As a fully paid-up member of the Sinatra Fan Club I was buying his Capitol and Reprise releases as they appeared and I recall how disappointed I was with Swingin’ Session !!!, so much so that I was surprised to read here that it is regarded as one of his most celebrated albums.
My beefs were, I feel certain, shared by many Sinatraphiles; he had recorded nine of the 12 titles previously, only two or three titles could qualify as “standards” and at a tad over 26 minutes it was by far his shortest 12-inch album. The brevity was explainable (if not, we felt, justifiable) because Sinatra was working out a contract with minimum effort.
By the time he recorded it – in August and September, 1960 – he had already lined up his own recording company, Reprise. He was, however, still obliged contractually to provide further albums for Capitol and it seemed fairly obvious that by ordering Nelson Riddle to cut the charts to the bone he was ensuring that Capitol got the shortest album possible whilst still adhering to the terms of the contract. Thus came the feeling amongst the fans that we were being short-changed.
In my opinion there is nothing worthy of discussion on this album though I accept that there are those who disagree. However, the second album added here – A Swingin’ Affair – is another matter entirely and at 45.40 it shows what he could deliver when he chose to.
With four numbers by Cole Porter, two by Gershwin, one by Kern, one by Schwartz, one by Rodgers and one by Ellington, two thirds of the album was the work of top-drawer writers, and the last third wasn’t exactly chopped liver. From Riddle’s brash intro to Cole Porter’s Night And Day to the closing bar of Joey Bushkin’s Oh! Look At Me Now, with not one duff track in between this is the finest album in the genre since Songs For Swingin’ Lovers, from the same stable.
Discography
CD1: [Sinatra’s Swingin’ Session !!!] When You’re Smiling; Blue Moon; S’posin’; It All Depends On You; It’s Only A Paper Moon; My Blue Heaven; Should I; September In The Rain; Always; I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With Me; I Concentrate On You; You Do Something To Me (26.50)
CD2: [A Swingin’ Affair] Night And Day; I Wish I Were In Love Again; I Got Plenty O’ Nuttin’; I Guess I’ll Have To Change My Plan; Nice Work If You Can Get It; Stars Fell On Alabama; No One Ever Tells You; I Won’t Dance; The Lonesome Road; At Long Last Love; You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To; I Got It Bad And That Ain’t Good; From This Moment On; If I Had You; Oh! Look At Me Now; Hidden Persuasion; Ol’ Mac Donald (50.39)
Sinatra (v) with Nelson Riddle Orchestra. (1) Hollywood, 22, 23, 31 August and 1 September 1960. (2) Hollywood, 9 April and 15, 20, 26, 28 November 1956.
Essential Jazz Classics EJC 55772
