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.
Stars Fall On Alabama
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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We kissed in a field of white
And stars fell on Alabama last night
I can't forget the glamour
Your eyes held a tender light
And stars fell on Alabama last night
I never planned in my imagination
A fairy land where no one else could enter
And in the center just you and me, dear
My heart beat like a hammer
My arms wound around you tight
And stars fell on Alabama last night
I never planned in my imagination
A situation so heavenly
A fairy land where no one else could enter
In the center just you and me, dear
My heart beat like a hammer
My arms wound around you tight
And stars fell on Alabama last night
Louis Armstrong's "Stars Fell on Alabama" is a romantic ballad that tells a story of a memorable night when the stars fell in the state of Alabama. The opening lines "We lived our little drama, We kissed in a field of white" creates a dreamy ambiance and sets the stage for a romantic encounter between two people. The lyrics then describe the singer's experience of falling in love with someone whose eyes "held a tender light." The falling stars described in the song serve as an emotional backdrop to the singer's romantic experience.
The lyrics demonstrate the unexpectedness and euphoria of falling in love, with the lines "My heart beat like a hammer, My arms wound around you tight," conveying the intense feelings of passion and desire that the singer experienced. The singer describes the romantic setting as a "fairy land where no one else could enter," which reflects the sense of exclusivity and deep connection between the couple.
Overall, "Stars Fell on Alabama" is a classic romantic song that beautifully captures the emotions of falling in love and the unforgettable moments that accompany it. The imagery of the stars falling in Alabama is used to create a magical feel to this love story, and the song remains a popular standard in jazz and pop music.
Line by Line Meaning
We lived our little drama
We experienced our own personal story or situation
We kissed in a field of white
We shared a romantic moment in a tranquil setting
And stars fell on Alabama last night
During our time together, it seemed as though the stars were falling down and shining brightly on Alabama
I can't forget the glamour
I can't forget the enchanting, charming atmosphere of our encounter
Your eyes held a tender light
The way you looked at me radiated a gentle, loving feeling
I never planned in my imagination
I never expected or intended for such a wonderful experience to happen
A situation so heavenly
An experience that was so wonderful, it felt almost unreal or like heaven
A fairy land where no one else could enter
The setting felt magical and private, only meant for us to share
And in the center just you and me, dear
The focus was on just the two of us, no one else mattered in that moment
My heart beat like a hammer
My heart was pounding with excitement and passion
My arms wound around you tight
I held you close and tight, not wanting to let go
And stars fell on Alabama last night
Once again, it felt like the stars were shining on us during this unforgettable moment in Alabama
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Frank Perkins, Mitchell Parish
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