Muggles (recording)

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Muggles by Louis Armstrong VocalionMuggles.jpg
Muggles by Louis Armstrong

"Muggles" is the title of a recording by Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra.

Development

It was recorded in Chicago on December 7, 1928. The title refers to the use of the word "muggles" as a slang term for marijuana among jazz musicians of the 1920s and 1930s. Armstrong was an enthusiastic user of marijuana, which was legal in most American states at the time.

The personnel of this recording were, in addition to Armstrong on trumpet, Fred Robinson, trombone; Jimmy Strong, clarinet; Earl Hines, piano; Mancy Carr (not "Cara" as his name has often been misspelled) on banjo, and Zutty Singleton on drums.

"Muggles" is in the 12-bar blues form. It starts out with some rather modernistic Hines piano work for the time with Singleton playing sensitively on the brushes. Robinson then takes a gutsy lead without breaking the mood, followed by a chorus by Strong showing the influence of Jimmie Noone. The rest of the band then stops for 2 measures while Armstrong starts a chorus on an adventuresome break subtly playing with the rhythm. The horns then play chords behind Armstrong's excellent 2 choruses of solo. The rhythm gently suggests double-time on the first chorus, giving a sense of acceleration without actually speeding up the tempo, then returns to the dreamy feel of the tune's beginning for the final chorus, with Hines creating fills behind Armstrong.

Jimmie Noone American musician

Jimmie Noone was an American jazz clarinetist and bandleader. After beginning his career in New Orleans he led Jimmie Noone's Apex Club Orchestra, an influential Chicago band that recorded for Vocalion and Decca Records. Maurice Ravel acknowledged basing his Boléro on a Jimmie Noone improvisation. At the time of his death Noone had his own quartet in Los Angeles and was part of an all-star band that was an important force in reviving interest in traditional New Orleans jazz in the 1940s.

In popular music, a break is an instrumental or percussion section during a song derived from or related to stop-time – being a "break" from the main parts of the song or piece. A break is usually interpolated between sections of a song, to provide a sense of anticipation, signal the start of a new section, or create variety in the arrangement.

"Muggles" was issued by Okeh, a 78 in its race record series.