Louis Armstrong
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"He was born poor, died rich, and never hurt anyone along the way."
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Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong (August 4, 1901 - July 6, 1971) was a massively influential Jazz musician. Born in New Orleans, he learned how to play the trumpet and cornet, and engaged in a fifty-year career in jazz. He is considered the Trope Codifier for many basic elements of jazz, including improvisation and Scat Singing.
Nowadays, his most well-known contribution to pop culture is the song What A Wonderful World, which is frequently used for Soundtrack Dissonance.
He was the first African American to host a nationally broadcast radio show in the 1930s. He's also had several film appearances such as High Society and the film version of Hello, Dolly!, and a few where he played himself: New Orleans and The Five Pennies.
Note that although he's commonly known these days as Louie Armstrong, most jazz aficionados are careful to pronounce his first name "Lewis". This can be Serious Business among those who see the "Louie" nickname as cartoonish and disrespectful - as did Armstrong himself.
Songs Of note:
- Stardust
- What A Wonderful World
- When The Saints Go Marching In
- Dream A Little Dream Of Me
- Ain't Misbehavin'
- Stompin' At The Savoy
- We Have All The Time In The World
- Hello, Dolly!
- Heebie Jeebies
- St. James Infirmary
- Mack the Knife
Albums Of note:
- Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy
- Ella And Louis
- Porgy And Bess
- Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson
- The Real Ambassadors
- Struttin' (posthumous)
- The Complete Hot 5 and Hot 7 Recordings
- Big Band: Although he preferred to play in smaller groups, he was one of the big band leaders of the 1940s.
- Black Sheep Hit: What A Wonderful World.
- Concept Album: The Real Ambassadors.
- Cool Old Guy: Well duh. In 1964 he kicked The Beatles out of the #1 spot with "Hello Dolly!"...when Satchmo was 63! The BEATLES!
- Cover Version
- Cut Song: Ain't It The Truth from Cabin In The Sky.
- Epic Swinging
- Expository Theme Tune: High Society Calypso for the 1956 film High Society'.
- Improv
- Mondegreen
- Murder Ballad: Mack The Knife, You Rascal You.
- Real Song Theme Tune: Frank's Place used Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?.
- Singing Simlish
- Soprano and Gravel: Armstrong's collaborations with Ella Fitzgerald. Possibly the Ur Example.
- Suspiciously Apropos Music: Fallout 2 uses A Kiss To Build A Dream On in the beginning.