Book Pick: ‘Stomp Off Let’s Go’ by Ricky Riccardi

 Book Pick: ‘Stomp Off Let’s Go’ by Ricky Riccardi


Not too many under 50 have any idea who Louis Armstrong was or his titanic impact on the trajectory of 20th century American music And those over 50 mostly know the former from his performing pop tunes ‘Hello Dolly’ and ‘What A Wonderful World’ on Ed Sullivan and other variety shows.

That’s a shame which is why ‘Stomp Off, Let’s Go’ is an important addition to the American cultural music story.


Amazingly, Louis Armstrong, a desperately poor black boy in 1900 Jim Crow New Orleans, broke out of a near hopeless future to become among the most recognized music artists on the planet while changing the music forever. That’s the saga told in Riccardi’s bio of Louis’s first 28 years subtitled ‘The Early Years of Louis Armstrong.’


Born most likely Aug. 4, 1901, Louis always claimed and celebrated his birthday July 4, 1900. Father Willie deserted his family early leaving his mom Mayann, Louis and sister Mama Lucy to barely survive in a one room apartment. Mayann was a loving mother whom Louis idolized but also an alcoholic prostitute, one of the few New Orleans occupations available for struggling poor black mothers. Frequently arrested, she’d spend a week or two in jail each time being unable to pay the $2.50 fine.


Louis brushed off his hardscrabble life, forming a singing quartet with his buddies about age 8, busking on street corners for nickels and dimes. That led to his first arrest at age 9 for disturbing the noisy peace.


He also worked for the Karnovsky’s, a Jewish family that ran both a junk and coal business. Louis worked in both, even got his first horn from the Karnovsky’s who treated him as a son. Picking up junk and delivering coal developed an incredible work ethic that lasted seven decades. No Karnovsky’s maybe no Louis Armstrong.


Pops’ caught a big break Dec. 31, 1912, arrested for firing a gun to celebrate the New Year. Sent to the Colored Waifs Home, Louis found another angel, the band director who gave him a cornet to play in the Home’s band. Got so good he was made their leader. A year later Louis came out determined to join the jazz scene just emerging from ragtime.


But poverty continued to stalk Louis’ family. At 15, he even tried his hand at pimping which backfired when his first sex worker stabbed him for not responding to her romantic overtures. Two years later 17 year old Louis fell in love and married Daisy Parker, a prostitute he was frequenting.. Not a good choice as Louis lamented all they did was “fuck and fight.” When he woke up to see Daisy holding a knife to his throat, he decided to move on.


Divorced at 21 Louis escaped Daisy, the collapsing New Orleans music scene and segregation by accepting second cornet slot in his mentor King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band at the Lincoln Gardens on Chicago’s South Side Stroll. No King Oliver maybe no Louis Armstrong.


Louis might have been just another of dozens of great cornet players who faded out early due to booze, womanizing, poor career management, etc. But he struck gold with second wife Lil’ Harden, the Oliver band pianist who forced Louis to leave Oliver to fulfil his destiny as the greatest of all time. Lil’ relentlessly promoted his musical ascendancy negotiating each next step up the musical ladder. Once again, no Lil’ maybe no Louis Armstrong.


Hard to imagine but while Pops was creating revolutionary jazz modernism with his hot Five and Seven recordings from ’25 to ’28, white America outside of jazz fanatics, had no idea he even existed. That’s because the record industry relegated him to their ‘race records’ division which were only sold in black neighborhoods. But he was so good, Okeh Record producer Tommy Rockwell took a chance and released his first mainstream pop recording ‘I Can’t Give You Anything But Love’ from March 5, 1929 to the general public. Bingo. His crossover to white America established, Armstrong blazed on for 42 more years, even knocking the Beatles off No. 1 with ‘Hello Dolly’ in ’64.


‘Stomp Off, Let’s Go’ most fascinating music bio I’ve read. Can’t’ wait to get Volume 2 in Riccardi’s Armstrong trilogy ‘Heart Full of Rhythm: The Big Band Years’. Then on to Volume 3 ‘What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong’s Later Years’.