Lesser Known Songs By Sinatra

Not in the Philly area,as Sid Mark played that multiple times on his Sinatra shows(sometimes back-to-back) when first released. I think it struck a personal nerve with Sid. A decade later,while going through a divorce,it struck me,too. I think the fact that it was chosen as a B-side that someone at Warners thought it deserved a little be more attention,too. Sinatra's last true hurrah at owning a song.

 

I don’t know how obscure this song is but “Why Try to Change Me Now” was a B-side to “The Birth of the Blues” (1952 with Percy Faith), one of his last Columbia singles. Frank re-recorded it for the No One Cares album.

Someone posted this on the Dylan Shadows thread and this song/performance just stopped me in my tracks.

 

Respectfully disagree. See Hey Look, No Crying; See also A Long Night, Monday Morning Quarterback, It's Sunday

 

Bob, grew up near Cherry Hill in South Jersey. The sydicated show is nice, but I had a special fondness for the local shows...hearing Sid say "this portion of the show brought to you by P & S Ravioli..."
Was part of my weekend routine until I moved to Columbus Ohio...still tune in when I'm back in Philly....nice memories! And Sid would often tell the story of how when Trilogy came out he would play "You & Me" back to back and then the Program Manager would tell him he couldn't...and he would play it again. Sid was (and still is) loyal to Mr. S.

 

There's a Flaw in My Flue - leftover from the Close To You sessions with the Hollywood Strings. My understanding is that Frank had a bet with Sammy Cahn that he could sell any song, no matter how ridiculous, so Sammy came up with this, and of course, Frank nailed it. Can be heard on some CD versions of Close to You.

 

Not exactly. According to Nancy Sinatra, her dad recorded the song to prove the Capitol executives weren't really listening and/or had no musical taste. The nonsense tune came from a 1949 "Flop Parade" feature on Bing Crosby's radio show. The Capitol suits approved it wholeheartedly, and Sinatra had to step in at the last minute to keep them from releasing his practical joke on the album.

 

Luck Be a Lady
Swingin' Down the Lane
The Coffee Song

 

Lesser known ? Well to the masses maybe.
Bim Bam Baby c/w Azure-Te ( Paris Blues).
That's one l like others include.....
This Town
We Three
Drinking again
Anytime ( I'll be there)
Stargazer
You Turned My World Around
Walk Away
All of Watertown
All of A Man Alone
Girls & Boys ( like you & I )
It's Sunday , loads more but there's a start.

Peace and love✌

 

That makes more sense. Thanks for clarifying. Close to You is a fascinating album to me. A real dark horse in the Capitol canon and unlike anything else Frank did. It's one of my all time favorites and I have always assumed the reason it isn't more popular is the awful, awful cover art which makes it look like a cheap bootleg you would find in an Amsterdam record store.

 

William Kennedy also told this story in his wonderful, wonderful liner notes accompanying the 1990 Reprise Collection. I'll use this opportunity to throw a shameless plug for him as a writer---he's quite wonderful, whether it's nonfiction O Albany, or fiction like Ironweed and Roscoe.

 

I've always liked the cover art---although it's not exactly conceptual. As for the relative lack of success for the album, I always figured that this was Sinatra's tribute to the "chamber" recordings he made in the mid-40s and a chance to work with the fantastic HSQ---but it was an approach that just wasn't commercial in 1957. I don't think it's any coincidence that the Jenkins albums and Come Fly With Me are the next, far more commercial products after that experimentation.

 

Great writer. Thanks to Ironweed I will never hold a baby again...

 

One of my favorite obscure Sinatra songs is "The Game is Over". It's a beautiful wistful ballad written by John Denver which he recorded in the early 70's. Unfortunately it was never released until the Reprise suitcase set. Would love to have a vinyl version including all of his rare and unreleased Reprise material but I won't hold my breath on that one. John Denver's version is great also if you are a fan of his music. BTW just love You and Me (We Wanted It All).

 

I'm Not Afraid - Oct, 1970
Forget To Remember - Aug, 1969

 

Which they thought meant that the Capitol suits knew nothing about music....but which probably really meant that they knew not to say no to Frank.

 

This is an an excellent, excellent song (written by Jack Lawrence) and the performance (Frank w/ Harry James and His Orchestra) is top notch! (By the way it’s a live recording.) Frank deploys a wonderfully expressive vibrato throughout, which really brings out the sad sentiment of the song. Listen to a subtle bending of “maybe” in “If this isn’t love then maybe I’m wrong”.

Already in 1939 THE VOICE is here!

 

Fantastic song. Penned by Lee Hazlewood and used to great effect in the Nick Cage flick, "Matchstick Men."

 

"Michael and Peter" from Watertown. Holy crap. The lyrics, his delivery, that guitar lick that pops in every once in awhile...."but he's sooooo old"...chills every time. What a genius.

 

Hardly lesser known, though. It was even on his Greatest Hits album. It was also in Oceans Twelve or Thirteen or Sixty-Seven.

 

Just a few hours ago I was at a used furniture store and they had about 50 LP's in a pile for $2 each and I passed on Watertown. Maybe a mistake? It was at least VG+ but I'm not familiar with this era of Frank. It's only 8 miles down the road and they had a few sealed LP's too like Lou Rawls Christmas LP and a Nancy and Lee stereo in pretty nice shape so I'll stop back in a few days if Watertown is a great record.

 

How Insensitive- from Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim. The whole album is a gorgeous pairing of vocalist and composer.

 

Has anyone heard the benefit single (for the Foster Grandparents Program) "To Love a Child," a non-LP 45 from '81?

It's kind of silly, in the tradition of "High Hopes," since it also has him exchanging lines with a kid. But...that kid is Nikka Costa, Don Costa's daughter, who went on to have success as an indie singer. Not essential listening by any means, but pretty catchy.

 

And written by the great Joe Raposo. There used to be a video on youtube of CNN footage of Sinatra and Nancy Reagan singing that. Fantastically awkward.

 

I know it was a hit when it was released (#8, I believe), but I don't think 'Deep Night' gets the accolades it deserves. It's a great arrangement, sung impeccably and has my favorite Harry James playing of all.

 

When The Sun Goes Down-early Columbia! fabulous!