Louis Armstrong's Hot Five

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Louis Armstrong's Hot Five was the recording band with which the trumpeter made jazz history under his own name in the 1920s. The group began in 1925 in Chicago, at the suggestion of Richard M. Jones, for the label Okeh Records. It played New Orleans jazz: trumpet, clarinet and trombone in collective improvisation, with a rhythm section underneath. In this way the band captured a style that had arisen in the clubs of New Orleans, and which was now put on record for a large audience.

Music and breakthrough

The first Hot Five consisted of Armstrong, his wife Lil Hardin Armstrong on piano, Kid Ory on trombone, Johnny Dodds on clarinet and Johnny St. Cyr on guitar and banjo. After its success Okeh offered a five-year contract, and in December 1927 followed the session with Struttin' With Some Barbeque, in which Lonnie Johnson also took part on guitar and vocals. In 1928 the band was renewed with Fred Robinson, Jimmy Strong, Earl Hines, Mancy Carr and Zutty Singleton, all from Carroll Dickerson's orchestra. Armstrong was the only musician in both groups.

Influence

The Hot Five's records show how Armstrong made the role of the soloist in jazz ever more important. His trumpet playing touches almost every recording, from Cornet Chop Suey to Hotter Than That. In this way they became a source for almost all the jazz musicians who came after them.

Listening