Role of The Performer - Frank Sinatra
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The American Icon Francis Albert Sinatra was born on December 12th, 1915 in Hoboken, NJ. He began his singing journey as a teenager in 1936 when he got his very first break singing with a group called the "3 Flashes". While he never learned how to read music, he did learn by ear. By 1938 Sinatra had found himself employed at a roadhouse called The Rustic Cabin as a singing waiter. Flash forward to 1942, once his idol, Sinatra found himself wanting to pursue a solo career in hopes to compete with Bing Crosby. One year later on June 1st of 1943, he was signed onto Colombia Records and his song "All or Nothing at All" was re-released and hit #2 on the best selling list where it stayed for 18 weeks. Sinatra was someone that helped make Las Vegas what it is, he first had an appearance there on September 1st, 1951. A year and seven months later, he was signed onto Capitol Records. On December 12th, 1979 Sinatra celebrated 40 long years in show business by having a huge party at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Almost 20 years later, the world lost one of its largest icons to bladder cancer, heart, and kidney disease.
When hearing Frank Sinatra, the first descriptors that come to mind are sultry, old fashioned, and good times. His voice is one that is smooth and has great range. According to some trivia posted by IMDB.com, "He briefly lost the ability to sing after his vocal cords hemorrhaged in 1953. When his voice returned it had an extra dimension which many fans believed made his singing better than before."
Honestly before researching this deeper, I had always assumed that Mr.Sinatra wrote his own songs because the performance and delivery of all of them are so calculated and smooth. He gives no indications that the songs are not his own and I think that is what made him the performer that he is.
Two of Sinatras most famous songs are "Theme From New York, New York" and "My Way"
Originally a French balled called "For Me" written by Jaques Revaux, Gilles Thibaut, and Claude François My Way turned into the notorious song when singer/songwriter Paul Anka heard it while on vacation in the south of France. He negotiated the rights for the song and ended up with adaption, recording, and publishing rights for the price of $1. The inspiration for the new lyrics actually came from Sinatra speaking with Anka about "a couple of mob guys" and quitting the business. According to Anka, "When my record company caught wind of it, they were very pissed that I didn't keep it for myself. I said, 'Hey, I can write it, but I'm not the guy to sing it.' It was for Frank, no one else." When everything was said and done, the song was recorded on December 30th, 1968 and released on March 21st, 1969.
As we all know, Mr.Sinatra started out in the swing era of music known for jazz that has a weaker beat. Sinatras work is very recognizable as he has one of those voices that you can instantly register. I love Frank Sinatra, as his music makes me feel like I am back in the 1950s-1960s. His record was the first one I purchased when I got my record player, as I felt with a record player, it should be honoring the older music. To this day Frank Sinatra is still an icon, According to IMDB.com, "His version of "New York, New York" is played at Yankee Stadium after every Yankee home win. Liza Minnelli's version is played after every Yankee home loss." and that he was also the inspiration for the character Johnny Fontaine in the 1972 movie The Godfather.
Lastly, I believe that Mr.Sinatra's role as the performer was one of great talent and execution. He always hit his notes and he sold each and every one of his performances with conviction and emotion. Ol' Blue Eyes will be talked about and listened to for generations to come. Just to get that blast from the past, nostalgic feeling for a time we will never get to experience for ourselves.
References
Frank Sinatra - My Way (live at Madison Square Garden, New York City / 1974 / 2019 edit). YouTube. (2019, September 16). https://youtu.be/w019MzRosmk?si=geUYvEa9MzauFAl6
Frank Sinatra - New York, New York (live at Budokan Hall, Tokyo, 1985). YouTube. (2018, April 27). https://youtu.be/TK0Vdb1RUCk?si=USZk6--7Mk_FOPZS
Frank Sinatra timeline. Frank Sinatra. (2021, December 10). https://www.sinatra.com/frank-sinatra-timeline/
Frank Sinatra-Annex. (n.d.). https://www.doctormacro.com/Images/Sinatra,%20Frank/Annex/Annex%20-%20Sinatra,%20Frank%20(Pal%20Joey)_03.jpg
IMDb. (n.d.). Frank Sinatra - Biography. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000069/bio/?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm
Wikimedia Foundation. (2024a, April 2). Theme from New York, New York. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theme_from_New_York,_New_York
Wikimedia Foundation. (2024b, April 3). Frank Sinatra. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Sinatra
Wikimedia Foundation. (2024c, April 3). My way. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Way
This was very interesting to read about. Frank Sinatra has always been one of my favorite singers so learning more about him was very cool. I only ever listened to his music and didn't ever look into his background. I was not aware that those different songs were actually written by other people. Just as you stated with Robert De Niro, I would agree that the Sinatra version is a lot stronger. Glad he never quit on his dream or we would have missed out for sure! Great job!
ReplyDeleteAs someone who never really got into any of Frank Sinatra's music, I still know who he is, he is just that iconic. I think that Sinatra is an amazing performer, especially if someone who never listened to his music knows who he is and what he did. His voice is amazing and reminds me of the 50's and 60's just like you mentioned, and "My Way" is a song that even I know. I'm also surprised to find out that Sinatra didn't write his own music. I would think that someone who is that legendary would make his own music, but I guess not.
ReplyDeleteFrank Sinatra has an instantly recognizable voice. I never knew he was part of a group before his solo career. I too would have guessed that he wrote his own songs because he is so talented. He never even took formal lessons. He learned by ear. That is really impressive. His sound is timeless. Awesome job on the post!
ReplyDeleteI do not know much about Frank Sinatra however, I believe most people know his name. I liked how you talked about the dimension and range of his voice. I also learned great information from this blog post about him. For example, I didn't know he did not write any of his songs.
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