THAT SWINGIN' SOUND!

Celebrated musicians’ lives unfold in parallel before a fateful duet launches their legendary friendship.

Young Ella Fitzgerald “felt the music.” She “danced everywhere” and “dreamed of her chance to be onstage,” ideally at Harlem’s Apollo Theater, where she could often be found in the audience. Meanwhile, young Louis Armstrong “dreamed of being a famous musician” and sang his way through New Orleans before picking up the trumpet as “hip-hopping, toe-tapping, finger-snapping beats thumped inside” him. Ella’s distinctive scatting and Louis’ soaring brass skills eventually led both musicians to L.A.’s Hollywood Bowl, where “they took the stage together” and combined their talents with a swinging “push and pull” that kickstarted not only their lasting friendship, but also musical collaborations around the country. Daley’s bustling digital illustrations with bold brush strokes in rich jewel tones radiate joy and anchor the performers amid immersive, detailed landscapes with dramatic perspectives. Stealing the show are swaths of musical notes that cut, curve, and sway across the primarily double-page spreads and complement the swinging phonetics of the musicians (“Ba-da-da-da,” “snap-pa-snap”), the latter set apart from the appreciative and onomatopoeic text in a bold, prancing font.

A zippy and tuneful dual biography of innovative jazz collaborators.