Description

Louis Armstrong was an immeasurable gift for the millions of listeners, fans and musicians who felt themselves born along the decades by the irresistible force of his trumpet playing and singing. Embarking on a 60-day tour of Europe at the end of September, 1952 was something of a rebuilding year for the All Stars as the biggest of the early “stars” had moved on. Arvell Shaw was back on bass after a year studying in Switzerland and Cozy Cole was still on drums, having replaced the ailing Catlett in 1949. Bigard decided to take this European tour off, replaced by Texas-born clarinetist Bob McCracken. The other two new members, pianist Marty Napoleon and trombonist Trummy Young–the latter having joined just weeks earlier– were exciting and excitable players who lit a spark behind their leader and started transforming the All Stars into famously incendiary outfit it would blossom into in the mid-50s.

The performance in Lausanne is of the highest and most beautiful quality, and that from start to finish. Louis is overflowing with feeling and passion, managing to present these tunes that he’d repeated a thousand times as if he were offering them a new life with each fresh interpretation. Additionally, the overall high quality sound recording allows you to slip magically into the ambiance of the concert and feel a presence that is quite rare for testimonies from this period.