Keep it Swingin'

Vocalists and Musicians who keep The Rat Pack music alive, share their stories about how the music of Frank, Dean and Sammy influenced them as artists.

Excerpts below.. from articles that featured Michael Feinstein, Tony Bennett, Michael Bublé and Seth MacFarlane, Josh Groban, Alicia Keys and Bob Dylan.

Michael Feinstein 

Michael Feinstein

As the Ambassador of the Great American Songbook, you have performed the music of Frank Sinatra for live audiences around the world and memorably in your PBS special The Sinatra Project. How did you first learn about the music of Frank Sinatra?

His voice has been with me my entire life. Frank Sinatra's music is iconic and many people consider him to be the single greatest pop singer of the 20th century. I came to his music, as many did, through osmosis. It was always a part of my life. When I was child I would hear his voice on the radio. I'd see him in movies. His records were in my parents' collection. When I was five years old I was aware of the voice of Frank Sinatra.

As I grew older and became a musician and a singer, I gained a true awareness of how he changed the face of American popular music by being the first singer to travel around the world performing what we now call American popular standards or the Great American Songbook. He sang popular songs without apology, around the world at the Sydney Opera House and Buckingham Palace. He granted validity to the music I now sing for my livelihood. His influence in that regard, aside from his vocal art, is incredibly culturally significant.

Excerpt from https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/celebrated-singer-michael-feinstein-remembers-his-unforgettable-friendship-with-barbara-and-frank-sinatra

TONY BENNETT

Tony Bennett

I was 10 years younger than Frank Sinatra and was one of the original bobby-soxers when he was hitting it so big at the Paramount Theater. He was very much like a mentor and then a brother to me in later years. I remember early in my career I had a dilemma as I was getting my first TV special - it was a summer replacement show for "The Perry Como Show" - and they had no budget so I just had a bare stage and nothing else. I was so worried about how it would turn out.... [Sinatra] gave me the best advice that to this day I have never forgotten: He said it was good that I was nervous because it showed that I cared, and that the audience would sense this and as a result they would root for me, as they would know that I was concerned that they would be entertained and enjoy themselves. To this day, I still get butterflies before I go out onstage, and I remember Frank's words and know that it's when the butterflies don't happen anymore that you really have to be worried.

Excerpt from https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-xpm-2012-may-02-la-et-influences-20120502-story.html

"He (Sinatra) just knew how to do it. He had very beautiful phrasing," Bennett says of Sinatra. "It was all about singing very, very well-written love songs." Bennett also says he doesn't mind being compared to Sinatra, but he would never try to copy him or any other singer."

Excerpt from https://franksinatrafans.com/tony-bennett-talks-about-musical-influences-of-frank-sinatra/

Michael Bublé and Seth MacFarlane 

Michael Bublé and Seth MacFarlane 

Excerpt  - Q&A: Michael Bublé and Seth MacFarlane on Frank Sinatra by Mikael Wood, pop music critic for the Los Angeles Times.

How was each of you introduced to his work?

MacFarlane: I came into it in an oddly backward way. I was a big fan of film scores when I was a kid, as well as big-band jazz from the '40s and '50s. But it was really the orchestra I was interested in, the creative mixtures of sounds that could be achieved with an orchestra. And really, during that time - the '40s, '50s and '60s - that was when it was really all happening. I mean, what MGM alone was doing was something that had not been done before or since. I hadn't really sat down and listened to a Frank Sinatra song seriously until I was in college. And what struck me initially were the orchestrations; it was Nelson Riddle, Gordon Jenkins, Billy May. The more I heard, the more I realized there was something very, very special going on in the vocals, something that no one else had done.

Bublé: My grandfather and I, we had a great relationship, and he would sit with me and play these records. I listened to a lot of Bobby Darin as a kid - 7, 8 years old. Dean Martin was a huge one. We're an Italian-Canadian family, you know, so a lot of those great Italian singers - Tony Bennett - were played through the house. The Sinatra that I met first wasn't the "Come Fly With Me" Sinatra. The Sinatra I met was the Sinatra singing with the Pied Pipers - really early, really incredible, beautiful, sweet, young voice. I would go and take songs like "Stardust" and "My Melancholy Baby," these really old recordings, and I would put them on cassette, and when I went to bed, I would listen to them over and over and over and over.

