Desert Island DisKs I
Attempting to identify 20 songs that are representative of a career spanning seven decades and the recording of over 1,400 songs is nearly impossible. To truly appreciate the artistry of Francis Albert Sinatra requires consideration of the development of the long-playing record and listening to the full-length albums on which many of the songs in this list are found. Only through an extended, intimate encounter between artist and listener with the songs unfolding in a carefully selected order can one begin to understand how the landscape of popular music was forever altered by this skinny guy from Hoboken. Further evidence of his influence can be heard by listening to recordings made by other vocalists prior to Sinatra's emergence on the music scene and after his ascendancy. After one listening of a standad performed by Sinatra it's often impossible to imagine songs performed in any style other than his. Someone once said a standard could simply be defined as a song Sinatra performed and entire careers of younger vocalists have been written in the margins of his songbook.
There are many songs that stand alone in the canon of American popular music as 32-bar masterpieces and I have included some of those songs here along with others that I simply enjoy regardless of their musical significance. Since many of these songs were recorded several times with different arrangements during Sinatra's seven decade career, I’ve included the year of the version I prefer. I have also noted the original album on which the song appeared if the album is available on CD, but in other instances I have had to list a compilation CD that is currently available. Of course you could always visit a local used record shop or log onto eBay to peruse the material available in vinyl.
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I’ll Never Smile Again (1940), Music
From The CBS Miniseries Sinatra.
Listen
to Tommy Dorsey's new boy singer as he demonstrates the easy, legato phrasing—patterned
after Dorsey's own trombone playing—that would become The Voice's
trademark. This particular song was also the first song to reach #1 on
Billboard's newly created Top 40 rating chart.
The Birth Of The Blues (1951), The
Columbia Years.
One of the singer's last Columbia
recordings, it is available on the four CD set The Voice—Columbia
Years. This brassy Heine Beau arrangement hints at the greatness to come
during the "hat" years at Capitol Records.
I’ve Got The World On A String (1953), Classic
Sinatra: His Great Performances 1953-1960.
This song, from the first
collaboration with arranger Nelson Riddle, let the world know Frank
Sinatra was back on top. What followed was nothing less than the greatest
comeback and creative period in the history of popular music. This
single was also released on the album This is Sinatra!
A Foggy Day (1953), Songs
For Young Lovers.
A fresh and breezy small combo arrangement of the Gershwin standard.
Lyracist Ira Gershwin was incensed that the singer ad libbed "I viewed the
morning with much alarm" although
it's hard to see how it ruined the lyric—jazz musicians have scatted
or embellished arrangements since the music form began. Also available
on Classic Sinatra: His Great Performances 1953-1960.
Taking A Chance On Love (1954), Swing
Easy.
An
exuberant performance by a newly re-energized Sinatra who was finally back
at the top of his game and there to stay. Nelson Riddle's small combo arrangements
sound as fresh today as they did 50 years ago.
In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning (1955), In
The Wee Small Hours.
Perhaps—no,
absolutely—the definitive recording of this song. Although recorded by artists as varied as Dinah Washington and Sting (the iTunes stores has about 100 different versions!), it’s difficult to imagine anyone else
delivering a more sensitive interpretation of this gem. Also available on Classic Sinatra: His Great Performances
1953-1960 and the iTune Essential Capitol Recordings.
I Get Along Without You Very Well (1955), In
The Wee Small Hours.
Wistful. Vulnerable. Perfect.
What Is This Thing Called Love? (1955),
In
The Wee Small Hours.
Perhaps THE central question and one that Frank Sinatra contemplated
every time he stood in a spotlight on a stage or stepped behind a microphone
in a recording studio. Humorist and essayist Sarah Vowell wrote a poignant
plea to the media to use this song to eulogize Sinatra upon his death
instead of the tired, clichéd "My Way." ABC News' Nightline
listened, broadcasting Vowell's reading of the essay before playing
the song at the end of their tribute special.
Old Devil Moon (1956), Songs For Swingin' Lovers!
Although
never listed as one of his greatest recordings, this is one of my personal
favorites—and not just because I'm an astronomer—and features Harry "Sweets" Edison
on a terrific bluesy arrangement. Sinatra's ebullient singing makes this
difficult song sound deceptively easy to perform.
I’ve Got You Under My Skin (1956), Songs
For Swingin' Lovers!
Rightly voted by Sinatra’s fans as his greatest
recording, it is also widely admired as one of popular music’s crowning
achievements. Radio personality and son of composer Arthur Schwartz,
Jonathon Schwartz claimed this song "changed
popular music, and that is not overstating the case." Elvis Costello
put this song on his "Desert Island Disks" list when interviewed
for the long-running BBC program of the same name and called Sinatra's
performance supernatural. According to Nelson Riddle, Sinatra awakened
him in the middle of the night with a telephone call saying that another
song was needed for "Swingin' Lovers" and this song should
be it. Although Riddle's normal style was to be meticulously organized
and prepared, the arrangement to "Skin" was finished in the back
sit of a car being driven to the recording session as his wife held
a flashlight to illuminate the score. Just as an athlete's number may
be retired after a brilliant career, so should some songs after a definitive
performance. This is one such song. Also available on Classic
Sinatra: His Great Performances 1953-1960.