Written and maintained by the Louis Armstrong Fellows.
…Well, what is progressive? You tell me cause all we play is good music. We never did worry about styles. There ain’t no such thing as styles in music. There ain’t but two kinds -- good or bad -- that’s all…[1] -- Louis Armstrong The above quotation, stated by Louis Armstrong during an interview in... Continue Reading →
A few of my past blog posts have briefly mentioned what America was like when Louis Armstrong was born in the southern state of Louisiana. To elaborate further I would like to paint a picture for you, it was 1901, the turn of the twentieth century, and Louisiana was still battling the effects of being... Continue Reading →
Louis Armstrong (1901-1971) and Bing Crosby (1903-1977) are two of the most well-known performers of the twentieth century. Born three years apart in states at opposite ends of the country, the two left their childhood homes in New Orleans and Spokane in the 1920s to pursue a music career in Chicago and Los Angeles. The... Continue Reading →
Typically the game was very simple. The rules were that someone from the group would knock on the chosen door really hard, then everyone takes off running in any direction. Sprinting down the hall to be sure to get out of sight before the person on the other side of that door opens it and... Continue Reading →
Louis Armstrong has one of the world’s most recognizable voices. To many, his raspy voice is iconic, marvelous, beautiful, incredible, and timeless. After reading comments left in the “comment section” of YouTube videos featuring Armstrong’s songs, I was not surprised that many people remarked that his voice inspires smiles and evokes nostalgia. Several recent comments... Continue Reading →
“the timeless in you is aware of life’s timelessness, And knows that yesterday is but today’s memory and tomorrow is today’s dream. And that that which sings and contemplates in you is still dwelling within the bounds of that first moment which scattered the stars into space.”1 How aware are we of space and time and its... Continue Reading →
In 2013, Sony Music representatives announced their intentions to relaunch OKeh Records as the primary jazz imprint of the company’s Sony Masterworks. According to Sony Music, OKeh of the twenty-first century was going to feature global jazz music played by musicians such as John Medeski of the United States, Dhafer Youssef of Tunisia, and Michel... Continue Reading →
"On Being Black" Tatjana Lightbourn “What did I do to be so black and blue?” sings Louis Armstrong in my earphones as I sit on the stoop of my Brooklyn apartment. I recently read a Race and America segment from The New York Times entitled, “What We Know About Breonna Taylor’s Case and Murder.” It... Continue Reading →
We value archives because we value the life that preceded them. But artists are not perfectly self-aware, and they owe neither us, nor posterity, an explanation for what they value or what they choose to ignore. What always remains is the work, and then the archive...[1] -- Thessaly La Force, The New York Times Before the... Continue Reading →
“A Cat’s Tale” Tatjana Lightbourn How would you define a cat? Is the definition of a cat even relevant to you and how you define the story of your life? In a 1956 interview with Edward R. Murrow, Louis describes his definition of cat, “a cat can be anybody from the guy in the gutta to... Continue Reading →
