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.
Long Long Ago
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Traveling through life all alone
Sometimes I feel so weary
Traveling through life all alone
It's a long, long journey
And I can't make it on my own
Living right here in this town
There's seven million people
Living right here in this town
I don't need but one person
So, baby, why won't you, please, stay around?
When the sun turns blue
And the moon shines bright all day
When the sun turns blue
And the moon shines bright all day
That's the day, sweet mama
I'll let you run away
When the rivers stop flowing
And the trees lay down and die
I said, when the rivers stop flowing
And the trees lay down and die
When the stars stop shining
Then I'll say my love's goodbye
Now if I've been misbehaving
I promise you I'll stop
But if you quit me, mama
I swear I'll blow my top
It's a long, long journey
But I'll make it before I'm blue
This world can't throw me
Mama, if I still have you
Louis Armstrong's Long Long Journey is a blues-infused journey of loneliness and yearning, sung in his signature gravel and growl. The song starts off with Armstrong's weary feelings, made worse by traveling alone in life. The verses are accompanied by a simple piano and saxophone, mimicking the slow and long journey of life. Armstrong sings about the seven million people living in his town, but he only needs that one special person to stay with him. The repetition of the lyrics, "I can't make it on my own," emphasizes his need for companionship.
The second verse takes a dramatic turn as Armstrong talks about the impossible - a blue sun and a bright moon during the day. The lyrics are a metaphorical representation of Armstrong's world turning topsy-turvy if the one he loves leaves him. He talks about the trees laying down and dying, and the stars that stop shining. These lyrics are all metaphors for how terrible life would be if the one he loves leaves him.
The final verse gives a certain urgency to the singer's pleas. He promises to behave better if he's misbehaved, but threatens to "blow his top" if his lover quits on him. The song ends on a hopeful note with Armstrong's determination to keep going, and his belief that even though it's a long journey, he'll make it with his lover by his side. The song's emotions are raw and powerful, making it a staple for any blues fan.
Line by Line Meaning
Sometimes I feel so weary
At times, I feel exhausted
Traveling through life all alone
Making my way through life without companionship can be challenging
It's a long, long journey
Life is a long and difficult journey
And I can't make it on my own
It's hard to make it through life without the help of others
There's seven million people
In this town, there are millions of individuals
Living right here in this town
All of these people coexist in this town
I don't need but one person
Despite the abundance of people, I only need one person
So, baby, why won't you, please, stay around?
I am asking my lover to stay with me
When the sun turns blue
Although it is unlikely, if the sun were to become blue
And the moon shines bright all day
And if the moon were to be visible during the day
That's the day, sweet mama
On such a surreal day, my love
I'll let you run away
I will allow you to leave me
When the rivers stop flowing
If rivers stop flowing
And the trees lay down and die
And all of the trees die
When the stars stop shining
When there is no more starlight in the sky
Then I'll say my love's goodbye
Only then will I let go of my love
Now if I've been misbehaving
If I have acted inappropriately
I promise you I'll stop
I will change my ways
But if you quit me, mama
If you leave me, my love
I swear I'll blow my top
I promise to be extremely upset
But I'll make it before I'm blue
Despite these troubles, I will endure
This world can't throw me
I will not let the world defeat me
Mama, if I still have you
As long as I have your love, I am unstoppable
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LEONARD G. FEATHER
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