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Related Items:
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Related Items:

• The Complete Recordings Nineteen Thirty-Nine
• The Real Complete Columbia Years V-Discs
• The Columbia Years (1943-1952): The Complete Recordings
• Sinatra: Vegas (Box Set, 4CD/1DVD)
• The Complete Capitol Singles Collection
• see more

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Disc 1:

1. The Sky Fell Down - Frank Sinatra, Alter, Louis
2. Too Romantic - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
3. Shake Down the Stars - Frank Sinatra, DeLange, Eddie
4. Moments in the Moonlight - Frank Sinatra, Gordon, Irving
5. I'll Be Seeing You - Frank Sinatra, Fain, Sammy
6. Say It - Frank Sinatra, Loesser, Frank
7. Polka Dots and Moonbeams - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
8. The Fable of the Rose - Frank Sinatra, Myrow, Josef
9. This Is the Beginning of the End - Frank Sinatra, Gordon, Mack
10. Hear My Song, Violetta - Frank Sinatra, Bernier, Buddy
11. Fools Rush In - Frank Sinatra, Bloom, Rube
12. Devil May Care - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
13. April Played the Fiddle - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
14. I Haven't Time to Be a Millionaire - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
15. Imagination - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
16. Yours Is My Heart Alone - Frank Sinatra, Herzer, Ludwig
17. You're Lonely and I'm Lonely - Frank Sinatra, Berlin, Irving
18. East of the Sun (And West of the Moon) - Frank Sinatra, Bowman, Brooks
19. Head on My Pillow - Frank Sinatra, Connor, Pierre
20. It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow - Frank Sinatra, Berlin, Irving
21. I'll Never Smile Again - Frank Sinatra, Lowe, Ruth
22. All This and Heaven Too - Frank Sinatra, DeLange, Eddie
23. Where Do You Keep Your Heart? - Frank Sinatra, Ahlert, Fred E.

Disc 2:

1. Whispering - Frank Sinatra, Coburn, Richard H.
2. Trade Winds - Frank Sinatra, Friend, Cliff
3. The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else) - Frank Sinatra, Jones, Isham
4. The Call of the Canyon - Frank Sinatra, Hill, Billy [1]
5. Love Lies - Frank Sinatra, Freed, Ralph
6. I Could Make You Care - Frank Sinatra, Cahn, Sammy
7. The World Is in My Arms - Frank Sinatra, Harburg, E.Y.
8. Our Love Affair - Frank Sinatra, Edens, Roger
9. Looking for Yesterday - Frank Sinatra, DeLange, Eddie
10. Tell Me at Midnight - Frank Sinatra, Boland, Clay
11. We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me) - Frank Sinatra, Cogane, Nelson
12. When You Awake - Frank Sinatra, Nemo, Henry
13. Anything - Frank Sinatra, DeLange, Eddie
14. Shadows on the Sand - Frank Sinatra, Adams, Stanley
15. You're Breaking My Heart All Over Again - Frank Sinatra, Altman, Arthur
16. I'd Know You Anywhere - Frank Sinatra, McHugh, Jimmy
17. Do You Know Why? - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
18. Not So Long Ago - Frank Sinatra, Boland, Clay
19. Stardust - Frank Sinatra, Carmichael, Hoagy
20. Oh! Look at Me Now - Frank Sinatra, Bushkin, Joe
21. You Might Have Belonged to Another - Frank Sinatra, Harmon, Lucille
22. You Lucky People, You - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
23. It's Always You - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
24. I Tried - Frank Sinatra, Dennis, Clark

Disc 3:

