When Louis Armstrong Taught Me Scat - OWTK Book Review

Scat singing is the easiest, most fun-tastic way to introduce kids to jazz. Babies coo and scat naturally. Toddlers scat 'cause it's silly. And bigger kids use wacky verbalization to crack up their kid sisters/brothers and amuse their parents (or to delay teeth brushing or bedtime).

A terrific way to build on a child's natural affinity for scat (whether they know that's what they're doing or not) and to open the door to great jazz music is through Muriel Harris Weinstein's new book When Louis Armstrong Taught Me Scat. The story is told in 1st person through a double-bubble chewing cutie (I'm bad at this, but I'd say she is around 6 or 7 years old). As an Armstrong diddy blares from the family radio, the girl and her Momma dance. The girl asks curiously "What kind of words are those?" and thus the entrance into the world of scat singing. That evening Satchmo enters her dreams and together they scat about bubble gum, what else? As you read/scat lines like "oooba lee coooo oooba lee bat blow me a bubble in bubble gum scat" you're little ones will sport a smile as big as Louis'.

Not only is When Louis Armstrong Taught Me Scat a blast to read, it's also extremely visually enticing. The illustration, by the award winning R. Gregory Christie, compliments the exciting, improvisational nature of Armstrong's music perfectly. His Louis Armstrong is playful and the dream imagery, that of pink baboons, hippos and black trumpets with bubble gum swirls, will captivate your children. Additionally, the font on the pages change in style and size, a practice I normally would frown upon in my t-shirt designing, but here it works swimmingly.

When Louis Armstrong Taught Me Scat, along with Charlie Parker Played Be Bop and Hip Cat, is at the top of the kid's-jazz-book heap. I recommend this book to any music loving parent to buy and read out loud to their young learners, dancers and singers.

The Bear first heard scat singing when OWTK saw Hayes Greenfield perform in Philly. He passed the mic around the room encouraging kids to scat (or make some noise) while the band kept the beat on stage. Reading this new book has reinvigorated her love for such silliness and for be bopping, hip swinging jazz music.

Check out this amazing' clip of Satchmo in '64. You'll hear some choice scat singing around the 45 second mark:


...and here's Ella scat singing an entire tune (vocals begin at the 50 second mark):