Genre:
Jazz
Release Date: 07/22/2008
Many of the countless
Louis Armstrong anthologies that have been assembled over the years have focused on a particular period of the seminal trumpeter/singer's career -- perhaps his
Hot Five/
Hot Seven jewels of the '20s, perhaps
Armstrong in the '40s or '50s. But
The Centennial Anthology spans 39 years of his long career and does so both aurally and visually.
The Centennial Anthology is a two-disc set, though not a two-CD set; the first disc is a 58-minute audio CD spanning 1928-1967, the second a DVD spanning 1932-1967. The audio CD pays the most attention to the early '30s, while the DVD tends to favor the '60s; but taken as a whole,
The Centennial Anthology points to the fact that
Satchmo was not someone who had good periods and bad periods. Rather, his work was remarkably consistent, and this collection paints an exciting picture of
Armstrong whether he is performing
"St. James Infirmary" in 1928 (with
the Savoy Ballroom Five) or
"What a Wonderful World" (his final hit) in 1967. Much of the early-'30s material on the audio CD is definitive, including
"Basin Street Blues," "Stardust" (recorded nine years before
Artie Shaw's hit 1940 version) and
"Body and Soul" -- and even the tracks that fall short of essential are rewarding. The DVD, in fact, is a collector's dream thanks to live-in-the-studio performances from the Goodyear
Jazz Concert in 1962 and an early-'30s video of
"I'll Be Glad When You're Dead, You Rascal You" (which
Armstrong performs in a humorous fashion that makes the lyrics sound more ironic than biting). Nicely assembled by
Athan Maroulis (a highly eclectic vocalist who has performed everything from '40s-style crooner
jazz to
goth rock and
industrial rock).
The Centennial Anthology is recommended to hardcore
Armstrong devotees who want to see the
Dixieland/classic
jazz/
swing legend in addition to hearing him. [A Deluxe Edition of the CD was also released.]
~Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
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