Louis Armstrong Trumpeter and singer who was arguably the most creative and inspiring musician in jazz history New Orleans, Louisiana, August 4, 1901 [not July 4, 1900, as he sometimes claimed]; New York City, July 6, 1971). Trumpeters (and other jazzmen, such as pianist Earl Hines ) took inspiration from his phrasing and either directly copied him or tried to make his ideas their own. Armstrong began recording with his Hot Five in November 1925, for Okeh Records. The personnel included Louis…