Search - Frank Sinatra :: Swing And Dance With Frank Sinatra

No Columbia disaster.

Samuel Chell | Kenosha,, WI United States | 02/06/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is essentially Frank's first LP (10") and his last date for Columbia records, an entry that has long had the reputation being the last-ditch effort of a fading star with fading pipes to regain his former glory. The fact of the matter is that it's a remarkably strong performance by Old Blue, set apart from his other Columbia offerings by the consistency of the all-swing program. The voice itself clearly has more "edge" than the mellower Sinatra of the Dorsey and bobby-soxer years. Even looking at the enclosed photos, I can't help but associate this Sinatra with the later master storyteller of the Capitol years. Although Sinatra was only 35 at the time of the recording (1950), he looks 10-15 years older than the "Frankie" of 1945. If I didn't know better, I'd judge him to be older than 50-year-old Presidential candidate John Edwards. The point is that Sinatra lived every instant of his life to the fullest, which is why this recorded moment, no less than the others, is at once expressive, satisfying, and revealing.So is this a must-have album? Only if you've already acquired all of the Capitol releases with "swing" in the title--"Songs for Swinging Lovers," "Come Swing with Me," "Swing Along With Me," "A Swinging Affair," and above all "Sinatra's Swingin' Session," for which "Swing and Dance with Frank Sinatra" might be considered a preliminary blueprint.Sinatra sings here with command and conviction, but admittedly some of the electricity is missing. For one, the fidelity isn't quite up to the "hi fi" audio of the later LP's; for another, the singer dubbed in his voice after the orchestral tracks had been recorded, thereby assuring "perfection" but betraying one of his cardinal principles; and finally as competent as the arrangements are, they simply don't stand up to Riddle, May, Hefti, Mandel, or Costa. They leave space when they should fill it, and they usurp space that should be the vocalist's creative domain. And as yet Sinatra has not--with the assistance of drummers like Alvin Stoller, Irv Kottler, and Sonny Payne--figured out not merely how to swing but to "outswing" any other vocalist on the planet. The beat is relatively flat, or "evened out," compared to the infectious back-beats that would soon be propelling his swing arrangements into another orbit.Most of these tunes can be heard to far greater effect on "Sinatra's Swingin' Session." Still, given the price of the album, the length of the program, and the singer (face it, inferior Sinatra from this period is worlds apart from any other male singer, be it Haymes, Eckstein, Bing, or even Nat), how can you afford not to pick it up?"

Swing! Swing! Swing!

Martin 13 | Slovenia | 06/17/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Excellent album! Tracks mostly from 1950's release "Sing and Dance with Frank Sinatra" are arranged by George Siravo and Axel Stordahl. "I've Got a Crush on You" is my favourite. This album really swings!"

Remastered uptempo classics sound great!

Penumbra | Atlanta, GA USA | 10/11/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the Frank Sinatra oeuvre there is a very small percentage of uptempo numbers. Eighteen of the best have been beautifully restored and are presented here.



Interestingly, the original "Swing and Dance" album was made at a time when Frank was at a very low point in his career. The Voice was fragile and too inconsistent to record the songs with the live orchestra. So, Frank was brought in for a secret midnight session attempt to match his vocals to orchestra tracks that had been recorded a few weeks earlier.



You'd never know Sinatra had any problems with his voice listening to this CD. He sounds great!



To bring this disc up to CD length, the original tracks from the 1950 LP have been supplemented with additional Sinatra songs, arranged and orchestrated by George Siravo between 1942 and and 1953.



Highly recommended!"