Frank Sinatra- In The Wee Small Hours

When it came down to deciding the voice of the 20th century it really was no surprise that Sinatra was garnered the honour. This is a man who had no formal vocal training yet somehow his voice was golden and many who have had the training can only do pale impersonations of his magical voice.

Yet in 1955 Sinatra- all of 40 years old- was on the verge of being washed up. Abandoned by Tommy Dorsey and Columbia records he was subsequently given a chance by Capitol records to restake his claim. After a couple unnoteworthy albums events conspired to launch Sinatra on the path to immortality. He was paired with composer/arranger Nelson Riddle and then his relationship with Ava Gardner went pear-shaped. This led to what is commonly believed to be the first ever "concept album" produced.

Carefully hand-picking 15 songs about despair and lovelessness Sinatra recorded one of the most potent albums of his long and illustrious career. There are many rumours that he broke down and wept at the end of several takes (unsubstantiated it must be said), but even if he didn't he sounds so immensely vulnerable throughout the whole process that it really wouldn't surprise me. An entire album devoted to torch ballads is an incredibly bold move (one he would repeat a couple years later) and very few would try it today, and those that do inevitably fail.

Sinatra follows the same path that Schumann's "poet" does in his Dichterliebe. He starts with that feeling of emptiness, goes through a little resentment and bitterness and finally resolves to move on with his life. It's potent, it's real and it still rings true after 53 years. Sinatra is helped by the divine orchestration of Riddle who manages, musically, to convey all the loneliness and hollowness that Sinatra does with his voice. It's a glorious pairing and one that deserves to sit proudly alongside the many compilations of Sinatra's that get churned out regularly.

The 7 years Sinatra spent at Capitol records were the finest of his career. His voice was absolutely at his best and it was the era that saw him record many of his standards for the first time, but "In The Wee Small Hours" is the crowning achievement of that era.