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.
Over The Rainbow
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Way up high
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby
Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Someday I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me
Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then oh, why can't I?
(When all the world is a whole glass jumbled
And the raindrops tumble all around
There's an old place of magic ways)
A place behind the sun
Just a step behind the rainbow
Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then oh, why can't I?
If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow
Why oh, why can't I?
The lyrics to "Over The Rainbow" by Louis Armstrong speak of a land somewhere beyond the rainbow, where the skies are blue and dreams come true. The song has a whimsical and dreamy quality to it, inviting the listener to imagine a world where troubles "melt like lemon drops." The singer speaks of wishing upon a star to escape from the troubles around them and find a place where they can be free from their worries. The song is both a symbol of hope and a reminder that sometimes, all it takes is a little imagination to find joy in difficult times.
The lyricist, Yip Harburg, was inspired to write the song after seeing the dreary conditions of Depression-era America. He saw the song as a way of expressing the struggles of everyday life and the need for a better world. In addition to Armstrong's version, "Over The Rainbow" has been covered by many artists, including Judy Garland, who sang the song in the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz."
Line by Line Meaning
Somewhere over the rainbow
Over the imaginary land in the sky
Way up high
Far above the ground
There's a land that I heard of
I have heard of a magical place
Once in a lullaby
I heard of it in a calming song
Skies are blue
The sky is a bright blue color
And the dreams that you dare to dream
The aspirations that you boldly imagine
Really do come true
Can be realized in reality
Someday I'll wish upon a star
One day I will hope for something beyond my reach
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me.
I'll find myself where the sky is clear
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Where difficulties vanish like candy
Away above the chimney tops
Far above buildings and smokestacks
That's where you'll find me
That's where I'll be residing
Bluebirds fly
Birds with blue feathers take flight
Why then oh, why can't I?
Why am I not capable of doing the same?
(When all the world is a whole glass jumbled
(When everything in the world is a mess)
And the raindrops tumble all around
When rain is pouring everywhere
There's an old place of magic ways)
There exists an ancient, mystical place
A place behind the sun
A location hidden behind the sun
Just a step behind the rainbow
Only a small distance away from the imaginary bridge in the sky
If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow
If small, joyful birds can reach this magical place in the sky
Why oh, why can't I?
Why am I unable to do the same?
Contributed by Max R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@montseferras
Preciosa está canción.
@Mervyn691
Sweetly enchanting.
@wyattmueller4148
Come on Louis Armstrong! I just listened to one that they thought was Bob Marley! Have some respect for IZ
@danieljames5757
Great version, found it by accident and thankful put my 2 year old right to sleep thanks iz
@TheBearESP
This is not Armstrong! Is Israel Kawakawiwo'ole
@taminopatagonico2535
Bob Marley
@LeHaroun
@taminopatagonico this comment is way way way underrated 😂😂😂😂
@adz2410
Yes!
@marloestentua
taminopatagonico shut the fuck up🤣🤣🤣
@puneetsingh8975
What can be better en that..listening to these lyrics..incredible..