Sinatra Sings Great Songs From Great Britain is an album by Frank Sinatra, … Read Full Bio ↴Sinatra Sings Great Songs From Great Britain is an album by Frank Sinatra, arranged by Robert Farnon and recorded in London in 1962. It was released on LP in Great Britain but not in the United States. The stereo version was eventually released in the U.S. on compact disc in the early 1990s, and all stereo tracks were made available on The Complete Reprise Studio Recordings CD box set.
Background
Sinatra recorded the album, a collection of all-British material, in June 1962 towards the end of a long tour raising money for children’s charities. That tour kicked off in April 1962 and included performances in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Tel Aviv, Rome, Athens, Milan and Madrid. Great Songs was the only studio album he recorded outside the United States. It was recorded at CTS Recording Studio 49-53, Kensington Gardens Square, and Sinatra spent three nights in the Bayswater studio. Sinatra had made his first visit to the U.K. in the summer of 1950 when he topped the bill at the London Palladium and enjoyed playing in Britain. When he toured Britain in 1953, at venues that ran from Tooting Granada to Blackpool Opera House, his star had been fading. But by 1962 and the time of this recording, he was a record label owner, and his career was still riding high.
Allmusic review
“Sinatra Sings Great Songs From Great Britain is one of the oddest albums in Sinatra’s catalog. Recorded in the summer of 1962 and available only in the U.K. for a number of years, the album consists of songs by British composers, performed with British musicians, and recorded in Britain while Sinatra was on tour. As it happened, Sinatra was tired and worn out during the sessions, and arranger/conductor Robert Farnon had written a set of charts that were ambitious, lush, ornate and sweeping. Although the arrangements are provocative– occasionally they are more interesting than the actual songs– Sinatra was simply not in good shape for the sessions, which is clear from his thin, straining singing. As such, Great Songs From Great Britain isn’t much more than a curiosity.”
Regarding “Roses Of Picardy”
“Roses Of Picardy” was not included on the original album. It was added as a bonus track to the first CD issue in 1992 and has appeared on subsequent reissues ever since.
Track listing
01 -- “The Very Thought Of You” (Ray Noble) – 3:42
02 -- “We’ll Gather Lilacs” (Ivor Novello) – 3:15
03 -- “If I Had You” (Jimmy Campbell, Reginald Connelly, Ted Shapiro) – 4:10
04 -- “Now Is The Hour” (Maewa Kaihan, Clemnet Scott, Dorothy Stewart) – 2:51
05 -- “The Gypsy” (Billy Reid) – 3:22
06 -- “A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square” (Eric Maschwitz, Manning Sherwin) – 3:57
07 -- “A Garden In The Rain” (James Dyrenforth, Carroll Gibbons) – 3:27
08 -- “London By Night” (Carroll Coates) – 3:25
09 -- “We’ll Meet Again” (Hughie Charles, Ross Parker) – 3:47
10 -- “I’ll Follow My Secret Heart” (Noël Coward) – 3:20
Personnel
Frank Sinatra – Vocals
Robert Farnon – Arranger, Conductor
Album Notes
Released: November, 1962
Recorded: June 12–14, 1962, London
Genre: Vocal Jazz
Length 35:14
Label: Reprise (Reprise R-1006)
Background
Sinatra recorded the album, a collection of all-British material, in June 1962 towards the end of a long tour raising money for children’s charities. That tour kicked off in April 1962 and included performances in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Tel Aviv, Rome, Athens, Milan and Madrid. Great Songs was the only studio album he recorded outside the United States. It was recorded at CTS Recording Studio 49-53, Kensington Gardens Square, and Sinatra spent three nights in the Bayswater studio. Sinatra had made his first visit to the U.K. in the summer of 1950 when he topped the bill at the London Palladium and enjoyed playing in Britain. When he toured Britain in 1953, at venues that ran from Tooting Granada to Blackpool Opera House, his star had been fading. But by 1962 and the time of this recording, he was a record label owner, and his career was still riding high.
Allmusic review
“Sinatra Sings Great Songs From Great Britain is one of the oddest albums in Sinatra’s catalog. Recorded in the summer of 1962 and available only in the U.K. for a number of years, the album consists of songs by British composers, performed with British musicians, and recorded in Britain while Sinatra was on tour. As it happened, Sinatra was tired and worn out during the sessions, and arranger/conductor Robert Farnon had written a set of charts that were ambitious, lush, ornate and sweeping. Although the arrangements are provocative– occasionally they are more interesting than the actual songs– Sinatra was simply not in good shape for the sessions, which is clear from his thin, straining singing. As such, Great Songs From Great Britain isn’t much more than a curiosity.”