1. Dolores - Frank Sinatra, Alter, Louis
2. Without a Song - Frank Sinatra, Eliscu, Edward
3. Do I Worry? - Frank Sinatra, Cowan, Stanley
4. Everything Happens to Me - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
5. Let's Get Away from It All - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
6. I'll Never Let a Day Pass By - Frank Sinatra, Loesser, Frank
7. Love Me as I Am - Frank Sinatra, Alter, Louis
8. This Love of Mine - Frank Sinatra, Parker, Sol
9. I Guess I'll Have to Dream the Rest - Frank Sinatra, Block, Martin
10. You and I - Frank Sinatra, Willson, Meredith
11. Neiani - Frank Sinatra, Oliver, Sy
12. Free for All - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
13. Blue Skies - Frank Sinatra, Berlin, Irving
14. Two in Love - Frank Sinatra, Willson, Meredith
15. Pale Moon - Frank Sinatra, Glick, Jacob
16. I Think of You - Frank Sinatra, Elliott, Jack
17. How Do You Do Without Me? - Frank Sinatra, Bushkin, Joe
18. A Sinner Kissed an Angel - Frank Sinatra, David, Mack
19. Violets for Your Furs - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
20. The Sunshine of Your Smile - Frank Sinatra, Cooke, Lawrence
21. How About You? - Frank Sinatra, Freed, Ralph
22. Snootie Little Cutie - Frank Sinatra, Troup, Bobby

Disc 4:

1. Poor You - Frank Sinatra, Harburg, E.Y.
2. I'll Take Tallulah - Frank Sinatra, Harburg, E.Y.
3. The Last Call for Love - Frank Sinatra, Cummings, Marcus
4. Somewhere a Voice Is Calling - Frank Sinatra, Newton, Eileen
5. Just as Though You Were Here - Frank Sinatra, Brooks, John Benson
6. Street of Dreams - Frank Sinatra, Lewis, Sam M.
7. Take Me - Frank Sinatra, Bloom, Rube
8. Be Careful, It's My Heart - Frank Sinatra, Berlin, Irving
9. In the Blue of Evening - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
10. Dig Down Deep - Frank Sinatra, Hirsch, Walter
11. There Are Such Things - Frank Sinatra, Adams, Stanley
12. Daybreak - Frank Sinatra, Adamson, Harold
13. It Started All over Again - Frank Sinatra, Carey, Bill
14. Light a Candle in the Chapel - Frank Sinatra, Leonard, Duke
15. Too Romantic - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
16. Shake Down the Stars - Frank Sinatra, DeLange, Eddie
17. Hear My Song, Violetta - Frank Sinatra, Bernier, Buddy
18. You're Lonely and I'm Lonely - Frank Sinatra, Berlin, Irving
19. Our Love Affair - Frank Sinatra, Edens, Roger
20. Violets for Your Furs - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
21. The Night We Called It a Day - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
22. The Lamplighter's Serenade - Frank Sinatra, Carmichael, Hoagy
23. The Song Is You - Frank Sinatra, Hammerstein, Oscar
24. Night and Day - Frank Sinatra, Porter, Cole

Disc 5:

1. I'm Getting Sentimental over You - Frank Sinatra, Bassman, George
2. Who? - Frank Sinatra, Hammerstein, Oscar
3. I Hear a Rhapsody - Frank Sinatra, Baker, Jack
4. I'll Never Smile Again - Frank Sinatra, Lowe, Ruth
5. Half Way Down the Street - Frank Sinatra, Gannon, Kim
6. Some of Your Sweetness (Got into My Heart) - Frank Sinatra, Clayborn, G.
7. Once in a While - Frank Sinatra, Edwards, Michael
8. A Little in Love - Frank Sinatra, O'Neil, C.
9. It Came to Me - Frank Sinatra, DePyo, Louis
10. Only Forever - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Johnny
11. Marie - Frank Sinatra, Berlin, Irving
12. Yearning (Just for You) - Frank Sinatra, Burke, Joe [2]
13. How Am I to Know? - Frank Sinatra, King, Jack
14. You're Part of My Heart - Frank Sinatra, Sloane, Virginia
15. Announcements - Frank Sinatra,
16. You're Stepping on My Toes - Frank Sinatra, Terry, Robert
17. You Got the Best of Me - Frank Sinatra, Font, Jay
18. That's How It Goes - Frank Sinatra, Gentle, M.
19. When Daylight Dawns - Frank Sinatra, Huberdo, Bea
20. When Sleepy Stars Begin to Fall - Frank Sinatra, Allen, Sibyl
21. Goodbye Lover, Goodbye - Frank Sinatra,
22. One Red Rose - Frank Sinatra, Mayle, Willard
23. The Things I Love - Frank Sinatra, Barlow, Harold
24. In the Blue of Evening - Frank Sinatra, Adair, Tom
25. Just as Though You Were Here - Frank Sinatra, Brooks, John Benson
26. Frank Sinatra's Farewell to the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra - Frank Sinatra,
27. The Song Is You - Frank Sinatra, Hammerstein, Oscar

