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.
Please Dont Talk About Me
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, honey, though our friendship ceases from now on
And, listen, if you can't say anything real nice
It's better not to talk at all is my advice
We're parting--you go your way, I'll go mine
It's best that we do
Here's a kiss; I hope that this brings lots of luck to you
Remember, please, don't talk about me when I'm gone
We're parting--you go your way, I'll go mine
It's best that we do
Here's a kiss; I hope that this brings lots of luck to you
Makes no difference how I carry on
Remember, please, don't talk about me
Please, don't talk about me
Please, don't talk about me when I'm gone
Louis Armstrong's tune "Please Don't Talk About Me" is about a romance that has come to an end. Armstrong sings candidly to his former lover, informing her that the relationship has ended and that they should part ways. However, his request is that she does not discuss him after he has passed on. He sings, "Please, don't talk about me when I'm gone. Oh, honey, though our friendship ceases from now on. And, listen, if you can't say anything real nice, it's better not to talk at all is my advice." Armstrong tells his lover that they should go their separate ways since it is preferable. Before they split, he gives her a kiss, hoping it will bring her tremendous luck. He then instructs her not to talk about him once he has gone since it will make no difference to him.
The song's emphasis on reputation and a good character is clear in the chorus. Armstrong sings, “It makes no difference how I carry on. Remember, please don't talk about me when I'm gone." Armstrong values his reputation, thus asking his lover not to discuss him when he is not there to defend himself. His request conveys the message that the reputation one develops throughout their lifetime must be preserved and protected.
Line by Line Meaning
Please, don't talk about me when I'm gone
Kindly refrain from speaking about me in my absence.
Oh, honey, though our friendship ceases from now on
While our friendship may be ending, please still refrain from talking ill of me.
And, listen, if you can't say anything real nice
If you cannot speak kindly of me, then please do not speak of me at all.
It's better not to talk at all is my advice
It is advisable to remain silent rather than speak negatively about others.
We're parting--you go your way, I'll go mine
We are going our separate ways, and it is best for us to move on from one another.
It's best that we do
It is for the best that we go our separate ways.
Here's a kiss; I hope that this brings lots of luck to you
As a gesture of goodwill, I offer this kiss with the hope that it brings you luck.
Oh, makes no difference how I carry on
Regardless of how I proceed in my life, please continue to refrain from speaking ill of me.
Remember, please, don't talk about me when I'm gone
Please keep in mind not to speak of me when I am no longer present.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MERLE HAGGARD
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