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SATCHMO
Information gleaned from exclusive access to Armstrong's manuscripts, diaries, correspondence, memorabilia, personal effects, and photographs provide a portrait of the jazz master
240 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
February 7, 2008
First, let me confess my bias: I will argue anytime, anywhere, with anyone that Louis Armstrong is the single greatest artist the United States has produced, in any medium -- so a book subtitled “The Genius of Louis Armstrong” had me at the cover. That being said, I think I’m being not-too-terribly subjective when I say that this slim volume does an excellent job of surveying Armstrong’s life and work and placing them in their social, cultural, and political contexts. Gary Giddens -- my favorite jazz critic and historian (more bias there) -- does more than just offer a survey, however; he also makes a forceful argument against those critics (once the majority) who dismiss the importance of Armstrong’s music after the early- to mid-1930s, and who dismiss Armstrong himself as an innovator who later succumbed to being a mere entertainer and Uncle Tom. Instead, Giddens convincingly demonstrates that Armstrong’s later work continued to be creative and innovative, while Armstrong himself was a strong (if largely behind-the-scenes) supporter of the civil rights movement; beyond that, he usefully questions the politics of denigrating the category of “entertainment” when writing about a popular musical form.
All in all, this is a good read, a great appreciation of Armstrong, and a nice introduction to the history of jazz. I only wish it were longer. Other readers may wish it came packaged with a cd; being able to listen to the Hot Fives and Hot Sevens recordings Giddens discusses at length enhanced the reading experience tremendously (and if you’re now thinking “gee, I’ve been meaning to get some Hot Fives and Hot Sevens recordings,” I highly recommend the box set put out by JSP Records).
All in all, this is a good read, a great appreciation of Armstrong, and a nice introduction to the history of jazz. I only wish it were longer. Other readers may wish it came packaged with a cd; being able to listen to the Hot Fives and Hot Sevens recordings Giddens discusses at length enhanced the reading experience tremendously (and if you’re now thinking “gee, I’ve been meaning to get some Hot Fives and Hot Sevens recordings,” I highly recommend the box set put out by JSP Records).
October 13, 2013
Gary Giddins undertakes an enormous task in Satchmo, The Genius of Louis Armstrong. There are piles of material, but much of it is contradictory. Armstrong's age, for example. He was younger than he said, probably, but proof is thin. If he is younger, why didn't he say so? The answer seems to be in the mechanics of the WWI draft. I suppose it's necessary for a biographer to track these things down, but Giddins spends pages on the problem when in the course of this remarkable life, it matters not a whit.
The outlines of Satchmo's bio are pretty well known. Starting dirt poor in New Orleans in the early nineteens. Playing and singing on the streets. Graduating from streets to honky tonks. Helping to invent jazz itself along the way, including scat singing. That unmistakable tone.
As a musician alone, his career would have been stellar. However, it's his talent as an entertainer that separates him from the crowd. It separates him in more than popularity. It made him a pariah among many other musicians. "White Man's Nigger," they called him. They accused him of polluting the form with all his pop recordings. They said he couldn't stay with the times, still playing the same old stuff all the way through the eras of bebop and cool jazz.
Giddins does a good job of laying some of that to rest. Armstrong did evolve, but stayed with his core. Among the many unusual things about this career is that this uneducated man was a writer. He left a lot of memoir, though it wasn't published. he was conscious of his place in music and cultural history and makes a good case for who and why he is.
In the end, despite all the amusing anecdotes and the valuable info, and the forays into his romantic life, Giddin's book is unsatisfying. Somehow, its scattered pieces never coalesce. He also demonstrates over and over the impossibility of describing music in words:
[Armstrong] begins the first of three architectonic choruses with a solemn scene-settng motif (E natural to B natural), played five times. His two subsequent choruses also turn on sturdy motifs ... each opening at a higher interval.
If you can hear that after reading that passage, you're a better musician than I, and the book is replete with examples. Satchmo's well worth reading. It does capture much of this wonderful man's life in his wonderful world, even though I wish the portrait was in clearer focus.
The outlines of Satchmo's bio are pretty well known. Starting dirt poor in New Orleans in the early nineteens. Playing and singing on the streets. Graduating from streets to honky tonks. Helping to invent jazz itself along the way, including scat singing. That unmistakable tone.
