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| Songs for Young Lovers, 1954. Begins the trend of Frank wearing a hat and smoking on his album covers. |
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| Swing Easy! 1954. |
It’s Frank Sinatra’s Capitol recordings that most people
think of when they imagine Sinatra. Albums like In the Wee Small Hours, Songs for Swingin’ Lovers!, Come Fly with Me,
Come Dance with Me! and others cemented Sinatra’s reputation as a peerless
interpreter of songs. Charles L. Granata wrote in his superb book Sessions with Sinatra: Frank Sinatra and the
Art of Recording, “Virtually every song the singer recorded at Capitol is a
model of perfection.” (p.91) I’m inclined to agree with Granata’s judgement.
Frank Sinatra is one of the few popular musicians whose
greatest fame came between roughly the ages of 40 to 50. Most people would say
he did his best work during that decade, from 1955 to 1965. I can’t think of many
other pop musicians one could say that about. Certainly there are artists who
do great work between the ages of 40 or 50, but there are few whose work during
that decade defines them as much as Sinatra’s does.
In my review of Sinatra’s last Capitol album, 1962’s Point of No Return, I mentioned that the
very first recordings Sinatra made for Capitol were arranged by Axel Stordahl,
who had arranged almost all of Sinatra’s recordings for the Columbia label,
from 1943-1952. Stordahl’s strength was arranging ballads, and since the great
majority of the songs that Sinatra recorded for Columbia were ballads, the
partnership worked out very well. As Sinatra’s Capitol years began, he was
still loyal to Stordahl, and insisted that his first Capitol recordings should
be arranged by him. Fortuitously, Capitol executive Alan Livingston got Sinatra
to agree that if the records weren’t hits, he would try recording with Nelson
Riddle. In April of 1953, Sinatra recorded “Lean Baby” and “I’m Walking Behind
You,” his first songs for Capitol, arranged by Stordahl. (Heinie Beau actually
arranged “Lean Baby,” in the style of Billy May.) At the end of April, Sinatra
recorded with Nelson Riddle for the first time. The very first song they
recorded together was “I’ve Got the World on a String,” which has become an
iconic Sinatra performance.
There was magic when Sinatra recorded with Riddle. Sinatra’s
voice was slightly lower than it had been in the 1940’s, and Riddle’s up-tempo
arrangements showed that he was ready to swing. Riddle’s arrangements
highlighted Sinatra’s voice perfectly.
However, Riddle was not the arranger for Sinatra’s first
Capitol LP, Songs for Young Lovers. Thanks
to Sinatra scholar Will Friedwald, we now know that George Siravo was the arranger.
No one was actually credited with the arrangements on the original album, but
since the front of the album read “Accompanied by Nelson Riddle,” everyone
assumed that the arrangements were Riddle’s work. Siravo had arranged for
Sinatra before-he was responsible for Sinatra’s most swinging sides that he cut
for Columbia-these songs were released on the album Sing and Dance with Frank Sinatra in 1950. (The album was re-titled
Swing and Dance with Frank Sinatra when
it was released on CD.)
Recorded over two days on November 5th and 6th
1953, Songs for Young Lovers included
songs that were part of Sinatra’s live act. The decision was made that Sinatra’s
Capitol albums and singles would largely be separate affairs. This choice meant
that rather than just collect a hodge-podge of singles for an album, Sinatra
was free to think about creating a mood and choose a unified set of songs to
sustain that mood. This would lead directly to Sinatra’s classic concept albums
like In the Wee Small Hours, and Songs for Swingin’ Lovers! Songs for Young
Lovers was originally released as a 10-inch LP, meaning that it only held
about twenty minutes of music. With the introduction of the 12-inch LP, Sinatra
could create longer concept albums.
The songs on Songs for
Young Lovers are:
“My Funny Valentine”-The beautiful Rodgers and Hart song is
given an exquisite reading by Frank. The arrangement briefly turns into a waltz
for a few measures. This song captures the intimacy of Sinatra’s voice very
well.
“The Girl Next Door”-from Meet Me in St. Louis, where it was originally sung as “The Boy Next
Door” by Judy Garland. Sinatra perfectly expresses the romantic yearning of the
lyric, as he longs for the girl he hasn’t met, “though I live at 5135 Kensington
Avenue and she lives at 5133.” I’ve always loved that lyric, not many songs can
seamlessly work in a street address.
“A Foggy Day”-A Gershwin song that is one of my favorite
Sinatra tunes. Listen for the way he sings “shining” five times in a row-a sign
of Frank trusting his rhythmic instincts more and more.
