you, dear
Babe, the moon may be high
But I can't see a thing in the sky
'Cause I only have eyes for you
Oh, baby, I don't know if we're in a garden
Or on a crowded avenue
You are here, so am I
Maybe a million people go by
But they all disappear from view
Yes, mama, I only have eyes for you
Louis Armstrong's "I Only Have Eyes for You" is a soulful ballad that speaks of an overwhelming love that makes the world outside of the lovers' experience redundant. The lyrics are pretty straightforward, yet there is a profound subtext that hints at the depth of love between two people. The song's central theme is the undying love one has for another, making them forget the world around them.
The first verse asks if the stars are out tonight, but the singer doesn't know if it’s cloudy or bright but that doesn't matter because they only have eyes for their beloved. The second verse describes that the moon may be high, but the singer can't see anything in the sky because they only have eyes for their paramour, and it doesn't matter if they’re in a garden or on a busy avenue because they only have eyes for their sweetheart. The last verse emphasizes that possibly a million people could walk by, but they all disappear from view, and the only person the singer sees is their love. It suggests that nothing else exists outside the lovers' bubble.
Line by Line Meaning
Are the stars out tonight?
I am so captivated by you that I am oblivious to the beautiful night sky and anything happening around us.
I don't know if it's cloudy or bright
My attention is solely focused on you, not the weather or any other external factors.
'Cause I only have eyes for you, dear
You have my undivided attention and affection - nothing else matters but you.
The moon may be high
Even the most magnificent celestial bodies like the moon cannot distract me from my love for you.
But I can't see a thing in the sky
I am so focused on you that I am completely blind to everything else in the world.
I don't know if we're in a garden
I am so lost in your presence that I am not aware of our surroundings or whether we're in a natural setting like a garden, or a bustling urban area.
Or on a crowded avenue
Even if we are surrounded by a loud and busy crowd, my attention is completely captured by you.
You are here, so am I
As long as you're here with me, I am content and satisfied.
Maybe millions of people go by
Even if there are countless individuals passing us by, none are worth acknowledging or distracting me from my love for you.
But they all disappear from view
No one else exists in my eyes when you are near - you are the only one I see.
And I only have eyes for you
My love for you is all-encompassing - I am completely devoted to you and no one else.
Yes, mama, I only have eyes for you
My love and devotion for you is so strong that I can't help but repeat myself - you are the only one for me.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Al Dubin, Harry Warren
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