As a musician alone, his career would have been stellar. However, it's his talent as an entertainer that separates him from the crowd. It separates him in more than popularity. It made him a pariah among many other musicians. "White Man's Nigger," they called him. They accused him of polluting the form with all his pop recordings. They said he couldn't stay with the times, still playing the same old stuff all the way through the eras of bebop and cool jazz.
Giddins does a good job of laying some of that to rest. Armstrong did evolve, but stayed with his core. Among the many unusual things about this career is that this uneducated man was a writer. He left a lot of memoir, though it wasn't published. he was conscious of his place in music and cultural history and makes a good case for who and why he is.
In the end, despite all the amusing anecdotes and the valuable info, and the forays into his romantic life, Giddin's book is unsatisfying. Somehow, its scattered pieces never coalesce. He also demonstrates over and over the impossibility of describing music in words:
[Armstrong] begins the first of three architectonic choruses with a solemn scene-settng motif (E natural to B natural), played five times. His two subsequent choruses also turn on sturdy motifs ... each opening at a higher interval.
If you can hear that after reading that passage, you're a better musician than I, and the book is replete with examples. Satchmo's well worth reading. It does capture much of this wonderful man's life in his wonderful world, even though I wish the portrait was in clearer focus.
January 5, 2013
Satchmo is a hard man to write about, to be honest, with you. Your writing style can't match the elegance of his trumpet, and a lot has been said about him, some of it badly thought-out.
Gary Giddins had written a fresh appraisal of Armstrong that set the standard for future biographical treatments, i.e., Terry Teachout's 2009 "Pops." His careful linking of the artistic purpose of Armstrong with his antics on the stage as entertainer is what good criticism should look like, if an example is ever needed. This is a well-written, marvelously crisp book. Please read it.
Gary Giddins had written a fresh appraisal of Armstrong that set the standard for future biographical treatments, i.e., Terry Teachout's 2009 "Pops." His careful linking of the artistic purpose of Armstrong with his antics on the stage as entertainer is what good criticism should look like, if an example is ever needed. This is a well-written, marvelously crisp book. Please read it.
December 3, 2015
This is a loving tribute to Louis Armstrong.
The 5 stars are for the photos--really, really amazing photos, some never published before and would be very hard to find.
The text is interesting but it is meant to be just captions for the photos, and the text is meant to celebrate Satchmo's life rather than describe every detail.
Probably if you are looking for a definitive biography I'm sure there are other books out there but the information in this one is all I would ever need to know.
Super cool book.
The 5 stars are for the photos--really, really amazing photos, some never published before and would be very hard to find.
The text is interesting but it is meant to be just captions for the photos, and the text is meant to celebrate Satchmo's life rather than describe every detail.
Probably if you are looking for a definitive biography I'm sure there are other books out there but the information in this one is all I would ever need to know.
Super cool book.
February 21, 2015
Fantastic insight into the life of an American Icon
It wasn't until I watched Ken Burns JAZZ that I realized what a great and pivotal talent Pops Armstrong was. When I saw his biography offered on my Kindle, I jumped at the chance to read it. The author cuts cleanly through the mythology and misinterpretations of his life, and through his, the authors, obvious extensive knowledge of music, manages to convey what an ingenious talent Louis Armstrong was.
It wasn't until I watched Ken Burns JAZZ that I realized what a great and pivotal talent Pops Armstrong was. When I saw his biography offered on my Kindle, I jumped at the chance to read it. The author cuts cleanly through the mythology and misinterpretations of his life, and through his, the authors, obvious extensive knowledge of music, manages to convey what an ingenious talent Louis Armstrong was.
November 13, 2009
Terrific picture of who the man was, with great respect for the integrity of his whole career
October 25, 2009
A good biography of Armstrong's career. Nothing spectacular, but it'll do.
March 14, 2013
Too concise, but extremely well written and gets the job done so you can have a great idea why Pops is important.
August 9, 2013
A useful introduction to the greatness that was Louis Armstrong.
Read
September 20, 2013I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/12108107
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/12108107
February 7, 2025
Louis Armstrong is one of the leading American artists and musical entertainers of the 20th century. He was a Black man born in utter poverty in New Orleans and became a super-star known world-wide.
The book outlines his trajectory from being a cornet player in seedy bars and brothels in New Orleans to his trip north to Chicago and then New York City. From the mid-1920s until he died in New York in 1971 his fame never receded – and reached its apex in the late 1940 and 50s with the formation of Louis Armstrong and his All-Stars which highlighted both his superb vocals and trumpet playing.
