What a Wonderful World by Louie Armstrong

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It’s a Wonderful World is a great classic song that depict those times when the sunshine was brighter and the skies were clearer. A time when men actually whistled their favorite tune while strolling down the streets.

But now that times are different and not so much on the bright side, Louis Armstrong’s trumpet sounds, sincere vocals and big smile rekindle memorable, special moments of the good ol” days.

Armstrong’s smiles of love shine into special moments of memories when listening to his unforgettable sounds.

What a Wonderful World was written by producer Bob Thiele(as “George Douglas“) and composer and performer George David Weiss.

One source claims the song was first offered to Tony Bennett, who turned it down,[4] although Louis Armstrong biographer Ricky Riccardi disputes this claim. George Weiss recounts in the book Off the Record: Songwriters on Songwriting by Graham Nash that he wrote the song specifically for Louis Armstrong. Weiss was inspired by Armstrong’s ability to bring people of different races together.

Because he was gigging at the Tropicana Hotel, Armstrong recorded the song in Las Vegas at Bill Porter’s United Recording studio. The session was scheduled to follow Armstrong’s midnight show, and by 2 am the musicians were settled and tape was rolling. Arranger Artie Butler was there with songwriters Weiss and Thiele, and Armstrong was in the studio singing with the orchestra. Armstrong had recently signed to ABC Records, and ABC president Larry Newtonshowed up to photograph Armstrong.

Newton wanted a swingy pop song like “Hello, Dolly!“, a big hit for Armstrong when he was with Kapp Records, so when Newton heard the slow pace of “What a Wonderful World”, he tried to stop the session. Newton was locked out of the studio for his disruption, but a second problem arose: nearby freight train whistles interrupted the session twice, forcing the recording to start over.

Armstrong shook his head and laughed off the distractions, keeping his composure. The session ended around 6 am, going longer than expected. To make sure the orchestra members were paid extra for their overtime, Armstrong accepted only $250 musicians union scale for his work.

The song was not initially a hit in the United States, where it sold fewer than 1,000 copies because Newton did not like or promote it,[6]but was a major success in the United Kingdom, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, the song hit No. 16 on the Billboard Bubbling UnderChart. It was also the biggest-selling single of 1968 in the UK where it was among the last pop singles issued by HMV before it became an exclusive classical music label.

The song made Armstrong the oldest male to top the UK Singles Chart. Armstrong’s record was broken in 2009 when a remake of “Islands in the Stream” recorded for Comic Relief—which included the 68-year-old Tom Jones—reached number one in that chart.

ABC Records’ European distributor EMI forced ABC to issue a What a Wonderful World album in 1968 (catalogue number ABCS-650). It did not chart in the United States, due to ABC not promoting it,[8] but charted in the UK where it was issued by Stateside Records with catalogue number SSL 10247 and peaked on the British chart at No. 37.

The song gradually became something of a standard and reached a new level of popularity. An episode of The Muppet Show produced in 1977 and broadcast early in 1978 featured Rowlf the Dog singing the song to a puppy. In 1978, it was featured in the closing scenes of BBC radio’s, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, and was repeated for BBC’s 1981 TV adaptation of the series.

In 1988, Armstrong’s recording appeared in the film Good Morning, Vietnam (despite the film being set in 1965 – two years before it was recorded) and was re-released as a single, hitting No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1988. The single charted at number one for the fortnight ending June 27, 1988, on the Australian chart. It is also the closing song for the 1995 movie 12 Monkeys and the 1998 film adaptation of Madeline. Wiki

15 thoughts on “What a Wonderful World by Louie Armstrong

    1. And to you Luisa blessings for the season and new year! Big hugs! )))❤️(((

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