I love this profile of Howard Armstrong—a Tennessee-born fiddler, artist, and wordsmith—now in his 70s.
He learned Polish just to hustle gigs in racist clubs, kept a surreal sex scrapbook under his bed, and could switch from ragtime blues to Italian opera without blinking.
This doc is for anyone who loves music, outsider art, or charismatic old weirdos.
Trailer for “Louie Bluie”
You Can’t Make This Sh!t Up
- He sings in five languages and says he learned them just to survive the South’s racist venues. He charms Polish, German, and Italian immigrants so they wouldn’t throw him out.
- Louie Bluie casually shows off his handmade sex scrapbook called “The ABCs of Pornography”—a flipbook of dirty limericks and cutout porn collages he’s secretly been crafting since the 1930s.
- He once played the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, and can shift from a ragtime blues song to singing an Italian opera aria in the same set.
- He and bandmate Ted Bogan used to hustle gigs in segregated dance halls by learning Polish and other immigrant languages—just to charm the white crowds who otherwise wouldn’t let them in the front door.
Watch “Louie Bluie”
You can watch “Louie Bluie” on Amazon and Apple TV.
Ratings:
- My Rating: 92/100
- IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: 89/100 (Users); 100/100 (Critics)
Director’s Note: This was Terry Zwigoff’s first feature-length film. Before “Crumb” (which my colleague Rob rates 90/100) and “Ghost World,” he was already chasing eccentric, underappreciated American artists. The doc was made on a shoestring budget but still feels intimate and rich.
Release Date: 1985 (75 minutes)
My Review of “Louie Bluie”
The Setup
We follow Howard Armstrong—a Tennessee-born fiddler, artist, and wordsmith—now in his 70s, still touring and telling filthy jokes. He’s part of a nearly lost Black string-band tradition that pre-dates the blues we usually hear about.
Alongside his longtime bandmates Ted Bogan and Yank Rachell, Armstrong reflects on decades of performing across a racially divided America—with stories that ping-pong from heartbreaking to hilarious within seconds.
More Highlights from the Doc
- Louie Bluie’s real name is Howard Armstrong. He’s 75 during the film and still playing, painting, writing, and talking nonstop. The man’s charisma is off the charts.
- His string band (with Ted Bogan and Yank Rachell) was one of the last known Black string bands in the U.S.—a dying art rooted in a mix of Appalachian, blues, and vaudeville tradition.
- Director Terry Zwigoff (of “Crumb” fame) smartly keeps the camera on Armstrong, letting his voice and stories carry the film. There’s no narrator—just Louie telling tales.
- We get rare footage of Armstrong’s mixed-media art: surreal paintings, wordplay poems, and collage works that feel like a mix of outsider art and underground zines.
Lesser-Known Details from the Doc
- The title “Louie Bluie” came from a nickname he picked up while playing music as a teen. It stuck for the next 60 years.
- Armstrong kept dozens of sketchbooks and scrapbooks for decades. Many are filled with erotic collages, pun-filled captions, and Dadaist humor that Zwigoff zooms in on.
- Armstrong played violin, he painted in oils, wrote poetry, and designed his own album covers. One self-portrait shows him with devil horns and a fiddle on fire.
Wrap Up:
Louie Bluie is a full-blown character study of a genius hustler-artist who should be way more famous than he is. If you like roots music, outsider art, or wild old men telling dirty stories, this is a must-watch.
Thanks for reading!
Heather Fenty, Guest Writer, Daily Doc