A Brief History of "Cheesecake" by Louis Armstrong

Louis Armstrong was a trendsetting musician on several different levels. Armstrong was one of the first popular African American entertainers to "crossover" to wide popularity with international (and Caucasian) audiences. He was able to access the upper echelons of society in the United States at a time when this was difficult for black men.

Armstrong was well known as an incentive trumpet and cornet player. His gravelly vocal style was as unique and recognizable as his trumpet playing. Armstrong was a proficient scat singer with his velvety deep-toned voice that seemed to always carry a smile in its delivery.

Louis Armstrong made many chart hits throughout his career including "Ain't Misbehavin'" (1929), "All of Me" (1932), "You Can Depend on Me" (1932), "I'm In the Mood for Love" (1935), "When the Saints Go Marching In" (1939), "(When We Are Dancing) I Get Ideas" (1951), "Hello Dolly" (1964), "What a Wonderful World" (1988), and many others.

Although it never charted the humorous smile inducing song, "Cheesecake" was released as a single in the US and Netherlands.

The picture sleeve release from the Netherlands has been seen to sell for $20 to $35.

This song first made an appearance on Louis Armstrong’s LP titled “Louis”, released in 1966. The album has been issued in various countries using different names including Mame, Wonderful Louis, The Great Louis!, The Great Louis Armstrong, Attention Louis Armstrong, When The Saints Go Marching In, and so forth.

According to some sources Armstrong composed the perky upbeat melody while pianist Irving Fields is credited as writing the lyrics. Fields, by the way, lived to be 101 years old (1915 to 2016). I tend to believe it's the other way around as Fields was not a lyricist rather, he was known as a composer and pianist.

So, for this article I am correcting what I have seen across the internet and listing the songwriting credits as : Music/Melody: Irving Fields * Lyrics: Louis Armstrong

The lyrics match Armstrong's jolly sense of humor.

Hal Mooney is listed as the song's producer. He was primarily known as an arranger for Mercury Records throughout the 1950s and 60s. He worked quite a bit with Dizzy Gillespie and Dinah Washington and arranged and produced some of her finest works. Mooney's most diverse works were with Nina Simone most prominently her 1967 album High Priestess of Soul.

The song was recorded in New Orleans on April 20, 1966, and features: Tyree Glenn on trombone, Buster Bailey on clarinet, Marty Napoleon on piano, Alfred DiLernia on banjo, Buddy Catlett on bass, and Danny Barcelona on drums. The record was released September 23, 1966.

Now for a little history on the term "cheesecake." Cheesecake was an American slang word that became a publicly acceptable term for scantily clad, semi-nude, or nude photos of women in the early 20th century. Armstrong, like many jazz musicians of his day, was known for enjoying a dirty joke or two. I guess we can say "Cheesecake" is Armstrong's dirty joke. Although upon a closer inspection of the lyrics it is easy to deduce the song is purely innocent and is about Armstrong's girlfriend that likes sweets.

Louis Armstrong has been quoted as saying, "Cheesecake is my favorite part of Judaism."

Cheesecake has been used by numerous Jewish communities as a food for Shavuot, the holiday that originally celebrated the spring harvest and later became associated with the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Cheesecake became a tradition for the Jewish because of the cycle of the year, when Shavuot welcomes the plentiful milk of springtime with dairy dishes.

The song "Cheesecake" was used for the UK Spot in episode 222 of The Muppet Show. Dr. Teeth plays an upright piano (rather than his trademark keyboard) with Miss Kitty, two Frackles, and Beautiful Day Monster singing backup. At the end of the song, they try to eat the cheesecake, but it escapes only to be chased by a diet-defying Miss Piggy. The episode went into production on July 12-14, 1977, and premiered in the US on November 21, 1977, and in the UK on December 2, 1977.

Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra, (known as The All Stars), made an appearance on the ABC television show “Hollywood Palace” and performed "Cheesecake" in 1967, where they were introduced by the guest host Bing Crosby. Billy Kyle, Armstrong’s pianist for his Orchestra, performs the iconic “Cheesecake!” line.

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!!

Checkout other articles from my "Brief History" series: