Struttin' with Some Barbecue: Lil Hardin Armstrong Becomes the First Lady of Jazz

by Patricia Hruby Powell, Rachel Himes (Illustrator)

Overview

Lil Hardin and her man, Louis Armstrong, were musical royalty--inventing a new kind of sound--makin' jazz. Believe it, baby!

This is the true story of Lil Hardin Armstrong: pianist, composer, and bandleader in the early days of jazz. Ahead of her time, Lil made a career for herself--and for Louis Armstrong, her modest, unassuming husband. Louis might never have become the groundbreaking jazz player he was, if it hadn't been for Lil. Scat-inspired verse celebrates how Lil overcame race and gender barriers to become the first lady of the Chicago jazz scene.

"Brimming with a contagious love of jazz and its first lady, this work brings down the house"--Kirkus Reviews, STARRED review

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781632895813
Publisher:	Charlesbridge
Publication date:	12/11/2018
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	96
File size:	31 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Acclaimed author Patricia Hruby Powell grew up in a musical family, became a concert dancer and choreographer, and married a jazz musician. When she hears Lil's music, she can't help but dance. Patricia's debut book, Josephine, received a Sibert Honor and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor. Her equally moving and powerful second book, Loving vs. Virginia, established Patricia as a commanding voice in children's literature.

Rachel Himes is a museum educator, author, and illustrator. Her debut picture book, Princess and the Peas, puts a modern African American spin on the classic fairy tale. In Struttin' with Some Barbecue, Rachel conveys Lil's energy and verve through acrylic and collage illustrations inspired by period art and music. www.rachelhimes.com

Read an Excerpt

Starting in 1898
 
Yessir, Lillian Hardin
was proud to be who she was.
Her mama made sure of that.
Grandma made double sure.
 
Grandma was a slave—
a bought-and-sold slave—
till the Civil War ended
and she was freed—
free to earn wages
free to raise up her daughter
Dempsey.
Raised her up proud.
 
Dempsey became Lillian’s mama.
She worked as a cook
for a white family
to give Lillian chances
she’d never had.
Lil’s daddy was
long gone.
 
Lil was reared by
Mama and Grandma
in Memphis, Tennessee,
two blocks from
wild, wailin’ Beale Street —
 
where you got
dee-licious
ham, beans, greens
and bar-be-cue
(mm-hmmm)
but also
blues music
juke joints
and pool halls,
yessirree.
 
All that whoopee worried Mama.
She had a daughter to raise up right.
 
1900-1915
 
At two years old
Lil fiddled around,
fingering the keys
on the rooming-house organ,
her feet dangling
off the bench.
Her cousin stomped on the pedals
below—
making that pump organ
moan, wheeze, and groan.
Mama said,
This girl—
she could be
a piano-playing lady—
a concert pianist.
 
Yes ma’am,
that’s what Mama said,
but bright bold Lil
could make as much music
on an upturned bucket.
 
Still, Lil learned note reading
and piano playing
thanks to schoolteacher
Miss Violet White.
Lil said,
“I used my fingers any way I wanted.”
Sure enough, her fingers went
every which-a-way,
but long as she hit the right notes,
Miss Violet said okay.
 
At nine,
Lil’s feet reached clear to the pedals.
She became the Sunday-school organist
at the Lebanon Baptist Church—
played “Onward, Christian Soldiers”
so it bounced
with a beat so snappy
the kids couldn’t help but dance.
Lil just had to dance, too,
sittin’ right there at the organ.
Reverend Petty, up in the pulpit,
glared at Lil.
Mama shook her head, said,
Vulgar.
Grandma crossed her arms, said,
Common.
 
Shucks,
Lil was just followin’
her heart—
or maybe her gut.
 
’Round about high school
Lil played piano in a recital,
competing for best in her class.
Mama beamed.
 
Oh no!
Lil lost her place
in the music
but used her noggin
to make a new ending—
improvised it.
The audience thought,
This little girl’s so clever—
she’s thinking
and making music
at the very same time.
 
My oh my,
didn’t she just bring home
first prize!
WOW za DOO

Editorial Reviews

♦ Lil Hardin, dubbed "the first lady of jazz," gets a loving ode in this biography in free verse. Raised by "Mama and Grandma / in Memphis, Tennessee, / two blocks from / wild, wailin' Beale Street," Lil was a precocious musician from childhood. But the night life of Beale Street with its "devil's music" pulled her away from the proper, ladylike college life her mother wanted for her. She got a job at a music store and then won a place in an all-male band, an exceptional feat at the time. She met Louis Armstrong, a shy trumpet player, when they played in the same band. She told him he couldn't stay playing second trumpet and was behind much of his success. "Dang, they were musical royalty— / inventing / a new kind of sound— / makin' / jazz." As she earlier demonstrated in Josephine (illustrated by Christian Robinson, 2014), Powell is a die-hard fan of jazz, and it shows in the hum of her lines. She writes in her introduction that she hopes this biography inspires readers "to explore early jazz—and makes you want to get up and dance." On both counts, her writing succeeds. Himes' ink-and-graphite illustrations are inspired by the time period and add to the immersive feel of the work. Brimming with a contagious love of jazz and its first lady, this work brings down the house. (notes, timeline, glossary, resources, sources, index)
—Kirkus Reviews, STARRED review

This biography in verse tells the story of Lil Hardin Armstrong, the first lady of jazz and Louis Armstrong’s first wife. While the book starts with Hardin Armstrong’s birth, most of the text focuses on her time as a jazz pianist in the 1920s and her influential role in Louis Armstrong’s success. The poetry is free form and peppered with bits of scat as an ode to early jazz, and it works well as a vehicle to tell the story of such a strong figure in this movement. Hardin Armstrong’s life is compelling, and readers will be inspired by her perseverance and rise to success in a male-dominated field and in the face of segregation. However, details about her life are less realized than in a typical biography partly because of the book’s lyrical format. Thankfully Powell includes a variety of back matter including more information on Hardin Armstrong, jazz music, and the rise of jazz clubs in the 1920s. The charming illustrations nicely enhance the text. VERDICT Recommended for most libraries, especially where biographies circulate well.
—School Library Journal

From the Publisher