Armstrong—Living Legend Of Jazz

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30066, 26 February 1963, Page 8

Armstrong—Living Legend Of Jazz

Louis Armstrong, a living legend of jazz, will lead his All-stars in .concerts in Christchurch on March 9, 11 and 12.

Armstrong was born in IMO and learned to play the trumpet in a waifs’ home in New Orleans. As a young man in the 19205,' he' was ta first of the great soloists of jazz. , Since 1923, when he made his first records with another famous trumpeter,

Joe “King” Oliver, Armstrong has been known as a brilliant, fiery musician, Later in the 19205, with his “Hot Five” and “Hot Seven,” he led a frontal assault on the tight, formal counterpoint of New Orleans jazz and established the foundations of modern jazz. The records he made then, including the remarkable “West End Blues,” have, in the opinion of many, never

been surpassed. • ’ Ln recent yeans Armstrong has become more widely known as “Satchmo,” entertainer and irresistible, if gravel-voiced, singer. To the jazz world, he is known, simply and affectionately, as “Pops.” Billy Kyle, his pianist for many yeans, is in the band he is bringing to New Zealand, and so is his long-time trombonist, Trumm.y Young, and the veteran clarinettist, Joe Darensbourg. The Eddie Cano Quartet, which is sharing the bill with Armstrong, is net wellknown here, although it has acquired a modest following in America.

Cano, a pianist, has worked with Peggy Lee. Nelson Riddle, Bing Crosby and Herb Jeffries, among others. His quartet, which was well reviewed when it appeared at PJ’s, a Hollywood club, has recorded for Frank Sinatra's Reprise label.