Pops on Pot

Though not widely known, Louis "Pops" Armstrong (1901-1971) was a pioneer in more than just jazz. He may have been the most celebrated frequent user and unabashed proponent of marijuana for recreational purposes. Pops puffed po...t nearly every day of his long, wondrous life, except for the 10 days he spent in an LA jail (he could have served 6 years) for taking a toke at intermission at Sebastian's New Cotton Club in Culver City, CA in 1930. Apparently, a rival jazz band dropped a dime on Louis to eliminate their competition. The cops, being ardent Armstrong fans, let him finish his gig, then apologized to him on the way to the hoosegow. Louis avoided pot problems for the next 41 years but never shied away from invoking its benefits. Late in life Armstrong had this to say about his favorite means of relaxation: "The respect for gage (marijuana) will stay with me forever. My life has been an open book, so I have nothing to hide. And well Mary Wana honey, you sure was good and I enjoyed you berry, berry much." He viewed pot as an herb similar to the peppergrass and dandelions his mother gathered to administer to him and his sister as a digestive aide. "It relaxes you, makes you forget all the bad things that happen to a Negro. Marijuana was a thousand times better than whiskey. As a youngster, I witnessed a lot of the old time musicians fading from the scene who turned to drinking on and off their jobs, trying to prove they were still as good as they once were." In 1953 Louis penned his autobiography, 'My Life in New Orleans' which ended at age 22 when he arrived in Chicago to join his idol King Oliver at the Lincoln Gardens at 35th and State. The next installment was cancelled by his manager because Louis proposed that "this whole second book might be about nothing but gage." He was infuriated at pot being lumped in with dangerous narcotics, claiming accurately "A man such as myself who've played nothing but good music for his public all over the world...never has let them down during the whole forty-five years." 

 

As medical marijuana becomes legal in many states including the Land of Lincoln, and recreational marijuana is pouring millions into the depleted coffers of Colorado and Washington, state legislators and federal regulators would do well to heed the words of ol' Pops. Better yet, they should listen to his most explicit, though still veiled 1933 recording, 'Sweet Sue, Just You', extolling what he fondly termed, "my assistant." Does anyone else hear this as a precursor to the Beatles 'A Day In The Life"?



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_6047br9P8