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.
So Black And Blue?
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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Pains in my head, feel like old Ned
What did I do to be so black and blue?
No joys for me, no company
Even the mouse ran from my house
All my life through I've been so black and blue
Cause I can't hide what is on my face
I'm so forlorn. Life's just a thorn
My heart is torn. Why was I born?
What did I do to be so black and blue?
I'm hurt inside, but that don't help my case
Cause I can't hide what is on my face
How will it end? Ain't got a friend
My only sin is in my skin
What did I do to be so black and blue?
Tell me, what did I do?
What did I do? What did I do?
What did I do? What did I do?
What did I do? What did I do?
What did I do? Tell me, what did I do to be so black and blue?
What did I do to be so black and blue?
The song "Black and Blue" performed by Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra is a powerful commentary on the painful reality of racial discrimination and the hurt it causes. The lyrics describe a person who feels isolated and depressed due to their dark skin color, a societal construct that unjustly labels them as inferior. The singer shares their lament about the physical and emotional pain they experience in the form of a cold, hard bed and a mind filled with unbearable aches.
The singer feels as though they have been deprived of any joy or companionship in their life. They describe how they have been rejected by even the smallest of creatures, such as a mouse, further emphasizing their sense of loneliness and despair. The line "I'm white inside, but that don't help my case" highlights the fact that race is a human construct, and the singer's internal feelings of goodness do not matter in a society where one's skin color is the sole determinant of their worth.
The song ultimately underscores the deep-seated racism and social inequality that continues to exist in the world. The repeated question, "What did I do to be so black and blue?" serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the unfairness and injustice that black individuals have endured throughout history. It is a poignant call for justice and equality for all, and a reminder that we must continue to fight against racism and discrimination in all its forms.
Line by Line Meaning
Cold empty bed, springs hard as lead
I am alone and my bed feels uncomfortable and empty like a burden.
Pains in my head, feel like old Ned
I am experiencing terrible headaches that make me feel like I am old and worn.
What did I do to be so black and blue?
I am questioning why I was born to suffer from being black and impoverished, resulting in my constant sadness and pain.
No joys for me, no company
There are no pleasures or people that bring me happiness or comfort in life.
Even the mouse ran from my house
I am so destitute that even small creatures like mice avoid my presence and my home.
All my life through I've been so black and blue
I have been oppressed and impoverished my entire life due to my skin color and it has left me feeling hopeless and defeated.
I'm white inside, but that don't help my case
Despite having good intentions and a pure heart, it does not matter because of the color of my skin.
Cause I can't hide what is on my face
I cannot hide my skin color which is seen as a negative in society.
I'm so forlorn. Life's just a thorn
I am in a state of deep sadness and disappointment with life, it feels like everything is just causing me pain.
My heart is torn. Why was I born?
I am filled with emotional pain and questioning the reason for my very existence due to the constant struggle in my life.
How will it end? Ain't got a friend
I am unsure of how my struggle will end and I have no one to support or comfort me in my pain.
My only sin is in my skin
Being born with dark skin color is the only supposed crime that I am guilty of.
What did I do? Tell me, what did I do to be so black and blue?
I am in a state of despair and begging for answers as to why I am forced to suffer due to something that I cannot control like the color of my skin.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: HARRY BROOKS, ANDY RAZAF, FATS WALLER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@muditachoudhary7980
Cold empty bed, springs hard as lead
Feel like old Ned, wished I was dead
What did I do to be so black and blue?
Even the mouse ran from my house
They laugh at you, and scorn you too
What did I do to be so black and blue?
I'm white inside, but that don't help my case
'Cause I can't hide what is in my face
How would it end? Ain't got a friend
My only sin is in my skin
What did I do to be so black and blue?
How would it end? Ain't got a friend
My only sin is in my skin
What did I do to be so black and blue?
@AustinCasey
For those of you here from Ellison's "Invisible Man" please check out the 1931 recording Ellison was referring to in the book: https://youtu.be/-vDm1lomVHU
@KingMobelsa
Lol wasn't expecting someone else to be brought here because of the invisible man.
@jaemalek5363
@@KingMobelsa Im here bc of the invisible man too lmao
@zinahoul4774
Hyy please iam working on the invisible man toi
@zinahoul4774
@@jaemalek5363 are you also working on this book ? Can we exchange ?
@s.garciamusik2125
What are the odds?
@justcause8609
They loved our music but hated our skin💔
@jamesmccusker2260
Cry a fuckin river
@BrownieeeHD
Louis Armstrong was a gift to humanity
@spacepimpkevin1184
Imo this is the best version he did of this song.
He knows what it feels like to be black and blue and he still sings it with wide eyes and a huge grin and it swells me with happiness for his fame and successes.