Drawing on first-person accounts, this book tells the rags-to-riches tale of Louis Armstrong's early life and the social and musical forces in New Orleans that

A rags-to-riches narrative of the eminent jazz artist's early life describes how his childhood was marked by such challenges as poverty, Jim Crow legislation, a

Louis Armstrong has been the subject of countless biographies and music histories. Yet scant attention has been paid to the remarkable array of writings he left

The definitive account of Louis Armstrong—his life and legacy—during the most creative period of his career. Nearly 100 years after bursting onto Chicago’

Gary Giddins has been called "the best jazz writer in America today" (Esquire). Louis Armstrong has been called the most influential jazz musician of the centur