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.
I Got Plenty of Nothing
Frank Sinatra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And nothing is plenty for me.
I got no car,
Got no mule,
Got no misery
Folks with plenty of plenty
They got a lock on the door
Afraid somebody?s gonna rob them while
What for?
I got no lock on the door
that's no way to be
They can steal the rug
From the floor
that's OK with me
Cause the things that I prize
Like the stars in the sky
Are all free
Say I've got plenty of nothing
And nothing is plenty for me.
I got my girl
Got my song,
Got heaven the whole daylong.
Got my girl
Got my lawn
Got my song
I've got plenty of nothing
And nothing is plenty for me.
I got my girl
Got my song,
Got heaven the whole daylong.
Got my girl
Got my lawn
Got my song
Frank Sinatra's song "I Got Plenty of Nothing" paints a picture of a man who may not have many material possessions, but he is content with his simple life. The opening lines of the song set the tone and the theme, highlighting the importance of perspective. While many would consider having nothing as a negative thing, the singer in this song finds value and joy in having less. He has no car, no mule, no misery, and no lock on his door. The man understands that material things only bring temporary happiness and that true happiness comes from within. He is free from the worry of losing his possessions as there is nothing to lose. In contrast, he sees others with plenty, who are afraid of losing what they have, as they accumulate more, which in turn brings them more worry and stress.
The chorus of the song emphasizes his happiness, which comes from experiencing life's simple pleasures. He is content with his girl, his song, and the beauty of nature. These are tangible things that cannot be taken away from him, and they make his life rich and fulfilling. The singer knows that happiness does not come from what he owns, but rather from what he experiences, which includes the stars in the sky.
Overall, this song speaks to the idea that having less can bring more. It is easy to get caught up in life's rat race to acquire more, but true happiness comes from embracing the simple things in life, a lesson that still resonates today.
Line by Line Meaning
I got plenty of nothing
Although I don't have much in terms of material possessions, I am content with what I have.
And nothing is plenty for me.
I find fulfillment in the simpler things in life, and material wealth is not necessary for my happiness.
I got no car,
I do not own a vehicle or any form of transportation.
Got no mule,
I do not own a mule or any other animal that could provide transportation or labor assistance.
Got no misery
I do not have much to worry about or complain about in my life.
Folks with plenty of plenty
People who have an abundance of material wealth and possessions.
They got a lock on the door
Those wealthy people feel the need to protect what they have with physical security measures like locks.
Afraid somebody's gonna rob them while they're out making more
Those wealthy people fear that while they are out trying to accumulate even more wealth, someone will come and take what they already have.
What for?
The artist wonders why people feel the need to accumulate so much wealth and possessions if it only brings about fear and anxiety.
I got no lock on the door
The artist does not have any physical security measures at their place of residence like locks, which implies that they are not as concerned with protecting material possessions.
That's no way to be
The singer suggests that locking oneself off from the world in order to hoard wealth and possessions is not a desirable way to live.
They can steal the rug from the floor
The artist is so unattached to material possessions that they dont care if someone stole something as basic as a rug, and wouldn't feel too bothered by it.
That's okay with me
The singer is conveying that material possessions are not their ultimate source of happiness or comfort, so they would not be bothered by their absence.
Cause the things that I prize
The singer values things in life that are intangible, not mere possessions.
Like the stars in the sky
The singer finds beauty and joy in natural, free things such as the stars in the sky.
Say I've got plenty of nothing
The artist emphasizes that despite having none of the material possessions that are associated with traditional wealth and success, they feel satisfied and fulfilled with their life.
And nothing is plenty for me.
The artist emphasizes once again that what they have in life, regardless of its lack of traditional material wealth, is enough to make them happy.
I got my girl
The singer has a loving partner, which contributes to their happiness and satisfaction with life.
Got my song,
The singer has music, or other forms of artistic expression, which offers enjoyment and fulfillment in life.
Got heaven the whole daylong.
The artist feels like they are experiencing a type of heaven, or ultimate joy and fulfillment, on a daily basis.
Got my girl
This repeated phrase emphasizes the importance and significance of the artist's partner in their life.
Got my lawn
The artist owns a lawn or plot of land, which is referred to as a simple form of wealth.
Got my song
The repeated reference to music or artistic expression implies that this is a fundamental source of joy and satisfaction for the singer.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DU BOSE HEYWARD, GEORGE GERSHWIN, IRA GERSHWIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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
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