Louis Armstrong singing Pharaoh Sanders‘ freak hit “The Creator Has A Master Plan.” He even duets with Leon Thomas. No joke!

“The Creator Has A Master Plan”
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong and his Friends
Flying Dutchman : 1970

Who Knew?

We tend to think of Louis Armstrong and Pharaoh Sanders as inhabiting entirely different universes, but one of the interesting things about the late 60s and early 70s was the generational overlap of so many key jazz figures. But rarely have worlds collided in more unexpected and almost hallucinatory ways.

The mere concept of this track smacks of the most clueless sort of commercial pandering. For some reason, it brings to mind Jackie Gleason’s LSD trip in Skidoo (check out the Youtube clip here). Did Louis really need this so late in his career? Initially, we wondered if producer Bob Thiele didn’t foist this track on Armstrong at gunpoint.

But the surprising thing is that the music isn’t so bad. In fact, it’s an interesting concoction. There’s a solid arrangement by Oliver Nelson and check out the list of stellar musicians above. And to his credit, Louis doesn’t seem nearly as out of place as you might imagine. Hell, it’s only four minutes – listen for yourself and tell us your reactions.

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