Search - Frank Sinatra, Quincy Jones & Orchestra :: L.A. Is My Lady (Reis)

"How Do You Keep The Music Playing?"

Rebecca*rhapsodyinblue* | CA USA | 02/07/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

""The listening continues behind him, as it will for decades to come. When people will still say without a doubt: This man is the best ever there's been." ~ Stan Cornyn on Frank Sinatra, 1984 Liner Notes



"How Do You Keep The Music Playing?" is such a beautiful song penned by the creative and romantic songwriting team of Alan and Marilyn Bergman, and the music was composed by Michel Legrand. This lovely song is the very highlight of this Quincy Jones-produced-and-conducted album, and I must admit that I was drawn to this CD for this particular song. Other great versions that I'd love to listen to are from George Benson and Carmen Bradford with the Count Basie Orchestra (Big Boss Band), Michael Feinstein (Romance On Film/Romance On Broadway) and Patti Austin and James Ingram (The Very Best of Patti Austin). Frank Sinatra's interpretation is simply awesome and his voice is still great considering that he was in his late sixties when he recorded this song.



Picture these great musicians doing a gig with the great Ol' Blue Eyes: George Benson, Bob James, Lee Ritenour, Ray Brown, Lionel Hampton, Steve Gadd, Marcus Miller, Michael Brecker and Ralph MacDonald, among many others. What do you get? An extremely awesome recording such as this, not to mention that they all had a great time during the recording sessions in New York. And some celebrities visited the studio -- Milt Jackson, Jimmy Webb, Roberta Flack and Michael Jackson, to name a few.



There was supposedly a track #12 on this album, another lovely song "Body And Soul" but the Chairman decided not to include it in the repertoire inspite of the Conductor's prodding. Whatever Sinatra wants, Sinatra gets! And he knew exactly what he wanted and Mr. Q couldn't say 'NO' to him.



"How do you keep the music playing and how do you make it last? How do you keep these songs from fading too fast?" By listening to the rest of the highlights over and over again -- Sammy Cahn's "Until The Real Thing Comes Along" and "Teach Me Tonight," his heartfelt rendition of "Harold Arlen's "Stormy Weather" featuring Lee Ritenour on guitar, and his outstanding rendition of Kurt Weill/Marc Blitztein's "Mack The Knife" which has the following revised lyrics:



"But with QUINCY'S BIG BAND right behind me

Swingin' hard, Jack, I know I can't lose

When I tell you all about Mack The Knife, Babe

It's an offer you can't refuse



We got GEORGE BENSON, we got NEWMAN, FOSTER

We got the BRECKER BROTHERS and HAMPTON bringin' up the rear

All these bad cats and more are in the band now

They make the greatest sounds you're ever going to hear"



Indeed, these are the greatest sounds you're ever going to hear. These are some of the most outstanding performances of Mr. Sinatra. You'll also love the CD booklet with interesting liner notes by Stan Cornyn, some black and white photos of Sinatra, Jones, Benson, James, and the finest studio musicians, as well as the song lyrics.



Very highly recommended!

"

Make Sure This Is In Your Sinatra Collection

Scott Hart | Edinburgh, Scotland United Kingdom | 11/07/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It'd be a mistake to overlook this album from Sinatra. In many ways it's his last proper studio album in which he tackles some new songs and mixes in a few jazz standards. The big band backing Sinatra sound great and Sinatra's voice is deep and resonant; he was just coming off some great years of concert performances. Some critcs have praised "She Shot Me Down" and been overly critical of "LA Is My Lady." Both are highly enjoyable - for different reasons and moods. And it's just so rewarding to hear Sinatra still caring about the music and trying something new in the closing phase of a glorious musical career."

A highly underrated gem

Anthony Paul | 09/06/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"LA is my Lady is the last real Sinatra album and it is great. This is the material that Sinatra was perfect for at that stage of his career. The title track admittingly is no "NY,NY" or "Chicago", but it is FUN and Frank sings the hell out of it. I believe that the title song, if released about 4-5 years earlier, would have been a hit. It's disco feel was a little late in 1984. However, the rest of the album is marvelous, with great legends playing...Lionel Hampton, the Brecker Brothers, etc. "How Do You Keep the Music Playing" is beautiful and poignant, especially for the 69 year old Sinatra. On each track, his phrasing is wholly intact, he's playful, and it's very evident that he's having a ball. 5 stars for the blues arrangement of "Stormy Weather"!!!! There is a video titled "Portrait of an Artist"; it is a behind-the-scenes making of this album. Check it out. Us diehard Sinatraphiles know that a new version of "Body and Soul" was rehearsed for this album but not included. (A bootleg has a rehearsal track of it...it's too bad it wasn't completed). On "After You've Gone" Sinatra comes in a tad early on the final 'after you've gone away'...but WHO CARES?!!!?!?!?"