St. James Infirmary (1928 version) -- Louis Armstrong and His Savoy Ballroom Five

There is a lot of dispute about the history of St. James Infirmary before 1928. It may have a history of decades or more before Louis' version, and it may be that the song is the merging of two different songs, one about a woman's death, and the second a gambler's death.

No matter the pre-history of this song, we can be sure that Louis and his band put a stake in the ground in 1928, and that stake is "St. James Infirmary". Everyone (including Louis) who covered the song after this recording are trying to recapture the glory that Louis made in this recording. I went and bought the Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings in no small part because of this recording.

Even in 2020, there's nothing wrong with wanting to have a $20 gold piece on your watchchain, so the boys will know you died standing pat.

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