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.
The First Nöel
Frank Sinatra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The angels did say
Was to certain poor shepherds
In fields as they lay
In fields where they lay
They were keeping their sheep
On a cold winter's night
That was so deep
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel
The shepherds looked up
And they saw a bright star
Shining there in the east
Beyond them far
And to the darkened earth
It gave great light
And so it continued
Through day and through night
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel
The First Noel by Frank Sinatra is a classic Christmas song that tells the story of the birth of Jesus Christ as recounted in the Bible. The song opens with the announcement made by the angels to the poor shepherds in the fields about the arrival of the savior. The use of the phrase "certain poor shepherds" is indicative of the fact that Christ was born to the poorest of the poor, signifying that he came to save everyone regardless of their background. The mention of the cold winter night creates a sense of discomfort and struggle, highlighting the humble beginnings of a king who would change the world.
The second verse builds on the first and provides further insight into the miraculous events surrounding Jesus' birth. The shepherds, after hearing the news from the angels, encounter a bright star shining in the east. The star is a symbol of hope and guidance, leading the way to the birthplace of Jesus Christ. The lyrics, "And to the darkened earth, It gave great light" suggest that the star was an emblem of the light of the world coming to save us from darkness. Overall, the song paints a picture of the Christmas story and serves to emphasize that the arrival of Jesus Christ was a momentous and life-changing event.
Line by Line Meaning
The first Noel
The initial announcement of the birth of Jesus Christ
The angels did say
Angelic voices proclaimed the news
Was to certain poor shepherds
shepherds in need of spiritual enlightenment
In fields as they lay
out in the open fields where they kept their flock
In fields where they lay
In the same fields where their flock grazed
They were keeping their sheep
tending to and guarding their animals
On a cold winter's night
During a chillingly cold night during winter
That was so deep
The night was obscure and difficult to determine the time of day
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
A refrain rejoicing the birth of the King of Israel
Born is the King of Israel
The savior of the world, King of the Jews has been born
The shepherds looked up
The shepherds raised their gaze
And they saw a bright star
They spotted a luminous celestial body
Shining there in the east
Illuminating the eastern direction
Beyond them far
Far beyond the reach of the earthly realm
And to the darkened earth
Over the earthly plane that was enveloped in darkness
It gave great light
Its brilliance was brilliant
And so it continued
The light persisted
Through day and through night
Without interruption, both during the day and night
Lyrics © Tratore, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Dominio Publico
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jude Wallin
Who else thinks there should be a radio station for just Frank Sinatra
Savannah Rankin
@Avid Gamer I had Pluto for a while on my phone and that was all I ever listened to
Avid Gamer
Or do something like a Ratpack Radio.
Savannah Rankin
Sirius XM Radio has Siriusly Sinatra. It's the only music channel that my father and I listen to when I am riding in the car with him.
Victor Roque
There is... It's called siriusly sinatra
El Davo
Never too early to listen to christmas music
Cesar Parra
This one hits right there, in that space where you’re not anymore, just right there where you’ve been miss, I LOVE YOU MOM
Raphaela Ricardo ®️vidaderapha
Meu marido e eu amamos essa canção, linda! ❤️🌟🎄
yessie bilbrey
beautiful. so calming & so warming. perfect for christmas honestly. it was such a blessing to have him :)) 💓
Tereza Teka
Que voz maravilhosa!!