Songs that Never Die

“Hello Dolly”: I was drawn towards “Hello Dolly” because of Louis Armstrong. His unique voice and how it makes me feel has always made me a big fan. Also from class, I knew that “Hello Dolly” won a Grammy Award in 1964. I had no idea, however, that in the beginning it really meant nothing to Louis. He had never heard of the song, written by Jerry Herman, before he recorded it. Jerry thought similarly about “Hello Dolly” and its insignificance because he was surprised when he heard Louis was going to record it. It wasn’t till Armstrong’s audiences were requesting the song a year or so later, that he remembered he ever sung “Hello Dolly”. Obviously with Louis winning a Grammy, its popularity grew significantly after this point. It is wild to consider a song, that the artist couldn’t even remember himself, turned into a Grammy. This highlights the influence that fans and audiences can have.

This song fits right in with the Jazz era of the time. Upon listening to the song again I realized there are no moving or inspiring lyrics or even many words at all. Jazz is all about the music, the variations and beats, and how the artist can portray his emotions. In this case Louis Armstrong has the ability to turn any song into one worth listening to with his style and talent. In “Hello Dolly”, he inserted an “individual stamp” in his solo which identifies him in a piece. This song even pushed the Beatles off the number one in the charts, which made Louis, at the age of 63, the oldest artist to hold that spot.

“La Bamba”: Imagine being an artist and never knowing how the audience may react to your song. I have never thought about how a hit song does just that, becomes a hit. It definitely isn’t something that the artist can predict. I started thinking of this due to the history behind “La Bamba”. Ritchie Valens did not think twice about this song because its purpose was simply to fill the B side of the record. The main focus of the record, the predicted hit, was “Donna”. “La Bamba” was never considered with importance because it was in Spanish and so different from anything else he had done. This song was originally an 18^th century folk Mexican song played during weddings. Which leads to only another reason this song was made with hesitation, Ritchie didn’t want to commercialize a song that was a part of history and his culture. But it was a hit. Ritchie became a teen idol and his popularity grew.

Ritchie had even attempted to translate “La Bamba” into English, but realized it was too great of a task. Think about how things would be different if he had translated it and made it more uniform and acceptable for the time. Thankfully he didn’t. This is how music grows and evolves, through artists venturing into new styles and variations. “La Bamba” was just that, something new and fresh and it hooked the audience. It was a mixing of Latin into rock and it opened the doorway to a new style.

“Purple Haze”: Jimi Hendrix is one of the reasons that my brother started playing guitar. He is a rock legend. This song and any song by Jimi have now changed for me, due to learning more about its history. I had no idea what a shy character Jimi was and how much he really didn’t like his own voice. He even went to the extent of hiding his face while recording to make it easier for him to perform. This song is what launched his career in the United States. “Purple Haze” was significant to many musicians and audiences alike. It had such impact to the extent where some musicians claimed they did not want to pick up their guitar or make music of their own because it could not reach the level that Hendrix was able to reach. However that was not his intent. Music is not an arena to show off and make others jealous, but to inspire. Jimi didn’t want others to try to mimic what he did but wanted to motivate them to venture out and find their sound. Jimi had taken rock to a different level. The electric guitar in this song made sounds that it had never been asked to make before. Jimi even lit his guitar on fire! He was all about experimenting and was not afraid to do something new and crazy.

Jimi started listening to music as a child and one of his idols was Muddy Waters. It is really incredible to consider the chain of effect that all musicians have. Take Hendrix for example, he loved listening to Muddy Waters. However, who did Muddy Waters listen to as a kid? And who afterwards has listened to Hendrix which will then inspire them to create music? “Purple Haze” was not only a great song but a turning point in rock history and I am glad that I can still appreciate Hendrix today.