The Best of The Hot 5 & Hot 7 Recordings

Ah, my submission! (Well, my Patreon submission at least) By far the biggest snub on the original list was the lack of Louis Armstrong, in my opinion. No other artist has come close to the sheer amount of influence upon popular music as he had, even if the roots of the influence now go so far back that they can seem completely buried. He was 20th century's first musical star, and with the advent of radio and vinyl records, he pressed himself into the public identity like no other could. His soloing and singing styles practically rewrote the book on how jazz was made, especially when he began incorporating and reinventing classic American Songbook tunes that are now more famous as jazz standards BECAUSE of him. I chose this record to showcase Louis Armstrong's most fundamental early days. His Hot Fives and Hot Sevens groups truly showcase what a master trumpet player he was. I chose the "best of" recording for brevity's sake (and because these recordings predate the invention of the LP record that most of the list is based on, primarily being released in much shorter formats). However, if you enjoy this, please listen to the complete recordings from these groups. It's a veritable treasure trove.

Oh it's tight like that Louis. No it ain't tight like that either. What a baller. Dude was straight killing it in the 20s-30s. Some awesome playing all around.

5 minutes - This is quite enjoyable 10 minutes - Okay I get it. You can play the trumpet. 30 minutes - I want to shove that trumpet right up your fucking arse.

Great call to include this

Wtf there was no Louis Armstrong on the main list. For that alone this is a 5* to represent him in general, although this compilation is pretty nice.

What is now foundational was once revolutionary.

Reminds me of when I got a bar trivia question wrong for answering that Louis Armstrong played the trumpet. They thought he played the piano. Later that night, my team won a round when the emcee got the math wrong on a tiebreaker. We got free dessert, but what the fuck? 8/10

Ok, so a nod to the beginning of modern music? Of course, why not. A big name, sometimes overlooked

Given the date range, I understand why Louis didn't make a real appearance on the original list, but it still feels like a crucial snub. Excellent timeless addition.

Très bon, mais ca semble être un best of. c'est normal que ca soit excellent surtout provenant d'une légende. Cependant ce n'Est pas un album a proprement dit donc... 4.5

Classic. Normally not a fan of compilation albums - I prefer to think of an album as an artist's vision at a particular time - but times were different back in the day so I can make an exception. I'm also not a big jazz-head, but I can totally appreciate and enjoy this. 4 stars.

Dixieland swing isn't my jam, I'd much rather listen to Be Bop and Hard Bop, but Louis Armstrong's influence on jazz and hell, all modern genres of music is undeniable.

What's there to say, really: it's iconic for a reason. Peerless in its style and genre.

King Louis don't stop. Glad to have learned the origin of the term "muggles" thanks to this album.

5 Love this shid

Even in compilation delivers in breadth. Harmony's the main thing transferred: Foundation. No shape in the sequencing, but the very beginning of jazz was hardly provincial, that's clear.

8/10. Yep, pretty good stuff, always fun listening to older stuff

This is that good mood food jazz

eh, this was kinda fun. neither here nor there. 3/5.

Not much my style, but respect. Good music

I am truly sorry, but there are boundaries in what I like in music. And this is just not it.

I am aware that if I say this I will come off as a spoiled brad, unworthy of calling myself a music-lover, but I'm gonna say it anyway: This was just aweful. I recon that in the 20's this must have been groundbreaking, leaving everyone who heard Armstrong play in awe. But when I hear this, my musically narrow minded brain can't get past the image of Laurel & Hardy goofing around. This one just isn't for me, sorry.

Is this the guy that went to the moon

Incredibly, there is no Louis Armstrong on the original list. As one of the most popular entertainers of all time and one of the definitive voices and instrumentalists in jazz, this is a massive oversight to say the least. This album is a compilation of recordings made between 1925 and 1930. Musically it falls somewhere between dixieland and swing and represents an interesting transitionary period in jazz before it exploded into big band swing and became one of the most popular genres of all time. Indispensable is an understatement.

I can only echo what others have said here in that it's an absolute crime there was no Armstrong on the official list – really highlights the UK bias of the project that a fundamental jazz great was excluded in place of several flash-in-the-pan Britpop bands. Nearly an hour of oldies was a bit longer than I would've liked to listen, but there's no denying the masterclass Armstrong puts on here.

I prefer the Ella and Louis albums and the slightly more modern recordings. Early New Orleans jazz is fine enough, but doesn't quite do it for me.

Are we really doing box sets here now? I feel like if you can't single out a full album by an artist, they probably don't need to be a part of this discussion. To be clear, this was top notch as a collection of songs, but a great album needs to be more than just a collection of songs. I do appreciate your desire to fill a gap in the albums from the original list, which I think a lot of us have done with our personal choices. Musically this is pretty excellent, but after 4 hours I can't remember most of what I've heard. Fave Songs: Potato Head Blues, Chicago Breakdown, Wild Man Blues, Melancholy Blues, The King of the Zulus (A Chit'lin' Rag), St. James Infirmary, Weather Bird, Muskrat Ramble, Cornet Chop Suey

This is a compilation, not an album.

One of a kind voice, out of this world talent, and absolutely a landmark musician whose influence reverberates throughout ALL modern music. A worthy and wonderful selection! Thank you for righting this wrong to whoever submitted this album.

I'd give this five stars if it was just West End Blues

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: West end blues, Heebie jeebies, St. James infirmary

Recorded between 1925 and 1930, these tracks are almost 100 years old. The crackle of the recordings give away their age and enhance the atmosphere created by the sad trumpet. The perfect accompaniment to a rainy day in the office, looking out at water pooling on the flat, asphalt roof. Rating: 3.5 Playlist track: Weary Blues Date listened: 23/09/24

What a hoot hollering good time. I was playing this while I did chores and walked around and it was super motivating and made me feel like I was walking through Central Park in the middle of the day in the 1940s.

It's fine. Really an odd one compared to all the other great albums. Seems more like a chore to listen to than to enjoy. I do love the old music of this era...but this is a LOT to take in in one sitting. 3 of 5, lets move on....

Interesting specialist listening material, but hardly a top album in an open list.

Vibes

enjoyed more than I thought I would, wouldn't relisten

Jazz trompetero. Ni fu ni fa.

If you want old time jazz then this is what you want. 1920s swing jazz with Louis is clearly a historical fest and very important but to me the old time jazz is a bit bland and missing some of the spontaneity of later jazz that I prefer much more. This isn’t bad and it sure it has had major cultural impacts but it’s nothing id willingly revisit if I wanted to hear jazz. 6.4/10

It's fine. Old timey trumpet music doesn't do much for me... certainly tends to sound all the same, but i can acknowledge its importance.

I suppose that there is a lot of talent here. However, it's difficult for me to appreciate the quality of the music, given that I'm generally not someone who listens to a lot of instrumental music.

Æ ekki minn stíll, frekar leiðigjarnt til lengdar.

This is a compilation, not really an album. I am not saying it is bad, not at all, but I guess it doesn’t apply for this exercise

Compilation album = 1 star But I agree that Louis Armstrong should have been in the 1001 album list