Louis Daniel Armstrong
Louis Armstrong, nicknamed "Satchmo" and "Pops," was arguably the most important figure in jazz history. He transformed jazz from ensemble music into a soloist's art form and became one of the first true jazz virtuosos. His gravelly voice, infectious smile, and extraordinary trumpet playing made him a worldwide ambassador for jazz and American culture.
“If you have to ask what jazz is, you'll never know.”
— Louis Armstrong
“What we play is life.”
— Louis Armstrong
“Musicians don't retire; they stop when there's no more music in them.”
— Louis Armstrong
“All music is folk music. I ain't never heard a horse sing a song.”
— Louis Armstrong
“There is two kinds of music, the good, and the bad. I play the good kind.”
— Louis Armstrong
“You blows who you is.”
— Louis Armstrong
“I never want to be anything more than I am; what I don't have, I don't need.”
— Louis Armstrong
“Each man has his own music bubbling up inside him.”
— Louis Armstrong
“The memory of things gone is important to a jazz musician. Things like old folks singing in the moonlight in the back yard on a hot night.”
— Louis Armstrong
“I don't need words. It's all in the interpretation of the music.”
— Louis Armstrong
Hot Fives & Sevens
1925
What a Wonderful World
1967
Ella and Louis
1956
Satchmo at Symphony Hall
1951
Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy
1954