Regarding “Roses Of Picardy”
“Roses Of Picardy” was not included on the original album. It was added as a bonus track to the first CD issue in 1992 and has appeared on subsequent reissues ever since.
Track listing
01 -- “The Very Thought Of You” (Ray Noble) – 3:42
02 -- “We’ll Gather Lilacs” (Ivor Novello) – 3:15
03 -- “If I Had You” (Jimmy Campbell, Reginald Connelly, Ted Shapiro) – 4:10
04 -- “Now Is The Hour” (Maewa Kaihan, Clemnet Scott, Dorothy Stewart) – 2:51
05 -- “The Gypsy” (Billy Reid) – 3:22
06 -- “A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square” (Eric Maschwitz, Manning Sherwin) – 3:57
07 -- “A Garden In The Rain” (James Dyrenforth, Carroll Gibbons) – 3:27
08 -- “London By Night” (Carroll Coates) – 3:25
09 -- “We’ll Meet Again” (Hughie Charles, Ross Parker) – 3:47
10 -- “I’ll Follow My Secret Heart” (Noël Coward) – 3:20
Personnel
Frank Sinatra – Vocals
Robert Farnon – Arranger, Conductor
Album Notes
Released: November, 1962
Recorded: June 12–14, 1962, London
Genre: Vocal Jazz
Length 35:14
Label: Reprise (Reprise R-1006)
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Sinatra Sings Great Songs From Great Britain
Frank Sinatra Lyrics
A Garden in the Rain 'twas just a garden in the rain Close to a little…
A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square That certain night, the night we met There was magic abroad…
I'll Follow My Secret Heart I'll follow my secret heart my whole life through I'll keep…
If I Had You I could show the world how to smile I could be…
London By Night London by night is a wonderful sight There is magic abroad…
Now Is The Hour Now is the hour when we must say goodbye. Soon you'll…
Roses Of Picardy She is watching by the poplars, Colinette with the sea-blue …
The Gypsy In a quaint caravan there's a lady they call The…
The Very Thought of You The very thought of you and i forget to do The…
We'll Gather Lilacs In The Spring We'll gather lilacs in the spring again, And walk together …
We'll Meet Again We'll meet again, don't know where, don't know when, Bit I…
Mike
on The Lady Is A Champ
She gets too hungry for dinner at eight
She can't eat late and stay up all night, because unlike society types, she has to get up in the morning.
She likes the theatre and never comes late
She cares more about seeing the play than being seen making an entrance.
She never bothers with people she'd hate
Her friends are friends, not social trophies.
Doesn't like crap games with barons or earls
While barrns and earls probably don't play craps, she associates with friends, not people to be seen with.
Won't go to Harlem in ermine and pearls
She doesn't "slum", the practice of the rich in the 30's, when the song was written, of touring poor neighborhoods dressed in rich clothes to "tut, tut" about the deplorable conditions, and congratulate each other for "caring about the poor"
Won't dish the dirt with the rest of the girls
Doesn't trade gossip for acceptance among an in-crowd
She likes the free, fresh wind in her hair
She cares more about how her hair feels than conforming with current hair fashions
Hates California, it's cold and it's damp
Since most of California is noticeably warmer and / or drier than New York, where the play the song was written for is set, this is probably a facetious excuse to like what she likes.
And she won't go to Harlem in Lincoln's or Ford's
Another reference to slumming, but facetious, since Lincolns and Fords were middle-class, not luxury brands when the lyric was written
Anonymous
on Try a Little Tenderness
Here are the correct lyrics
Try A Little Tenderness - Frank Sinatra - Lyrics
Oh she may be weary
Women do get wearied
Wearing that same old shabby dress
And when she’s weary
You try a little tenderness
You know she’s waiting
Just anticipating things she’ll may never possess
While she is without them
Try just a little bit of tenderness
It’s not just sentimental
She has her grieve and her care
And the words that soft and gentle
Makes it easier to bear
You wont regret it
Women don't forget it
Love is their whole happiness
And it’s all so easy
Try a little tenderness
Musical Interlude
And, it’s all so easy
Try a little tenderness
Daniel
on The Way You Look Tonight
I met Frank Jr. in Las Vegas, a real gentleman. RIP you both.
Giorgi Khutashvili
on Theme from New York, New York
)))