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Posted on 08/03/2025 11:29:50 AM PDT by nickcarraway
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Sinatra singing about Los Angeles is hard to take. Of course, he sings New York, New York, and he wasn't from New York. He was born in New Jersey, which most Manhattanites think is the nadir of civilization.
That L. A. no longer exists.
NYC, Chicago and San Francisco inspire great songs. LA, never.
It’s not even really about LA. There’s no specific LA detail. The Dude just loves his city. It might as well be Fresno.
Interesting credits on the song: “Writer(s): Quincy Jones, Marilyn Bergman, Alan Bergman, Peggy Lipton.” Did Peggy really contribute or did Q just want half the royalties?
Is that so hard to believe? The entire lyrics of Brick House by the Commodores were written by Shirley Hanna-King, the wife of the Commodores' William King, who plays many instruments for the band.
He was assigned to write the words, but he fell asleep with the notepad on his chest. His wife took, and wrote an entire song. He didn't even tell the rest of the band for years. And the song is top 5.
Q is from Chicago. The other three are from NYC.
I have that Sinatra: Portrait of an Album dvd (an old fashioned Sinatra fan’s old fashioned format for an old fashioned singer).
Now that I’m 79 I see that “he was age 69” and think that’s young and just fine for a recording artist.
Sinatra was irreplaceable.
NYC: The Broadway Melody--Charles King (1929)
Chicago: Red Hot Chicago--Waring's Pennsylvanians (1930)
San Francisco: San Francisco--Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (1936)
Los Angeles (suburban): Blue Hills of Pasadena--Al Benny's Broadway Boys (1929)
Or Missing Persons, “Walking In LA”
Frank Black (of The Pixies) - Los Angeles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuLllNyfiHs
X - Los Angeles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKp1TjP__rg
Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” is a cover version. Liza did it first. She also did it better.
“Theme from New York, New York”, often abbreviated to just “New York, New York”, is the theme song from the Martin Scorsese musical film New York, New York (1977), composed by John Kander, with lyrics by Fred Ebb. Liza Minnelli performs the song during the finale of the film. It was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.
His 1993 Duets album sold over three million in the US alone...Not bad for a 78 year-old.
Today’s LA is a Skank.
Still enough people around who appreciated quality music back then.
Not to insult a handful of artists who stand out now. There are no small labels, small clubs to introduce new acts or as someone said “no places left for a new kid to be bad at first.” You have to be ready for viral music and national attention right away.
Just before he died, Leonard Cohen was told by a record label executive: “You are near the top of the music industry. But there is no music industry.”
Sinatra was THE best pop singer of the 20th century - impeccable phrasing, great tonal/timbre and an ear for a well written song.
His signature song, “One For My Baby” and his signature performance was his “Live at The Sands” with Count Basie Band.
However, for “One For My Baby”, he was accompanied by only a piano played by his personal pianist, Bill Miller.
The album, “Live at The Sands”, was produced by Quincy Jones.
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