Rating: - Frank's early big band material with Dorsey delights
A young Frank Sinatra made his first big band recordings with Harry James in 1939 before jumping ship and switching over to Tommy Dorsey, whom he felt he would receive more exposure from. He began touring with Dorsey in 1940 and remained with him for two-and-a-half years, including a string of sixteen Top Ten hits including the poignant I'll Never Smile Again, written by a Canadian WWII war widow. By January 1942, Frankie was testing the waters for his own solo career by recording a short session with Axel Stordahl that included Cole Porter's Night and Day, and left Dorsey in September 1942 for Columbia Records.

The Song Is You collects Sinatra's Dorsey catalogue and features a fifth disc of largely unreleased radio broadcasts. Far from a "pure" jazz singer, Frankie plays these as slow, romantic ballads, but lacks the signature aggressive "punch" that his later Capitol material had. The tracklist includes such standards as Fools Rush In, I'll Be Seeing You, Night and Day, Stardust, and East of the Sun, along with charming themed pieces such as the Latin-inspired Dolores, but the majority of the songs weren't instantly recognizable (or overly memorable compared next to immortal works by Porter, Gershwin, and Cahn). The sound is unmistakably 1940s, and makes for very pleasant background music for reminiscing, reading, and daydreaming, bringing to mind an era of elegance and sacrifice as WWII raged on on several fronts. The sound quality has been remarkably restored, with nary a scratch, hiss, or pop, and the liner notes are a fascinating read.

If you're enamored of very early Frankie (as I unabashedly am), The Song Is You is a must-own, along with The Complete Recordings Nineteen Thirty-Nine and A Voice in Time: 1939-1952. It's the perfect vehicle for both a young Sinatra finding his wings and for a Dorsey in top form, and sure to delight fans of both artists.

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Rating: - "I'll Never Smile Again..."
No fan of Tommy Dorsey or Frank Sinatra will want to miss this stunning collection of some of the best music ever made. This is Dorsey at his most melodic and Sinatra as he was evolving into the singer everyone would call, "The Voice." Soon young women known as bobby-soxers would be passing out during his songs.

Just looking at the tracks on this 5-disc set is enough to make any music lover swoon. Some will be familiar to everyone, others less so, as this collection encompasses everything Tommy Dorsey and his Big Band recorded with Sinatra fronting the band. Those who are only familiar with the Sinatra of the later fifties, after his vocal problems in Mexico, will be stunned by the silky smooth, almost angelic quality to Sinatra's perfect pitch and phrasing.

There is something to be said for the resonant quality added to Frank's voice later on, when his vocal chords hemorrhaged and it was feared his career was over. But hearing a very young Sinatra with one of the best of the Big Bands behind him is just incredible. It was an era of music that burned brightly and was too soon to pass into the romantic night.

There is a marvelous booklet included in this boxed set filled with nostalgia and memories of great music and those who made it. Those buying this just for Sinatra, however, may be a bit disappointed. Tommy Dorsey's band is fabulous here, and sometimes Sinatra's contributions to the songs are minimal. This was the case with all Big Bands of the era. The music and the band itself was the big draw, not the singer.

But Sinatra was so special it caused people to pause and listen, rather than dance, and though it was not his fault, it signaled a change for the music world that would, in the end, cause the Big Bands to fade into nostalgic memories of big ballrooms and dancing with your sweetheart.

