[Dixielandjazz] Armstrong repertoire

[Butch Thompson]

Marek Boym asked:

> Yet, with the All Stars, he played an unchanging repertoire of standards, plus
> some hits he added, such as "Hello, Dolly," "Mack the Knife" and "The Happy
> Hussar."  Does anybody know why?

He was in show business.  He was out to entertain a new crowd every night,
and most  weren't jazz fans or record collectors; they were people who were
out for a good time.  His job, as he saw it, was to make the people happy.
He did just that every night.

These days we can buy any number of Louis' All Stars concerts.  For most
people, there wouldn't be much point in collecting them all; as a fanatic,
though, I grab as many as I can, because it was Louis, playing just this
kind of concert in 1956, who showed me just how powerful music can be.

Butch Thompson