(Capitol, LP & CD, 1965)
Many audiophiles appreciate the music of this rather legendary figure of the 20th century. Others may share the almost inborn, instinctive dislike of him that I grew up with and only managed to shed later in life, after the repeated efforts of a dedicated friend. My record collection now contains the majority of Sinatra’s recorded work. It must be said that as a human being, the “Chairman of the Board” was no paragon of virtue. As a singer, though... Any list of popular vocalists of the last century will have to place him at or near the top.
The songs on this album were written by one of the greatest songsmiths this country has ever known, without whose work the “Great American Songbook” would be very much the poorer. The band/orchestra was directed by Nelson Riddle, who is acknowledged as one of the most accomplished practitioners of his art of that last century. And the records from which this collection was culled – and it is a compilation of previously released material – were recorded by Capitol Records in its considerable prime. (I don’t usually bother with compilation albums, but this is a notable exception.)
So – Sinatra. Porter. Riddle. Capitol. Quite an alignment of talent coming together here! And the result? Well, several adjectives come to mind, including outstanding, impressive, and even awesome. I’m particularly fond of ‘extraordinary,’ for my part. Another reviewer (Karen Croft) states: “This is probably the best compilation of Sinatra songs available. Cole Porter's romantic wit, Nelson Riddle's sense of timing, and Sinatra's voice combined in these cuts in a way not bettered in the history of pop music.” Granted, most critics would probably not be quite that effusive, but you get the idea.
These songs were recorded after Sinatra’s early work. He had achieved fame as a singer, evolved, matured, and honed his art as a vocalist, and was arguably at the height of his powers. He would go on to found Reprise Records and continue his career as a singer and movie star for several years after recording these songs, but his Capitol recordings stand as more worthy of the label “classic” than anything he ever did. (Whazat? You think I’m wrong? Check back in 100 years and eat crow.)
“I’ve Got You Under My Skin” leads off the album, and if you have the slightest receptivity to this sort of music whatsoever, you will likely find this getting under your skin. As it did mine – this is my favorite song that Sinatra ever recorded. But there are so many great songs here! It continues with “I Concentrate on You,” “You Do Something to Me,” and “Anything Goes” – you recognize these titles, right? And of course others, many of which are part of that aforementioned Great American Songbook. And those that aren’t are near-misses.
Though liner notes mention the recording dates of the songs they do not bother to attribute which previous Sinatra albums the songs were taken from, an inexplicable and irritating omission to my mind. I’m sure that true Sinatra buffs can easily ascertain this, but though I am a Sinatra fan I am not dedicated enough to spend time figuring it out.
If you only own one Sinatra album, should this be it? There are a couple others I might – might – consider nominating for that honor (also from Riddle and Capitol, no surprise), but you could certainly do worse than this. And it’s the one that finally ignited my own interest in his work.
So, LP or CD? I have three different releases of this album. Comparing my copy of the original 1965 mono LP, the later “electronically enriched Duophonic” stereo LP, and the 1991 CD, the sound of the latter actually compares quite favorably. I’m sure the LPs of the high-fidelity re-issues of Sinatra’s catalog will better the sound for the individual tracks, but for this collection, well... the CD does add in 4 ‘bonus’ tracks not on the original album. (Which are not attributed either, but other sources say they are from soundtracks of films that Sinatra appeared in.) So – my recommendation would have to come in for (gasp!) the CD. All versions are available on Discogs relatively cheaply, probably only because it is a compilation album. I recommend it – as you will doubtless surmise – nonetheless.
Now if you’ll kindly excuse me, I intend to concoct a martini and retire to my system for another listen to this outstanding album.