These 5-discs are just about the music, however, and listening to them is like turning back the hands of time. Where else could you hear Sinatra singing with the crystal clear voice of Jo Stafford, the Pied Pipers in the background? There is a 1930's and early 1940's innocence to most of this collection. It was a time when the song was as important as the singer or the band. While you could scoop up an entire basket full of song classics from this boxed set, it is the songs you've never heard which make it so wonderful.

There is a romance to these songs which has now been lost. A lot of these songs are both romantic and fun, with terrific music surrounding the room and the song. Perry Como once stated in an interview that the difference between Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra was simply the Irish pixie vs. the Italian "all or nothing at all" attitude. Here in these Tommy Dorsey arrangements, Sinatra was closer to that Irish pixie of Bing's selections.

Yet as you listen to them all, which you certainly must, you can hear echos of the Sinatra that was to come. Along with the happier, more lilting or sweet songs, there is an occasional glimpse of the Sinatra going for what Perry Como would call, "the suicide song." There was something in his voice, even then, that was like a shadow hanging over the words of a song. It was a shadow which would reach its zenith with Frank's "Only the Lonely" album, now considered one of the greatest concept albums ever recorded.

There is a lighter and more romantic tone here, however, when a devastated Sinatra jumps into the middle of a Dorsey refrain. It is a more melancholy Sinatra who sings of love never coming back, perhaps because it had only been in his heart while he was being played a fool. Yet the beginning of that shadow is there if you listen closely.

This boxed set will make you feel as young and full of life as Sinatra was. It is a true joy hearing this blend of Tommy Dorsey's Big Band and Sinatra's voice. I owned this for years and nearly wore it out before losing it somehow in a recent move. I intend to replace it soon and anyone who hasn't heard it must. Even rare secondary takes on songs are included, giving us alternate versions we might never have otherwise heard. The technical quality is excellent and the music itself out of this world. No music lover can let this one get by them.

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Rating: - Riper at an early age
Frank Sinatra toughened into a pugnacious, coarse, humorless performer who never completely lost his touch musically, but here he is an artist with a sweet voice and touch, to the point of sounding feminine, which in singing is wonderful. Whether his later toughness was to cover his sensitivity is for pop psychologists to ponder but if you want to know why the crowds sighed for him, here is the evidence. I would not trade this box set for the entire collection of his later output. Particularly choice is the radio disk, live in front of an audience from various dates. He was truly inspired in that setting. Aging is inevitable, but as you can hear with his idol Billie Holiday that doesn't have to mean an ugly decline. In this style and era, Sinatra had no equal. As you can hear today with Barbara Cook, you can even ripen with age.

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Rating: - The Best You've Ever Heard!
Forget the Sinatra of Las Vegas, the Sinatra of Columbia, and the Rat Pack! This is THE Frank Sinatra! The best he ever sounded. Young, raw, confident! This set would get 50 stars if possible. To hear him sing with Connie Haines and The Pied Pipers - the interaction between them is superlative. Frank would never again capture the beauty of these recordings. This is like comparing the young Elvis and the Old Elvis - the young was the best. To complete your early Sinatra collection get the Frank Sinatra and Harry James recordings that are available on disc; 1939, the first year of his professional career 6 months prior to these recordings. Also of note are the V-Discs collection. GO OUT AND BY THIS BOX! You Won't regret it.

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Rating: - The Dawn of a Great
Frank Sinatra has been the topic of many a comprehensive boxed set,practically all his recorded output is available in some form or other but this superlative set is the best yet for they capture the youthful Sinatra in his first featured recordings;he was not a slowly blossoming artist,Frank was already fully in command of his artistry when he began making his first records here;from 'i'll be seeing you' onward this collection presents a youngster with a marvelous precocity,a true gifted artist,-'east of the sun' will send a chill up your spine at Sinatra's command of his vocal artistry and kudos also to Tommy Dorsey who had always led one of the finer and more tasteful of the Big Bands;the arrangements here are all succicently chosen and there are rarities galore.But dont buy this set just for Sinatra (or Dorsey for that matter),this is pristine and beautiful music for any taste and a Jazz lover like myself swears by this set.Way to go,Amazon!