Classics 1928-1929

The title...AND HIS ORCHESTRA is a bit of a misnomer--the only track that features an orchestra (as we know it) is "I Can't Give You Anything But Love", in which Armstrong is featured with '20s bandleader Luis Russell's nine-member band. Most of these recording feature Armstrong's legendary studio band His Hot Five, along with a few other small groups and a duet with pianist Earl Hines ("Weather Bird"). Armstrong's genius as an improviser is in full flower here, and these tunes prove why he was the most famous--and influential--jazz musician in the 1920s.
Armstrong was to the '20s & '30s what Charlie Parker was to the '40s and John Coltrane was to the '60s: virtually everyone who came after him, in jazz and beyond, was influenced by him to some degree. His joyous, piercing tone and his gravely good-time voice, along with some elegant and ferociously swinging playing from players like Hines, Jimmy Strong and Jack Teagarden, make this essential listening for Armstrong fans and anyone wanting to hear how the man made his reputation.|