As one announcer said during a broadcast “There is jazz and there is Louis”.
He was one of the first Black man to be beloved and have his performances attended by white audiences. He entertained not only in North America, but across Europe and Africa.
The text can sometimes be inundated with musical terminology, which I found irritating, but it’s loaded with wonderful pictures of Louis across the decades.
This was the first and only home that Louis ever owned, he bought it in 1943 with his wife Lucille. It's in Queens, New York City. I have visited it a few times.
The book outlines his trajectory from being a cornet player in seedy bars and brothels in New Orleans to his trip north to Chicago and then New York City. From the mid-1920s until he died in New York in 1971 his fame never receded – and reached its apex in the late 1940 and 50s with the formation of Louis Armstrong and his All-Stars which highlighted both his superb vocals and trumpet playing.
As one announcer said during a broadcast “There is jazz and there is Louis”.
He was one of the first Black man to be beloved and have his performances attended by white audiences. He entertained not only in North America, but across Europe and Africa.
The text can sometimes be inundated with musical terminology, which I found irritating, but it’s loaded with wonderful pictures of Louis across the decades.
This was the first and only home that Louis ever owned, he bought it in 1943 with his wife Lucille. It's in Queens, New York City. I have visited it a few times.
October 2, 2023
This is a book which is intended for an academic audience, full of musical esoterica and allusions to people most laymen don't know, but packaged popularly as a novelty item-- an oversized coffee table book full of pictures. It kind of rambles and is dogmatic. Doesn't make a fast or a fun read.
But if you're an Armstrong fan-- and we all absolutely should be, despite the nonsense-- you better read up on the guy eventually, and this book is one of the better known options, I guess.
(Quick note on the nonsense: People act as if Armstrong is some Uncle Tom figure or the like-- "A serious artist doesn't mug or play around," as Giddons puts it-- but everybody who wants to be hip loves Ella Fitzgerald. Well, Armstrong and Fitzgerald made multiple albums together! The guy's a star and a genius and a good soul. AND was willing to stand up and speak out about segregation, and gave tons of his money to the poor. We need more like him and less people who make themselves feel big by spitting at giants who can't hit back.)
But if you're an Armstrong fan-- and we all absolutely should be, despite the nonsense-- you better read up on the guy eventually, and this book is one of the better known options, I guess.
(Quick note on the nonsense: People act as if Armstrong is some Uncle Tom figure or the like-- "A serious artist doesn't mug or play around," as Giddons puts it-- but everybody who wants to be hip loves Ella Fitzgerald. Well, Armstrong and Fitzgerald made multiple albums together! The guy's a star and a genius and a good soul. AND was willing to stand up and speak out about segregation, and gave tons of his money to the poor. We need more like him and less people who make themselves feel big by spitting at giants who can't hit back.)
December 28, 2021
I have read other books about Louis Armstrong that were informational and otherwise just OK.
I got this one from Selby Library hoping it would be better.
After reading~100 pages,I put it down.
I just didn’t want to read any more books about the tough life he grew up in and was able to become an entertainer that I LOVED!
I got this one from Selby Library hoping it would be better.
After reading~100 pages,I put it down.
I just didn’t want to read any more books about the tough life he grew up in and was able to become an entertainer that I LOVED!
Read
November 7, 2019Yes it is a fascinating account of Louis, warts and all. Much more on his personality, and way he stood up for what he believed in especially for fellow Negroes, his sidesmen, the underprivileged, friends and his put down of those who sought to belittle him or demand too much!
January 4, 2024
I enjoyed this enough, but I wish it had either leaned more into biography or analysis of Armstrong’s work and genius. This book seems to sit uncomfortably in the middle.
I liked it, though. Check it out if you’re interested in Louis Armstrong.
I liked it, though. Check it out if you’re interested in Louis Armstrong.
February 26, 2018
A short and interesting look at the life of Louis Armstrong.
October 10, 2020
#93 of 120 books pledged to read during 2020
February 20, 2022
I skimmed this book. Author did a great job. Just not sure I’m enough of a fan to really appreciate the nuances in this book.
October 4, 2024
Covers the major details and events of Louis Armstrong’s life and career.
October 25, 2024
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This took longer to read because you have to stop and listen to the great songs Mr Giddins suggest you listen to. Thank you sir.
This took longer to read because you have to stop and listen to the great songs Mr Giddins suggest you listen to. Thank you sir.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews