A program with expert conversation and communal listening of rarely heard archival jazz recordings. Louis Daniel Armstrong (1901 - 1971), nicknamed Satchmo, Satch, and Pops, was a trumpeter, composer, vocalist and occasional actor who was one of the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades, from the 1920s to the 1960s, and different eras in the history of jazz. In 2017, he was inducted into the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame. Coming to prominence in the 1920s as an "inventive" trumpet and cornet player, Armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, shifting the focus of the music from collective improvisation to solo performance. Armstrong is renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as for his trumpet playing. By the 1950s, Armstrong was a widely beloved American icon and cultural ambassador who commanded an international fanbase. In 1964 he recorded his biggest-selling record, "Hello, Dolly!", a song by Jerry Herman. The record remained on the Hot 100 for 22 weeks, longer than any other record produced that year, and went to No. 1 making him the oldest person ever to accomplish that feat. In the process, he dislodged the Beatles from the No. 1 position they had occupied for 14 consecutive weeks. His influence extends well beyond jazz, and by the end of his career in the 1960s, he was widely regarded as a profound influence on popular music in general. Armstrong was one of the first truly popular African-American entertainers to "cross over", that is, whose skin color became secondary to his music in an America that was extremely racially divided at the time.
New York City, NY; NYC