"When The Saints Go Marching In"

      "When the Saints Go Marching In", often referred to as "The Saints", is an American gospel hymn. The precise origins of the song are not known. Though it originated as a Christian hymn, it is often played by jazz bands. The song is sometimes confused with a similarly titled composition "When the Saints are Marching In" from 1896 by Katharine Purvis (lyrics) and James Milton Black (music).

      Luther G. Presley, who wrote the lyrics, and Virgil Oliver Stamps, who wrote the music, popularized the tune as a gospel song. A similar version was copyrighted by R.E. Winsett. Although the song is still heard as a slow spiritual number, since the mid 20th century it has been more commonly performed as a "hot" number. The tune is particularly associated with the city of New Orleans. A jazz standard, it has been recorded by a great many jazz and pop artists.

      Both vocal and instrumental renditions of the song abound. Louis Armstrong was one of the first to make the tune into a nationally known pop tune in the 1930s. Armstrong wrote that his sister told him she thought the secular performance style of the traditional church tune was inappropriate and irreligious. Armstrong was in a New Orleans tradition of turning church numbers into brass band and dance numbers that went back at least to Buddy Bolden's band at the start of the 20th century.

      In New Orleans, the song is traditionally used as a funeral march at "jazz funerals". While accompanying the coffin to the cemetery, a band plays the tune as a dirge. Returning from the interment, the band switches to the familiar upbeat "hot" or "Dixieland" style of play.

Louis Armstrong - live in australia - When The Saints Go Marching In

March, 1963, Sydney, Australia
Armstrong, Louis (Trumpet, Vocal)
Young, Trummy (Trombone)
Darensbourg, Joe (Clarinet)
Kyle, Billy (Piano)
Shaw, Arvell (Bass)
Barcelona, Danny (Drums)