by Robert Wilkinson
Today is the birthday of two of the greatest at what they each did!
Due to an avalanche of work, I don’t have time to do an adequate tribute to the first, a giant of literature, and the second, a giant of jazz. So today we’ll keep it brief and beautiful.
P.B. Shelley was one of the first true “underground poets,” barely able to get published due to fear of prosecution for sedition and blasphemy. He was one of the most influential poets of his era and his works on non-violence influenced Tolstoy, whose writings in turn influenced Mahatma Gandhi's approach to non-violent non-cooperation with authoritarians.
From his Wikipedia entry:Percy Bysshe Shelley (4 August 1792 – 8 July 1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets and is regarded by critics as among the finest lyric poets in the English language. A radical in his poetry as well as his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame during his lifetime, but recognition for his poetry grew steadily following his death. Shelley was a key member of a close circle of visionary poets and writers that included Lord Byron; Leigh Hunt; Thomas Love Peacock; and his own second wife, Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein....Shelley's theories of economics and morality, for example, had a profound influence on Karl Marx; his early – perhaps first – writings on nonviolent resistance influenced Leo Tolstoy, whose writings on the subject in turn influenced Mahatma Gandhi, and through him Martin Luther King Jr. and others practicing nonviolence during the American civil rights movement....
Shelley became an idol of the next three or four generations of poets, including important Victorian and Pre-Raphaelite poets such as Robert Browning and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. He was admired by Oscar Wilde, Thomas Hardy, George Bernard Shaw, Bertrand Russell, W.B. Yates, Karl Marx, Upton Sinclair, and Isadora Duncan. Henry David Thoreau’s civil disobedience was apparently influenced by Shelley's non-violence in protest and political action.
For your admiration, an immortal poem that begins “I met a traveler from an antique land…” Ozymandius
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Our second birthday boy is one of the most famous names in music. Louis Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), a.k.a. “Stachmo,” was a giant of jazz. From Wikipedia:
Armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, shifting the focus of the music from collective improvisation to solo performance. With his instantly-recognizable gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser, bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes. He was also skilled at scat singing (vocalizing using sounds and syllables instead of actual lyrics).Renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as for his trumpet-playing, Armstrong's influence extends well beyond jazz music, 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", whose skin-color was secondary to his music in an America that was severely racially divided. He rarely publicly politicized his race, often to the dismay of fellow African-Americans, but took a well-publicized stand for desegregation during the Little Rock Crisis. His artistry and personality allowed him socially acceptable access to the upper echelons of American society that were highly restricted for a black man.
For your jazz-out listening pleasure, here’s Satchmo!
From 1928 with Kid Ory and Johnny Dodds, “West End Blues” and with Earl Hines, the great “Muggles”
Also with Earl Hines in 1929, “St. James Infirmary”
From 1929, “Ain’t Misbehavin’”
Fast forward to 1951, and here’s Louie again with Jack Teagarden doing “Ain’t Misbehavin’”
Here’s 9+ minutes of pure gold! It’s live film footage from Copenhagen in 1933! Louie Armstrong Live in Copenhagen performing "I Cover The Waterfront", "Dinah" and "Tiger Rag.”
Here’s a score! In 1944 Louie got together with Jack Teagarden, Lionel Hampton, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, Red Norvo, Art Tatum and other in a one hour and 15 AWESOME show! For your enjoyment, Louie Armstrong and Friends Esquire Jazz Concert
It’s back! This is a 30 min. clip of classic post war jazz! This rare recording is Louie Armstrong and the All Stars, including Earl Hines, Barney Bigard, Arvell Shaw, Jack Teagarden and others live at the Hollywood Empire Room in 1948 for the Armed Forces Radio Service. For your enjoyment, Louie Armstrong and the All Stars Live at the Hollywood Empire Room
From 1954, Louie and Eddie Fisher at what looks to be the Hollywood Bowl! Here’s their duet of “the Wiffenpoof Song”
From May 1954 at UNC Chapel Hill, done with a single mic, 30 minutes of Louie Armstrong and his All Stars Live in North Carolina – 1954
Last year I had Satchmo having fun N’Awlins style with his 1957 album New Orleans Nights but it’s disappeared. Instead, for your enjoyment, the entire 36 minute album Satchmo In Style
From 1965, live on The Hollywood Palace tv show, Satchmo giving us a classic performance of “Mack the Knife”
For our closer, also from 1965, Louie Armstrong and his All Stars very live in Berlin giving us his huge hit “Hello Dolly”
Our encore is the entire show! Louis Armstrong & His All Stars. Live in Berlin 1965.
If you want to know more about this remarkable talent for the ages, I have two awesome documentaries! The first is a one hour documentary honoring this musical Master. Check it out, since this is timeless!!
Louis Armstrong – Legends in Concert
This is another famtastic documentary with a lot of film footage of his performances!
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 1 (11 min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 2 (11 min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 3 (11 min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 4 (11 min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 5 (11 min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 6 (11 min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 7 (10+ min)
Louis Armstrong– Satchmo Pt 8 (10 min)
For the first encore, Satchmo live in 1967 on teevee doing his signature tune "Wonderful World"
Our second encore is the great collaboration between Ella and Satchmo (which I think is the album Cheek to Cheek) Can’t We Be Friends? (1956)
The 3 hour “Anthology” is gone, so instead, here’s a 30 song collection titled Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong –The Best
© Copyright 2024 Robert Wilkinson
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