Frank Sinatra - 57 - In Concert (CD)

All Music Guide

After his death, Frank Sinatra's children decided they wanted to stem the tide of bootlegged live material that was flooding the market by putting out legitimate versions of the same material. The bad news is how expensive these legitimate releases are. The good news is that they are easy to find, are beautifully remastered, and feature extensive liner notes that give you inside information on the shows themselves. This disc offers up an entire show from 1957, and along with a yet to be legitimately released live date with Quincy Jones' big band, it stands up as the best Sinatra date of the 1950s. Sinatra is in excellent (if uneven) voice and obviously having as good of a time as the audience and the musicians. Highlights include amazing versions of "The Lady Is a Tramp," "I Get a Kick Out of You," and "I Won't Dance," which are even more jazz-fueled than the studio recordings, and a sumptuous reading of "My Funny Valentine." It's even fun to hear Sinatra bungle the lyrics on a small-g...roup jazz trip through "The Tender Trap" and show his disdain for the kiddy-rock "Hey Jealous Lover," which, much to his chagrin, was a much bigger hit at the time than such classic singles as "Witchcraft" and "I've Got the World on a String." The concert captures Sinatra at his creative prime, and this disc is a must for fans. - Nick Dedina, All Music Guide Read more Less