Louis Armstrong had forsaken the ways of Mammon and come back to jazz. Shorn of his big (19-piece), brassy, ear-splitting commercial band (TIME, April 29, 1946), he was as happy as a five-year-old with his curls cut off. Billy Berg's neon & chromium Los Angeles jazz temple wasn't big enough to hold the faithful who thronged to welcome him back.
Hoagy Carmichael led the cheering when Old Satchelmouth, his steak-thick lips parted in a grin, stepped on the stand with some of the greatest names in jazz behind himClarinetist Barney Bigard, Trombonist Jack...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
