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.
The Girl From Ipanema
Louis Armstrong Lyrics
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The girl from Ipanema goes walking
And when she passes, each one she passes goes - ah
When she walks, she's like a samba
That swings so cool and sways so gentle
That when she passes, each one she passes goes - ah
How can he tell her he loves her
Yes I would give my heart gladly
But each day, that she walks to the sea
She looks straight ahead, not at he
Tall, (and) tan, (and) young, (and) lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
And when she passes, he smile - but she doesn't see
(Doesn't see)
(She just doesn't see, she never sees him)
The song The Girl From Ipanema by Louis Armstrong is a classic bossa nova tune that tells a story of a young and beautiful girl from Ipanema, a neighborhood in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. The lyrics describe how the girl gracefully walks along the streets, attracting the attention of everyone who sees her. The imagery suggests that the girl's presence is akin to that of a samba, a vibrant style of dance that is legendary in Brazil. The beauty and grace of the girl are such that everyone who sees her is compelled to let out an "ah" in admiration.
However, there is an undercurrent of sadness in the song. Despite the girl's beauty, there is a man who watches her with a sense of longing that borders on heartbreak. He cannot bring himself to tell her how he feels, and every day that she walks to the sea, his heart breaks a little more. The girl remains oblivious to his feelings, as she walks along the streets, lost in her own thoughts.
Line by Line Meaning
Tall and tan and young and lovely
The girl from Ipanema is tall, tanned, young and beautiful.
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
The girl from Ipanema takes a walk.
And when she passes, each one she passes goes - ah
People get attracted to her beauty and sigh in amazement when she passes by.
When she walks, she's like a samba
The girl from Ipanema walks gracefully and rhythmically, just like the samba dance form.
That swings so cool and sways so gentle
Her walk is so smooth and effortless, making her look effortlessly cool and gentle.
That when she passes, each one she passes goes - ah
People can't help but express their amazement and awe at her graceful walk.
(Ooh) But he watch her so sadly
There is someone who watches her with sadness in his eyes.
How can he tell her he loves her
He loves the girl but is unable to express his feelings.
Yes I would give my heart gladly
The person who loves her is willing to give his heart to her, but he can't find the courage to express his love.
But each day, that she walks to the sea
The girl walks towards the sea every day.
She looks straight ahead, not at he
She doesn't even glance at him and focuses only on her walk.
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
The girl from Ipanema goes for a walk.
And when she passes, he smile - but she doesn't see
The person who loves her is happy when she passes by, but she is unaware of his presence and feelings.
(Doesn't see)
She is unaware of his presence and feelings.
(She just doesn't see, she never sees him)
The girl is always oblivious to his presence, making him sad and melancholic.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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