<div dir="ltr"><div>I remember well the accusations of the militant blacks that Armstrong was an "Uncle Tom." What they failed to realize was that they could speak that way very much thanks to Armstrong's achievements. He was even the first black American to introduce himself on southern media, after the white NO announcer said that he couldn't bring himself to introduce "that nigger."</div><div>I also remember the discussions whether Armstrong's "creative period" was over after the Hot Fives and Sevens, the claims that he "sold out" when he started playing and singing with big bands, and that he finally came back to roots when he disbanded the big band and organized the All Stars.</div><div>The article in question actually emphasises Armstrong's achievements and refutes his detractors.</div><div>To me, while I won't go as far as to say "Armstrong could do no wrong," he is the undisputable King of Jazz.</div><div>The problem with writing about jazz was that the approach thereto was "sociological" rather than musical. Disregarding the circumstances is nonsensical, but music should be judged by its own values. Had Armstrong been white, his path would have been much easier, of course, and all the "uncle Tom" nonsense would have been avoided. But he was black, a product of the New Orleans ghetto, which makes his rise to greatness even more wondrous. He was the greatest! When I listen to his various recordings of the same numbers with the All Stars, ostensibly played the same way all the time, I still hear the difference between versions - inflection, tone?</div><div>Cheers<br></div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Fri, 18 Dec 2020 at 02:16, Robert Ringwald <<a href="mailto:rsr@ringwald.com">rsr@ringwald.com</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">
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<div><font size="4">What a bunch of horse shit! </font></div>
<div><font size="4"></font> </div>
<div><a><font face="Times New Roman"><font style="font-size:12pt">https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/dec/17/not-a-wonderful-world-louis-armstrong-was-hated-by-so-many?CMP=oth_b-aplnews_d-1</font></font></a></div>
<div style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"MS Reference Sans Serif";color:rgb(0,0,128)"><font size="4"></font><br>-Bob<br><br>Bob Ringwald <br>Amateur (ham) Radio Station
K6YBV<br><a href="mailto:rsr@ringwald.com" target="_blank">rsr@ringwald.com</a><br><a href="http://www.ringwald.com" target="_blank">www.ringwald.com</a><br><br>"We could certainly slow
the aging process down if it had to work its way through Congress.<br>- Will
Rogers, B11/4/1879 - D8/15/1935<br></div></div></div></div>
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