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.
Don’t Take Your Love From Me
Frank Sinatra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the sky feels blue
Tear a petal from a rose
And the rose weeps too
Take your heart away from mine
And mine will surely break
My life is yours to make
Would you take the wings from birds
So that they can't fly?
Would you take the ocean's roar
And leave just a sigh?
All this your heart won't let you do
This is what I beg of you
Don't take your love from me
The lyrics of the song "Don’t Take Your Love From Me" are quite simple but powerful. The song is about how important love is to the singer and how he cannot imagine losing his love. Sinatra uses imagery to convey the intensity of his emotions. He compares the loss of love with tearing a star from the sky, which would make the sky feel blue, and tearing a petal from a rose, which would make the rose weep too.
Sinatra pleads with his lover not to take her heart away from his because it would surely break him. He reminds her that his life is hers to make and begs her to keep the spark of their love alive. He questions if she would take the wings from birds so they couldn't fly or take the ocean's roar and leave just a sigh. The answer is obvious, and he pleads with her not to take her love from him.
The lyrics of "Don’t Take Your Love From Me" are heartfelt and emotional. The singer is vulnerable and expresses his love with sincerity. The song is a beautiful reminder of the power of love, and how much it can mean to us.
Line by Line Meaning
Tear a star from out the sky
If you remove something that seems unattainable, it can have a significant impact.
And the sky feels blue
It affects the environment when something out of the ordinary is taken away.
Tear a petal from a rose
If you remove something beautiful, it can cause the object to lose its charm.
And the rose weeps too
When something precious is taken away, it can cause sadness and regret.
Take your heart away from mine
If you end our relationship, I will be heartbroken.
And mine will surely break
My heart will be irreparably damaged if you leave me.
My life is yours to make
I am completely devoted to you, and my happiness depends on your love.
So, please, keep the spark awake
I am pleading with you to keep our love alive and thriving.
Would you take the wings from birds
Just as birds need their wings to fly, I need your love to feel fulfilled.
So that they can't fly?
Without your love, I feel lost and unable to soar.
Would you take the ocean's roar
In the same way that the ocean is alive with sound, my heart beats with love for you.
And leave just a sigh?
If our love ends, all that will remain is my broken heart and a faint memory of what we had.
All this your heart won't let you do
I know that your heart is capable of love and compassion, and I trust that you will not leave me.
This is what I beg of you
Please, I am imploring you to stay by my side, to keep our love alive and flourishing.
Don't take your love from me
I cannot bear the thought of losing you, the most important person in my life.
Lyrics © INDANO MUSIC COMPANY
Written by: HENRY NEMO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
David Walsh
A virtuoso performance from the master...just perfection
El Haj
See... Philip Seymour Hoffman us the master
Sinatra is just .... Sinatra
M.J. Leger
True! No wonder Sinatra is accurately called "The Voice" of the 20th century; he gave us over a half a century of superb, unforgettable music, with feeling and such talent that can never be duplicated, although many try!
Ward Harrah
My grandfather used to sing this song all the time. He'd always say "Id give A million tomorrows for just one yesterday" Now being a grandfather myself, I know what he meant...I sure miss you Big Daddy
M.J. Leger
Almost too beautiful to hear, this has been a favorite song of mine since I first heard it many years ago, I had a lot of requests to sing it when I was working, and many musicians have recorded it; this Sinatra cover with his orchestra, is a favorite, although it hurts MY heart now! I must be sadistic, because I keep returning to hear it again, though it brings tears!
I don't think there's anything worse than losing someone you love, be it a family member, a spouse, a lover, or even a cherished pet! It hurts forever, though time helps some. but you never forget and you can't ever bring a love that's gone, back to you again!
Element’ry Penguin
This is absolutely amazing!
Bryan ismyname
Better than the Capitol version. Too bad this wasn't included in the original release of "Sinatra & Strings." Really beautiful rendition.
M.J. Leger
I love your description of Sinatra's voice as aging like a fine wine, because indeed it did! He was a perfectionist and no one yet has excelled in every aspect of singing a ballad like he did. I preferred his voice from about the 60's to late 80's, in that it had matured, showed far more emotion because he had been through all the feelings and you heard that in some of his saddest but most remarkable ballads. He lost a couple of notes in his upper register but he gained a couple in his lower one, and his voice did mellow!.
I was privileged to attend several recording sessions and it was an honor to watch him work! His orchestras were always the best.
Jade Zee
Sinatra vocally was at his absolute peak from around 57 to 1963......the songs he recorded during this period are simply the definitive version...of nearly every single one!
Jade Zee
one of Sinatras greatest recordings ever..a Magnicifent understanding of this classic song...which does not get its due if sung up-tempo....