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.
Lullaby In Ragtime
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To a lullaby in ragtime
Sleepy hands are creeping to the end of the clock
Play a lullaby in ragtime
You can tell the sandman is on his way
By the way
That they play
As still, as the trill, of a thrush, in a twilight high
So you can hear the
Rhythm of the ripples on the side of the boat
As you sail away to dreamland
High above the moon you hear a silvery note
As the sandman takes your hand
So rock-a-by my baby
Don't you cry my baby
Sleepy-time is nigh
Won't you rock me to a ragtime lullaby
So rock-a-by my baby
Don't you cry my baby
Sleepy-time is nigh
Won't you rock me to a ragtime lullaby
The lyrics of Louis Armstrong & Danny Kaye's song "Lullabye in Ragtime" are about a child being put to sleep with the help of a lullaby in ragtime music. The song begins with a request for music to help the cradle rock, and the lyrics mention the sleepy hands creeping towards the end of the clock. The sandman is on his way, and can be heard through the lullaby in ragtime music. The rhythm of the ripples on the side of a boat can also be heard in the music, as the child sails away to dreamland. The sandman takes the child's hand as they fall asleep to the silvery note high above the moon.
The lyrics of the song suggest a soothing and comforting atmosphere, as the child is being put to sleep. The imagery of the sandman and the ripples on the side of the boat add to the dreamlike quality of the song. The lullaby in ragtime music is a unique aspect of the song, and is reminiscent of the early 1900s, when ragtime music was popular.
Line by Line Meaning
Won't you play the music so the cradle can rock
Please play some music so that the cradle starts swaying and the baby falls asleep
To a lullaby in ragtime
Play a slow and rhythmic tune to help the baby sleep peacefully
Sleepy hands are creeping to the end of the clock
The baby is getting tired and it's almost time for them to sleep
Play a lullaby in ragtime
Continue playing calming music to help the baby fall asleep
You can tell the sandman is on his way
The baby is getting drowsy and is about to fall asleep
By the way That they play As still, as the trill, of a thrush, in a twilight high
The music is as calm and soothing as the sound of a bird trilling in the quiet of a sunset
So you can hear the Rhythm of the ripples on the side of the boat
The music is so relaxing that you can almost hear the gentle rhythm of waves against a boat
As you sail away to dreamland
The baby is drifting off to sleep and entering the world of dreams
High above the moon you hear a silvery note
In the peacefulness of the night, you can almost hear a faint, delicate sound in the distance
As the sandman takes your hand
The baby is being guided into deep sleep by the mythical figure, the sandman
So rock-a-by my baby
Gently rock the baby back and forth to help them relax
Don't you cry my baby
Don't worry, everything is okay, and it's time for the baby to rest
Sleepy-time is nigh
The baby is very sleepy and it's time for them to go to bed
Won't you rock me to a ragtime lullaby
Please continue playing calming music to soothe the baby to sleep
So rock-a-by my baby
Continue gently rocking the baby to help them fall asleep
Don't you cry my baby
There's no need to worry or be upset, everything is okay
Sleepy-time is nigh
It's almost time for the baby to drift off into sleep
Won't you rock me to a ragtime lullaby
Please keep playing soothing music to help the baby sleep soundly
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: SYLVIA FINE
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