Search - Frank Sinatra :: The Capitol Collectors Series

Not As Comprehensive As Some Of The Others In The Series

08/20/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Capitol Collectors Series is one of the finest such compilations available, covering most of the major artists to have recorded with that label, founded by Johnny Mercer, over the years.



But I have to agree with some of the other reviewers who feel that producer Ron Furmanek could have used just a bit more imagination when putting this one together. Unlike, say, The Four Preps, Kay Starr, and Ray Anthony, each with substantially less hits for the label, Sinatra registered close to 40 hit singles during his years there from 1953 to 1961.



The problem is, for the most part, the ones included here, great as they are, have been part and parcel of countless other Sinatra albums, with the possible exceptions of tracks 1, 8, 15, and 19.



Real collectors would have given their eye teeth to have seen the following Capitol hits, which are extremely hard to find outside of expensive box sets: Flowers Mean Forgiveness - # 21 in early 1956; Your Sensational - # 52 in summer 1956; You're Cheatin' Yourself (If You're Cheatin' On Me) - # 25 in summer 1957; Mr. Success - # 41 in late 1958; Ol' MacDonald - # 25 in late 1960 - all with Nelson Riddle.



The sound reproduction is, as is the case with all in the series, excellent, and in addition to two pages of liner notes written by Denise Cox, you get a full discography of the contents.



For the young set wishing to experience Sinatra at his commercial 1950s best, this is the perfect one to start with. For old collectors like me we can only wish that a bit more thought and research had gone into the effort back in 1989.

"

Correction

ALAIN ROBERT | 09/27/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

">>Though most of the arrangements here are by Nelson Riddle, the best arrangement on this album is by the amazing Billy May with his orchestration of "South of the Border.""