“Like Someone in Love”-This is the one Nelson Riddle
arrangement on the album. It’s a lovely ballad, and Frank makes his vocal sound
dreamy and abstracted, as though he really is “bumping into things.”
“I Get a Kick Out of You”-From the pen of Cole Porter comes
one of Sinatra’s classic performances. The arrangement is a superb jazzy
affair, with the guitar playing a prominent part. This version includes the
original lyrics: “Some they may go for cocaine/I’m sure that if I took even one
sniff/It would bore me terrifically too.” In later live performances and
recordings by Sinatra, this verse was often changed to “Some like the perfume
from Spain/I’m sure that if I took even one sniff/It would bore me terrifically
too,” or to “Some like the bop-type refrain/I’m sure that if I heard even one riff/It
would bore me terrifically too.” I love the way Frank hangs on to the f in “terrifically.”
One of my favorite Sinatra songs. When I was a teenager listening to KLBB radio
in the mid to late 1990’s, they would never play this version of the song-I
assumed because of the cocaine lyric.
“Little Girl Blue”-Honestly, this is my least favorite song
on the album. It’s Rodgers and Hart, so that speaks well for its pedigree. I
just don’t care for the lyrics that much-I’m especially perplexed by the line “Sit
there and count your fingers.” I’ve never heard that expression before.
“They Can’t Take That Away from Me”-A fun and jazzy reading
of the Gershwin classic. Listen for Frank mimicking the saxophone after he
sings “The way you hold your knife.”
“Violets for Your Furs”-A highlight of the album. Frank’s
vocal is sexy and intimate, especially when he sings “And it was spring for a
while, remember?” It’s as though he’s whispering in your ear. You can also hear
Sinatra’s precise diction, as he sings “vi-o-lets,” with each syllable crystal
clear.
Songs for Young Lovers
was released in January, 1954. It peaked at number 3 on the charts.The follow up to Songs
for Young Lovers was Swing Easy!, with
arrangements by Nelson Riddle. The eight songs were recorded on April 7th
and 19th 1954. Swing Easy! was
released in August, 1954 and also peaked at number 3.
The tracks on Swing
Easy! are:
“Just One of Those Things”-Another Cole Porter classic.
Sinatra once said that he thought this was the saddest song ever. For a man who
made a career out of singing what he called “saloon songs,” that seems
surprising. I’ve wondered if he was thinking about his relationship with Ava
Gardner when he said that, as their tempestuous time together certainly fits
the song’s subject matter. Riddle’s arrangement fits Frank perfectly. Once
again, you can hear Frank stretch an f on “fabulous flights.” And then there’s
the wonderful moment when, singing the song the second time through, he goes
for broke and sings “So goodbye goodbye bye bye goodbye baby and amen” instead
of just “So goodbye, dear, and amen.” And he makes it work so well.
“I’m Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write Myself a Letter)”-This
song has been recorded by many people, with Fats Waller’s version being the
most well-known. Riddle’s arrangement features the vibraphone, and you can hear
Sinatra’s total ease with up-tempo songs.
“Sunday”-Kind of an odd song, about a guy who is only happy
when he’s going out with his girlfriend on Sundays. Why don’t they go out on
Friday or Saturday? One of the lyrics is: “Friday makes me feel just like I’m
gonna die.” Not a sentiment that’s often heard in popular music.
“Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (And Dream Your Troubles Away)”-Frank
sounds quite ebullient on this tune. I’m a big fan of the version that Dean
Martin recorded for his 1958 album Sleep
Warm-which Sinatra conducted the orchestra on.
“Taking a Chance on Love”-Frank sounds even looser on this
standard. As he sings “Mmmm, I’m in the groove again,” you could think he’s
talking about his career rather than romance. Listen for: another elongated f,
the second time he sings “Brother rabbit of course you’d better kiss that foot
goodbye.”
“Jeepers Creepers”-Sinatra makes the most of this silly
tune, and Riddle gives it a gassy arrangement, with nice trumpet and trombone
solos.
“Get Happy”-The most swinging cut on the album, taken at a very
brisk clip. Although it’s from 1930, the song will forever be identified with
Judy Garland, who sang it in the 1950 movie Summer
Stock. The instrumental break is great, but much too short.
“All of Me”-Sinatra had previous recorded this song at Columbia,
but now he invests it with a swinging swagger that is a new addition to his
sound.
Songs for Young Lovers
and Swing Easy! are now combined
on one CD, and while Sinatra and Riddle would climb to greater artistic heights
on their next records together, these two albums remain an excellent example of
Sinatra’s Capitol era sound.
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