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.
It's Wonderful
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And realize you care a little bit
It's wonderful to know that you love me, babe
It's glorious to feel that
I'm a part of you sweetheart
To share your happiness
It's marvelous, how lovely love can be
Who dreamed that I'd be allowed
Through the doorway of Heaven
I'm drifting high on a cloud
You're an angel and this is Heaven, mama
It's wonderful to have
Your lips divine combined with mine
And dream forever more
It's wonderful to know that you love me
Oh babe, you love me too
Louis Armstrong's song "It's Wonderful" is a love ballad that explores the feeling of being in love with someone and how it can bring joy and happiness into one's life. The opening lyric, "It's wonderful to look into your eyes and realize you care a little bit" highlights the idea that even a small amount of affection from someone you love can feel like a wonderful thing. The song emphasizes the joy of being in a mutually loving relationship where you feel like a part of each other and share happiness. The lyrics, "It's glorious to feel that I'm a part of you sweetheart, to share your happiness, it's marvelous how lovely love can be" encapsulate this feeling.
Line by Line Meaning
It's wonderful to look into your eyes
Seeing the love in your eyes is a wonderful feeling
And realize you care a little bit
I can see that you care about me, even if it's just a little
It's wonderful to know that you love me, babe
Knowing that you love me brings me joy and happiness
It's glorious to feel that
Feeling like I'm a part of you is glorious
I'm a part of you sweetheart
Feeling connected to you is one of the most amazing things
To share your happiness
Sharing in your happiness is one of the greatest blessings
It's marvelous, how lovely love can be
Love is truly marvelous, and it has the power to make life beautiful
Who dreamed that I'd be allowed
Who would have thought that I would get to experience this kind of happiness
Through the doorway of Heaven
This feels like a heavenly experience
I'm drifting high on a cloud
I feel like I'm floating on air, so happy and in love
You're an angel and this is Heaven, mama
You are like an angel to me, and being with you feels like I'm in heaven
It's wonderful to have
Having your lips on mine is a wonderful feeling
Your lips divine combined with mine
Our lips together feel like a match made in heaven
And dream forever more
Being with you makes me want to dream about our future together
It's wonderful to know that you love me
Knowing that you love me is one of the greatest blessings of my life
Oh babe, you love me too
Knowing that you love me back is the best feeling in the world
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CAMERON SALTER WELLS, CAMERON SLATER WELLS, LEROY SMITH, LEROY 'STUFF' SMITH, MITCHELL PARISH
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