Big Band Sides 1930-1932 [Original recording remastered]

Louis Armstrong | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 24, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Jsp Records
• ASIN: B00187PN38
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,394 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #65 in Music > Jazz > New Orleans Jazz

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. My Sweet

2. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me

3. Indian Cradle Song

4. Exactly Like You

5. Dinah

6. Tiger Rag

7. I'm A Ding Dong Daddy (From Dumas)

8. I'm In The Market For You

9. Confessin' (That I Love You)

10. If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight

See all 21 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Blue Again

2. Little Joe

3. I'll Be Glad When You're Dead, You Rascal You

4. Them There Eyes

5. When Your Lover Has Gone

6. Lazy River

7. Chinatown, My Chinatown

8. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams

9. Star Dust

10. You Can Depend On Me

See all 21 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

The Big Band Sides 1930/1932 by Louis Armstrong

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An essential Armstrong set, October 26, 2009

By 

Peter Oest Jacobsen "Jazz Lover" (Shanghai, China) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Big Band Sides 1930-1932 (Audio CD)

This set of two CDs follows on the heels of Armstrong's Hot 5's and 7's records. Recorded between April 1930 and March 1932, it showcases Armstrong at his peak. The sound is fuller, due to the accompaniment of 9-10 musicians, and the arrangements seem more professional and mature. Packed with masterpieces, such as Lazy River, Chinatown, My chinatown and Stardust, it surpasses the Hot 5's & 7's in pure listening pleasure.

The CDs come in two standard jewel cases, each with a 4-page 'booklet' including tracklisting, personnel, recording dates and interesting liner notes. The CDs are collected in a 'box' of thin cardboard.
The sound is impeccable. Remastered by John R.T. Davies, it leaves in all the available information, in addition to some surface noise. I had a chance to compare with songs from the Columbia-issued Ken Burns' Armstrong compilation, and while there are subtle differences, the sound quality on both is excellent.

I highly recommend this set.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars INDISPENSABLE RECORDINGS BY A MUSICAL GENIUS, November 7, 2010

By 

David Keymer "David Keymer" (Modesto CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Big Band Sides 1930-1932 (Audio CD)

These are not ensemble pieces, like the earlier Hot Five recordings were, and the marvelous recordings with Earl Hines on piano. From the 20s. Rather, these are display pieces -big band settings for Louis's trumpet playing and above all, his singing, which was sellable to black and white audiences alike. There is no other first rate soloist on these recordings except for Louis. A young Lawrence Brown on trombone (CD A, cuts 7-11) is twenty-two at the time and plays pretty well. An even younger Lionel Hampton (twenty-one) drums enthusiastically but not all that well. Hamp also takes his first recorded solo on vibes --I wish I liked it better because I love Hampton's later work, but he's a pretty anemic soloist at this stage. The other soloists, the few there are, sound dated now. Band arrangements vary between mediocre to awful: these were house bands, fronted for the occasion by the trumpeter but not truly his own band.

But Louis shines on even the worst material. He is a force of life. This is a slightly older Louis than in the famous Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings of the `20s. He takes things a bit slower, for the most part, but he can still ascend to the stratosphere when needed and he plays those incredible stoptime passages with consummate ease. That's the first thing about Louis: he was a consummate technician. The second thing about him was his incredible musical intelligence: he played off chord structures when other soloists still basically embellished the melody. The third thing about him was his power. He was always exciting.

There are occasional flubs on these two discs. He gets into trouble early in his solo on "Dinah" (cut 5, CD A), which is played at breakneck tempo, but recovers with a phenomenal solo with runs, grace notes, and bravura on the even faster tempoed "Tiger Rag", which follows next (cut 6). And, of course, there's the singing. Louis's singing on these CDs is a marvel, both when he sings lyrics and when he scats.

These are essential recordings for the jazz lover, despite their flaws. Because, believe me, Louis was a force of life.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars timeless wonder; personal favorite of my Pops collection!, November 24, 2010

By 

Peter Hillman "(budding enthusiast)" (CT) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Big Band Sides 1930-1932 (Audio CD)

I looked high and low for a collection of Satchmo's work of this genre; flagged this CD on my Wish List; wish came true from my daughter. I couldn't be happier. Some--but not all--of the numbers appear on the great Columbia series, but there were multiple new surprises.

The sound is wonderful, better than I expected. Good liner notes. What's more--great value for two hard-to-find CDs.

These CDs in my opinion represent a critical bridge in Armstrong's development--the end of the Sixes and Sevens and NY periods, and before Decca. His voice is perhaps at its greatest. The sidemen are superb (you will well recognize many of them).

As with many Armstrong songs, the pure joy for me is not so much in the substance of the words sung, as it is in the delivery, and the segues and developments within numbers. We hear Armstrong testing, experimenting, utilizing bigger bands, happy to let others strut their stuff too. The result is a singular and timeless listening wonder!