[Dixielandjazz] "Satchmo: The Wonderful World and Art of Louis Armstrong" reviewed

[Robert Ringwald]

"Satchmo: The Wonderful World and Art of Louis Armstrong" by Stephen Brower (Abrams,
260 pgs. $30)
by Zan Stewart

Newark Star-Ledger, December 6, 2009

Trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong was not only jazz's first major star improviser
and vocalist, but he was also a gifted collage artist and an insightful, often humorous
diarist. Starting in the 1930s, Armstrong fancifully assembled collages using whatever
caught his eye: candid performance photos, publicity shots and images from magazines,
plus bits of his writing -- by hand and typewriter. This delightful collection offers
200 pages of his engaging and colorful collages depicting his exploits and proclivities,
plus typed and handwritten diary pages documenting his life and thoughts. This wondrously
vivid outpouring is bolstered by keen comments from the book's author and editor,
Stephen Brower, and critic Hilton Als. "Satchmo" is a powerful reminder of how the
smart straight-shooter Armstrong told it like it was; he was hardly the minstrel
that many regarded him as.


--Bob Ringwald K6YBV
rsr at ringwald.com
Fulton Street Jazz Band
916/806-9551

Check out our latest recording at www.ringwald.com/recordings.htm

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