Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, to Italian immigrants, Sinatra began his musical career in the swing era with bandleaders Harry James and Tommy Dorsey. Sinatra found success as a solo artist after he signed with Columbia Records in 1943, becoming the idol of the "bobby soxers". He released his debut album, The Voice of Frank Sinatra, in 1946. Sinatra's professional career had stalled by the early 1950s, and he turned to Las Vegas, where he became one of its best known residency performers as part of The Rat Pack. His career was reborn in 1953 with the success of From Here to Eternity, with his performance subsequently winning an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. Sinatra released several critically lauded albums, including In the Wee Small Hours (1955), Songs for Swingin' Lovers! (1956), Come Fly with Me (1958), Only the Lonely (1958) and Nice 'n' Easy (1960).
Sinatra left Capitol in 1960 to start his own record label, Reprise Records, and released a string of successful albums. In 1965, he recorded the retrospective September of My Years, starred in the Emmy-winning television special Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music, and released the tracks "Strangers in the Night" and "My Way". After releasing Sinatra at the Sands, recorded at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Vegas with frequent collaborator Count Basie in early 1966, the following year he recorded one of his most famous collaborations with Tom Jobim, the album Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim. It was followed by 1968's collaboration with Duke Ellington. Sinatra retired for the first time in 1971, but came out of retirement two years later and recorded several albums and resumed performing at Caesars Palace, and reached success in 1980 with "New York, New York". Using his Las Vegas shows as a home base, he toured both within the United States and internationally until a short time before his death in 1998.
Sinatra forged a highly successful career as a film actor. After winning an Academy Award for From Here to Eternity, he starred in The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), and received critical acclaim for his performance in The Manchurian Candidate (1962). He appeared in various musicals such as On the Town (1949), Guys and Dolls (1955), High Society (1956), and Pal Joey (1957), winning another Golden Globe for the latter. Toward the end of his career, he became associated with playing detectives, including the title character in Tony Rome (1967). Sinatra would later receive the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1971. On television, The Frank Sinatra Show began on ABC in 1950, and he continued to make appearances on television throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Sinatra was also heavily involved with politics from the mid-1940s, and actively campaigned for presidents such as Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, though before Kennedy's death Sinatra's alleged Mafia connections led to his being snubbed.
While Sinatra never formally learned how to read music, he had an impressive understanding of it, and he worked very hard from a young age to improve his abilities in all aspects of music. A perfectionist, renowned for his dress sense and performing presence, he always insisted on recording live with his band. His bright blue eyes earned him the popular nickname "Ol' Blue Eyes". Sinatra led a colorful personal life, and was often involved in turbulent affairs with women, such as with his second wife Ava Gardner. He went on to marry Mia Farrow in 1966 and Barbara Marx in 1976. Sinatra had several violent confrontations, usually with journalists he felt had crossed him, or work bosses with whom he had disagreements. He was honored at the Kennedy Center Honors in 1983, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Reagan in 1985, and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1997. Sinatra was also the recipient of eleven Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Trustees Award, Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. After his death, American music critic Robert Christgau called him "the greatest singer of the 20th century", and he continues to be seen as an iconic figure.
Sinatra died with his wife at his side at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on May 14, 1998, aged 82, after a heart attack. Sinatra had ill health during the last few years of his life, and was frequently hospitalized for heart and breathing problems, high blood pressure, pneumonia and bladder cancer. He was further diagnosed as having dementia. He had made no public appearances following a heart attack in February 1997. Sinatra's wife encouraged him to "fight" while attempts were made to stabilize him, and his final words were, "I'm losing." Sinatra's daughter, Tina, later wrote that she and her sister, Nancy, had not been notified of their father's final hospitalization, and it was her belief that "the omission was deliberate. Barbara would be the grieving widow alone at her husband's side." The night after Sinatra's death, the lights on the Empire State Building in New York City were turned blue, the lights at the Las Vegas Strip were dimmed in his honor, and the casinos stopped spinning for a minute.
Sinatra's funeral was held at the Roman Catholic Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills, California, on May 20, 1998, with 400 mourners in attendance and thousands of fans outside. Gregory Peck, Tony Bennett, and Sinatra's son, Frank Jr., addressed the mourners, who included many notable people from film and entertainment. Sinatra was buried in a blue business suit with mementos from family members—cherry-flavored Life Savers, Tootsie Rolls, a bottle of Jack Daniel's, a pack of Camel cigarettes, a Zippo lighter, stuffed toys, a dog biscuit, and a roll of dimes that he always carried—next to his parents in section B-8 of Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City, California.
His close friends Jilly Rizzo and Jimmy Van Heusen are buried nearby. The words "The Best Is Yet to Come", plus "Beloved Husband & Father" are imprinted on Sinatra's grave marker. Significant increases in recording sales worldwide were reported by Billboard in the month of his death.
