Search - Frank Sinatra :: Sinatra Sings Cole Porter

Fine album of Sinatra singing Cole Porter tunes to perfectio

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 06/20/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Sinatra Sings Cole Porter is another fine album by a young Frank Sinatra whose voice made bobby socksers swoon and men jealous of his "stealing" their sweethearts! Frank's voice is in excellent form here; and the quality of the sound is really rather good. The artwork is very nicely done as well.



"Night And Day" starts the CD with Frank singing along with a very lush musical arrangement. The strings sound so sweet--but Frank is in charge here and he's the one who makes this number fly! His voice is excellent, very sweet and full of the warmth that made so many people happy. "Begin The Beguine" features Frank Sinatra singing a rarely heard vocal version of this tune alongside the usually heard musical arrangement. The tempo is kicked up a little to add some zest to this tune and it all holds its own very well. Impressive! In addition, there's also "I Get A Kick Out Of You." "I Get A Kick Out Of You" is one of my favorite numbers on this album and the tune is one I could never tire of; Frank sings this with panache and the music is very beautiful. I really like "I Get A Kick Out Of You."



Listen for Frank Sinatra to perform a lovely medley of "Easy To Love/I've Got You Under My Skin." "Easy To Love/I've Got You Under My Skin" showcases Frank's voice and he never misses a beat. This is truly Frank Sinatra at his very best; his voice made everyone stop and listen and there's no need to explain his incredible popularity even as he got older through the years.



"Don't Fence Me In" has Frank clowning around a bit. I first heard this song performed by The Andrews Sisters and Bing Crosby; but Frank also manages to put his own mark on this great ballad with some improvisation and a great upbeat burst of energy that is unmistakable. Great! Similarly, "I Concentrate On You" is a tender love song that many sweethearts danced to in their living rooms all alone at night; Frank does this brilliantly and it leaves you wanting more.



And that's precisely what you're going to get. "Just One Of Those Things" is a fantastic Cole Porter tune that Frank sings in great spirits and the tempo is just right to make this rendition of "Just One Of Those Things" a highlight of this album. "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To" has some surface noise but this duet Frank does with Rosemary Clooney really shines brightly just the same. "Cherry Pies Ought To Be You" features Rosemary Clooney doing an electric duet with Frank; they sound great together and this is a strong duet that makes both Rosie and Frank look great.



"You Don't Remind Me" is another very sensitive ballad that Frank sings with lots of feeling; and that turns "You Don't Remind Me" into one of the better songs on this CD. Just for good measure, there's another version of "Begin The Beguine" and the CD ends with another version of "Night And Day." Wonderful!



Frank Sinatra could have sung them all--and we'd have stayed all night! His treatment of Cole Porter tunes must have made Porter very happy--they're all THAT good. I highly recommend this CD for Sinatra fans and people who enjoy Cole Porter music.

"

From a Sinatra & Cole Porter fan - Do NOT buy this CD..

P. Gomes | New York, NY | 10/05/2008

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I have many Cole Porter and Sinatra CDs and this is probably the worst of both. Cole Porter would be embarassed by the versions of some of his most beautiful songs in this CD and Sinatra should be.



Just to be fair, the recordings do have some historical value but it's really not a good representation of Sinatra's recordings of Cole Porter songs.



You can find beautiful recordings of Sinatra singing Cole Porter's best like "Night and Day", "You're the Top" and many others in different compilations. It's just about the versions chosen for this one which are no good. The recordings are cheesy and represent Sinatra "playing for the crowds" of dazzled housewifes instead of using his voice and talent to really interpret the songs. The background singing is often depressing."