Remembering Armstrong on what would have been his 124th birthday

Louis Armstrong had a birthday this week.The trumpeter, jazz superstar, American music legend and global icon would have been 124 years old Wednesday.It's hard to write a column about Armstrong, because it's hard to do his career justice.Armstrong is probably on the level of Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley and Nat King Cole when it comes to enduring American music acts.He was almost like Babe Ruth in a way; a larger-than-life talent with a monumental personality to match.He was like the Babe in another way: He had lots of nicknames.He was Pops. He was Satch. Or, perhaps, Satchmo.He had a career that spanned nearly 50 years. He died in 1970, but his popularity remained and if anything, has increased over time.How do you write a piece about someone like that? How do you sum all that up?You don't.So, let's just keep it simple.When a song of his comes on, I'll generally stop whatever I'm doing.I can't claim to be an expert on his career. While I certainly enjoy jazz, I haven't studied or consumed it the way I have rock, pop and country.But Armstrong – with his big band classics and interpretations of pop songs – has always taken me away.It started when I was a child in the late '80s, and would hear his rendition of "What a Wonderful World."There's something about that record that really sticks with you.Perhaps it's the earnestness of Armstrong's vocal.Armstrong really had two classic instruments: His trumpet and his voice.His trumpet is so distinctive that you recognize it's his almost immediately. His voice – which sounded like a pocket full of razor blades—was the same way.Armstrong has been dead for more than a half a century, and I've never heard any singer sound even remotely like him. It's a deep voice. It sounds like your turning the keys on an old car.But there's a beauty in it, something that's especially apparent on "What a Wonderful World."Armstrong always sounded to me like someone who felt an abundance of joy, and it never came across as forced.It's impossible to know if Armstrong really felt that optimism. As a Black artist in the mid-20th century, you can be certain he dealt with some very negative things.But on "What a Wonderful World," there a sentimental feeling, a love that reaches the listener.Oddly enough, the recording's emergence as an American standard is a relatively recent thing. When Armstrong's version was released in 1967, it flopped in the USA.It was a major hit in Great Britain. But it caught a second life in this country nearly two decades later, when it was featured in the film "Good Morning, Vietnam."Now – and for much of the last 38 years – you hear the song everywhere.It was that song that drew me to Armstrong, but there were others that became favorites."When it's Sleepy Time Down South" and "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," are majestic recordings.And there are so many special songs.His music remains something to treasure. Zach Baker is the sports editor for The Courier.