Description
The revelatory origin story of one of America's most beloved musicians, Louis ArmstrongHow did Louis Armstrong become Louis Armstrong?In Stomp Off, Let's Go, author and Armstrong expert Ricky Riccardi tells the enthralling story of the iconic trumpeter's meteoric rise to fame. Beginning with Armstrong's youth in New Orleans, Riccardi transports readers through Armstrong's musical and personal development, including his initial trip to Chicago to join Joe "King" Oliver's band, his first to New York to meet Fletcher Henderson, and his eventual return to Chicago, where he changed the course of music with the Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings. While this period of Armstrong's life is perhaps more familiar than others, Riccardi enriches extant narratives with recently unearthed archival materials, including a rare draft of pianist, composer, and Armstrong's second wife Lillian "Lil" Hardin Armstrong's autobiography. Riccardi similarly tackles the perceived notion of Armstrong as a "sell-out" during his later years, highlighting the many ways in which Armstrong's musical style and personal values in fact remained steady throughout his career. By foregrounding the voices of Armstrong and his contemporaries, Stomp Off, Let's Go offers a more intimate exploration of Armstrong's personal and professional relationships, in turn providing essential insights into how Armstrong evolved into one of America's most beloved icons.
Table of Contents
Prologue - "My Whole Life, My Whole Soul, My Whole Spirit" 1. "A Firecracker Baby!" - 1901-1906 2. "Everything Happened in the Brick Row" - 1906-1910 3. "Like a Human Being" - 1910-1911 4. "Nothing Could Stop Him" - 1911-1912 5. "Blessed Assurance" - 1912 6. "Hooray for Louis Armstrong!" - 1913-14 7. "I Would Gladly Live It Over Again" - 1914 8. "Destined to be Great" - 1914-1915 9. "The Memory of the Bullies and Trouble Makers" - 1916 10. "My Fairy God Father" - 1916-17 11. "Just Wasn't My Time to Die, Man" - 1917 12. "Had to Eat" - 1917-1918 13. "Nothing But Fuck and Fight" - 1918-1919 14. "They Loved Us" - 1919 15. "Descending the Sky Like a God" - 1919-1921 16. "Son, You Got a Chance" - 1921-1922 17. "I Always Played Pretty Under Him" - 1922 18. "The Hot Miss Lil" - 1922-23 19. "He's Got to be Better" - 1923-1924 20. "Second Trumpet to No One" - 1924 21. "Big Headed Motherfuckers" - 1924-25 22. "I Know I Can Play and I Know I Can Sing" - 1925 23. "The World's Greatest Jazz Cornetist" - 1925-1926 24. "I Got the Heebies" - 1926 25. "The Latest Novelty" - 1926 26. "Just Keep on Blowing" - 1927 27. "Awful Glorious Days" - 1927-1928 28. "A Record of Importance" - 1928 29. "Louis Had Changed the Whole World" - 1929 Epilogue - "I Never Did Leave New Orleans" Index
