20th Century Masters: The Best Of Louis Armstrong (Millennium Collection) [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]

Louis Armstrong, 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection (Series)

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 9, 1999)
• Original Release Date: March 16, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Mca
• ASIN: B00000I8LE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #102,953 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Louis Armstrong casts a long shadow over all of 20th-century American popular music, thanks in large part to the explosion of talent he displayed in the early part of his career--as an improvisational innovator, bandleader, and vocal stylist. By the time he cut most of the material included on this slight (less than 30-minute) set, he had comfortably settled into his popular persona, mugging and mopping his brow with a handkerchief. That's fine, of course, because Armstrong injects tremendous personality into even the most middle-of-the-road fare, such as "Hello Dolly," "What a Wonderful World," and "Gone Fishin'," a duet with Bing Crosby. Look elsewhere (for example, the budget priced JSP version of the Hot Fives and Sevens or any of Amazon.com's picks for his essential recordings) for the music that made him important. But these are songs that made him beloved. --Daniel Durchholz

Product Description

The 20th Century Masters series is the best-selling single-artist line in music history and is being re-released by Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) in its ground-breaking, environmentally-friendly packaging format. A first for the music industry, the standard package (both sleeve and tray) will be completely paper-recyclable, continuing the company's long-standing commitment to being "green."

To further reduce the amount of paper in the Eco-Pack, the CD booklet will no longer be offered. Official liner notes are easily accessible on the Internet at http://www.ilovethatsong.com/green.

UMe is the first North American music company to replace the traditional jewel case with recycled paperboard sleeves and the plastic tray with trays made from PaperFoam®, a new packaging technology from Shorewood Packaging, a business of International Paper, that is paper-recyclable and biodegradable. Shorewood Packaging is the first North American packaging supplier to produce disc trays from PaperFoam®. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Short But Sweet...but Short, September 22, 1999

By A Customer

10 songs...less than 40 minutes running time...precious little trumpet playing and a handful of major hits. If you only wanted "Hello Dolly" and "What A Wonderful World" on the same disc, here they are, cheap (in all senses of that word). If you buy this, don't settle for it as anything near a definitive statement on this legendary performer. EVERY other anthology collection on any label Louis Armstrong recorded for (even the expanded Greatest Hits on MCA) shows his artistry better.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Wonderful...CD, January 8, 2002

By	Just Bill (Grand Rapids, MI United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

I won't lie to you. I'm not that familiar with Louis Armstrong's jazz trumpet accomplishments, although I know he was considered one of the best.

I'm also not familiar with many of his songs.

But I am intimately familiar with "What a Wonderful World." I saw him perform that song on TV and heard it from time to time in movie soundtracks and loved it every time I heard it.

That's why I bought this CD. For that one track alone. And that's the song I've heard on "repeat" all day long, for two days in a row, at the office.

Sure, I listened to the entire disk once through when I bought it. I knew Satchmo's renditions of "Hello Dolly" and "Dream a Little Dream of Me." And I like his cover of "Blueberry Hill."

Granted, this CD IS short. Way, way too short. (28 minutes and 4 seconds, to be exact.) But -- holy, moly -- this man's heart and soul is there for anyone with ears to hear. It's one of the best representations of an artist you're likely to find anywhere.

Louis Armstrong was an original. That much I know. The man was a one of a kind performer the likes of which we probably won't see again.

But, for me, Louis Armstrong's career boils down to one song, one single, 2 minute and 15 second song: "What a Wonderful World." Only the Beatles could pack that much enjoyment into so few minutes. And not even they had the talent to put so much wonder and joy into a scant few seconds over two minutes of music. It's simply not possible to listen to this song (even with all of Satchmo's vocal idiosyncracies, rendered crystal clear by the clarity of CDs), and not want to go around humming, hugging people or thinking, well, it's a wonderful world.

I may not know much about Louis Armstrong. But I can appreciate his genius and passion.

And I think "What a Wonderful World" is one of the greatest songs ever written. And that's coming from someone who may, in the next day, be listening to Black Sabbath. I tend to prefer music of a different sort. But my soul is moved by music of all sorts.

And "What a Wonderful World" is moving my soul right now like nothing else I can think of.

Buy this CD, please. You won't regret it.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dream a little dream with this CD, September 12, 2003

By	Betty June Moore (Douglas, Georgia USA) - See all my reviews

The first time I heard Louis Armstrong's music was in the movie "The Five Pennies." I was watching it at home on a black-and-white TV set with my stepfather and when I heard Armstrong's trumpet playing I found myself paying closer attention to the Danny Kaye movie. Ever since then, when I hear the great "Satchmo," I smile and remember that first moment when I discovered my love of his jazz music.

The Best of Louis Armstrong, part of MCA's 20th Century Masters series, has a playing time of less than 30 minutes, yet its 10 memorable songs are captivating and hold me in their enchantment. Although I like all 10 songs, I'm particularly fond of "What a Wonderful World," "Dream a Little Dream of Me," "Blueberry Hill," "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," and especially the funny duet with Bing Crosby, "Gone Fishin'." The first four always put me in a romantic mindset, while "Gone Fishin' " brings back memories of never finding my dad at home because he had "gone fishin'."

The sound quality of this recording is excellent, and I believe that this is a good introduction to Louis Armstrong's music for those who have not yet discovered him.