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.
This Is Always
Frank Sinatra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This isn't maybe, this is always
This is love, the real beginning of forever
This isn't just midsummer madness
A passing glow, a moment's gladness
Yes, it's love, I knew it on the night we met
So how can I forget you?
With every kiss I know that this is always
In this song, Frank Sinatra sings about a love that is eternal and everlasting. He emphasizes that this love is not temporary, but forever. He sings "this is always, this isn't sometime," showing that this love is not just a passing phase or a temporary indulgence, but a permanent and ongoing feeling. He also sings "this is love, the real beginning of forever," indicating that this love is the foundation upon which a lasting relationship can be built.
Sinatra goes on to sing about how he knew it was love from the very beginning, saying "Yes, it's love, I knew it on the night we met." He compares this love to "midsummer madness" or fleeting moments of happiness, but ultimately concludes that it is much deeper and more meaningful than that. He talks about how his heart is tied to this person, and he cannot forget them. Every kiss serves as a reminder that this love is always present and enduring.
Overall, the song conveys a message of love and commitment that lasts a lifetime, and Sinatra's voice captures the emotion and sentiment perfectly.
Line by Line Meaning
This isn't sometime, this is always
Our love is not temporary, it's eternal
This isn't maybe, this is always
Our love is not uncertain, it's definite
This is love, the real beginning of forever
Our love is the start of a long-lasting journey
This isn't just midsummer madness
Our love is not a fleeting feeling
A passing glow, a moment's gladness
It's not a temporary pleasure
Yes, it's love, I knew it on the night we met
I felt it from the moment we first met
You tied a string around my heart
You captured my heart and soul completely
So how can I forget you?
I can never forget you because you are a part of me
With every kiss I know that this is always
Our love is reaffirmed with every kiss
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MACK GORDON, HARRY WARREN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
oohmelon
I'll be loving you always
With a love that's true always
When the things you've planned need a helpin' hand
I will understand always, always
Days may not be fair always
That's when I'll be there always
Not for just an hour, not for just a day
Not for just a year but always
Days may not be fair always
That's when I'll be there always
Not for just an hour, not for just a day
Not for just a year but always
Anthony Fins
For those who are young and surprised to be listening to music like this, you are not alone, for the reason you are listening to this is because it is timeless. You don't have to fall into a specific age group in order to identify with it. Sinatra's music, along with music of Elvis, The Beatles, and other revered decades old artists are still replayed because they transcend generations and are not merely music trends or fads that last a few years before fading away.
Tomás Moraes Soares
that's completely correct. I, a brazilian teenage, love listening to old classics, especially the incredible Harry Nilsson. Songs like this, by Irving Berlin and made famous by the immortal Sinatra, are just an example of timeless hits that will be listened forever
Anna Martin
This is so true because I listen to this style of music whenever I want to relax because it's just very calming, but I still enjoy some music nowadays.
letmeinwillu
Wise words indeed! Bless you for your insightful comment
Pam F
Anthony Fins mi
Pepe 18
Correct, but dont include the Beatles in that statement. Over rated.
midnitestork
This was our first dance at our wedding over 40 years ago. It still rings true for us.
Tina Kunkel
My mom used to sing this in the kitchen. She passed away on February 27, 2020. Today while doing dishes this popped into my mind. A message from my mama!
ChaoticStudent
I know it's been 9 month now, but damn you got me crying. Your mum must have been a wonderful and warm-hearted woman. May she rest in peace.
Brian Hall
Sorry to hear about your loss that song where's my dad and mom song they both passed away in March my dad passed away March 5th my mother passed away March 21st their anniversary was 68 years beautiful music another one was that old wedding ring