BAD
Frank Sinatra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Is (it's) the baddest part of town
And if you (you're gonna) go down there, you better (just) beware
Of a man (cat) named Leroy Brown
Now Leroy (Brown) he's trouble
And he stands about six-feet-four
All the downtown ladies call him treetop lover
[Chorus]
(Yeah) he's bad, bad Leroy Brown
Meanest (baddest) man (cat) in the whole damn town
Badder than old King Kong
(And he's) meaner than a junkyard dog
Now Leroy he's a gambler
And he likes (digs) his (those) fancy clothes
He likes to wave his (that great, big, big fat, shiny diamond ring)
Under (in front of) everybody's nose
He's got a custom Continental
He's got an Eldorado too
He's got a 22 (32) gun in his pocket for fun
He's got a razor in his (the razor in the) shoe
[Chorus]
Now Friday, 'bout a week ago
Leroy shootin' dice
And at the end (edge) of the bar sat (was) a lady (chick) named Dorris (Morris)
Man she sure looked nice
And (well then) he laid his eyes upon her
That's when the big scene (trouble soon) began
And Leroy Brown he learned a lesson 'bout messin'
With the wife of a jealous man
[Chorus]
In "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown," Frank Sinatra sings about Leroy Brown, a menacing figure from the rough and tumble South Side of Chicago. Brown is a large man, six feet four, with a dangerous reputation. The lyrics warn the listener that if they go to the South Side, they should beware of Leroy Brown. Women love Leroy and call him a "treetop lover," while men show him respect and call him "sir." Leroy likes to gamble and wears fancy clothes, waving his shiny diamond ring in front of everyone's nose. He drives a Continental and an Eldorado, and keeps a gun and razor on his person for protection.
The song's climax comes when Leroy meets a beautiful woman named Dorris at a bar. However, she is married to a jealous man, and when he catches wind of Leroy's intentions, trouble ensues. The song ends with the chorus repeating that Leroy Brown is the "baddest man in the whole damn town." The song's lyrics and upbeat tempo were a hit with audiences, and the song quickly became one of Frank Sinatra's most popular tunes.
Line by Line Meaning
Now the south side of Chicago
The south part of Chicago is the most dangerous area.
Is (it's) the baddest part of town
It's the most dangerous and crime-ridden place in town.
And if you (you're gonna) go down there, you better (just) beware
If you plan on visiting the area, be cautious.
Of a man (cat) named Leroy Brown
There's a man named Leroy Brown
Now Leroy (Brown) he's trouble
Leroy Brown is known to cause problems.
And he stands about six-feet-four
He's a very tall man, around six feet four inches.
All the downtown ladies call him treetop lover
The ladies in town refer to him as treetop lover.
The studs they call him sir
Men call him sir due to his reputation and status in the town.
[Chorus]
Refrain/chorus that repeats throughout the song.
(Yeah) he's bad, bad Leroy Brown
He's a bad person and his name is Leroy Brown.
Meanest (baddest) man (cat) in the whole damn town
He's the toughest and most intimidating person in the town.
Badder than old King Kong
He's tougher and more dangerous than King Kong.
(And he's) meaner than a junkyard dog
He's mean and aggressive like a junkyard dog.
Now Leroy he's a gambler
Leroy enjoys gambling.
And he likes (digs) his (those) fancy clothes
He likes to wear and show off his expensive clothes.
He likes to wave his (that great, big, big fat, shiny diamond ring)
He likes to show off his big, shiny, expensive diamond ring.
Under (in front of) everybody's nose
He likes to show off his expensive possessions in front of others.
He's got a custom Continental
He owns a customized Continental car.
He's got an Eldorado too
He also owns an Eldorado car.
He's got a 22 (32) gun in his pocket for fun
He carries a gun for amusement and protection.
He's got a razor in his (the razor in the) shoe
He keeps a razor blade in his shoe for protection.
[Chorus]
Refrain/chorus that repeats throughout the song.
Now Friday, 'bout a week ago
About a week ago, on a Friday.
Leroy shootin' dice
Leroy was playing a gambling game involving dice.
And at the end (edge) of the bar sat (was) a lady (chick) named Dorris (Morris)
A woman named Dorris/Morris was sitting at the end of the bar.
Man she sure looked nice
Leroy noticed that she looked pretty and attractive.
And (well then) he laid his eyes upon her
He noticed Dorris/Morris and became interested in her.
That's when the big scene (trouble soon) began
Soon after noticing Dorris/Morris, trouble started to escalate.
And Leroy Brown he learned a lesson 'bout messin'
Leroy learned the hard way about getting involved with Dorris/Morris.
With the wife of a jealous man
Dorris/Morris was married to a man who was very possessive and jealous.
[Chorus]
Refrain/chorus that repeats throughout the song.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: James Croce
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Danny Flynn
The fact he was in his 60s and in his post-retirement phase, and still was as cool as ever on stage, its remarkable
A Writer
Cool has no age limit
Rebecca Robinson
He’s 58 here.
Rupert Inkpen
This is possibly the greatest cover I've ever heard
Teresa d brown Brown
Yes
Isabel Segovia marques
He had the Power tô make the audience dance. That was amazing.
MrCalidan69
Frank was such a polished and charismatic legend
Teresa d brown Brown
Agree
Rachel Dyer
I adore him…have since I was a little girl. He always brings me so much joy ❤️
CaRLOS sOUZA
Magnifico, Sensacional, Espetacular Mr. Frank Albert Sinatra