BONO

BONO

It is Bono who has come closest to defining the appeal of Sinatra to the generations who did not buy his music the first time round but who might possibly have been conceived to it.

Bono and Sinatra recorded a version of "I've Got You Under My Skin" on Frank's 1993 Duets album - a huge commercial success that teamed Sinatra with a string of contemporary vocalists. 

A year later, when Bono presented Sinatra with a lifetime achievement award at the Grammys, he tried to explain why even men in earrings and leather trousers love Sinatra. 

"Rock'n'roll people love Frank Sinatra because Frank has got what we want," said Bono. "Swagger and attitude. He's big on attitude. Serious attitude, bad attitude. The big bang of pop. The champ who would rather show you his scars than his medals."

Excerpt from Tony Parsons column - Why you never grow out of Frank Sinatra

https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/frank-sinatra-tony-parsons

Alicia Keys 

Alicia Keys 

Alicia Keys: Who Performed at Sinatra 100 had this to say about the "My Way' crooner in an earlier interview: "Frank Sinatra is an all-timer, the true definition of class and style - He definitely had an impact on contemporary artists well beyond music - from fashion sense to his 'crew,' the Rat Pack."

Excerpts above (Josh/Alicia) from https://www.gigwise.com/photos/104303/frank-sinatra-100th-birthday-11-artists-inspired

Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan: "Phenomenal Ebbtide by Frank Sinatra never failed to fill me with awe. The lyrics were so mystifying and stupendous. When Frank sang that song, I could hear everything in his voice - death, God, the universe - everything."

Excerpt from  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/artists/bob-dylans-20-musical-heroes

Bob Dylan: "Full Moon and Empty Arms." Dylan's February album Shadows in the Night, which included this song, was recorded in homage to Sinatra. "When you start doing these songs," Dylan said in an interview about the album, "Frank's got to be on your mind. Because he is the mountain. That's the mountain you have to climb, even if you only get part of the way there. ... He had this ability to get inside of the song in a sort of a conversational way. Frank sang to you - not at you. I never wanted to be a singer that sings at somebody. I've always wanted to sing to somebody."

Excerpt from https://www.njarts.net/pop-rock/frank-sinatras-influence-on-rock-and-roll-hall-of-famers-10-videos/

 Personal Swingin' Stories 

Advisory Board Member & Author Darren Grubb shares a story from                    Comedian Tom Dreesen about a professional lesson he learned from Frank Sinatra.

TOM DREESEN                   www.tomdreesen.com

Tom Dreesen has made over 500 appearances on national television as a stand-up comedian, including more than 60 appearances on The Tonight Show.  For 13 years he toured cross country and opened for Frank Sinatra. (Again Thanks to Advisory Board Member Darren Grubb for asking Tom Dreesen to share this story.)

Frank Sinatra on why he wore tuxedos during a performance:

I once asked Frank why we wore tuxedos every night. He said, "Tommy, if we were going to go do a command performance for the Queen of England, would we wear tuxedos?"

"Yeah, I'm sure we would," I said.

"Okay," he said, beginning the lesson. "Well, that guy in Detroit who works in a factory, and his wife who busts her ass as a waitress, they worked all year long to save enough money to come and see our show. They are as much royalty as the Queen of England to us, and we should honor that. Every night is a command performance. That, Tommy, is why we wear tuxedos."

If the sun exploded and came hurtling toward the earth at a million miles an hour, incinerating everything in sight, Frank would probably look up, defiantly button his tuxedo jacket, and squint. That's just how he was during a show -- and that's why, to this day, I always wear a tuxedo when performing my one-man show.

Excerpt taken from Tom Dreesen's upcoming new memoir about his life and fifty year career in show business: "STILL STANDING... My Journey from Streets and Saloons to the Stage, and Sinatra." 

https://www.amazon.com/Still-Standing-Journey-Streets-Saloons/dp/1642933600

                                       MARILYN MICHAELS  

                                Woman of a Thousand Voices and Faces             https://www.marilynmichaels.com/

Marilyn Michaels, a multi-talented performer, whose extraordinary gifts as a singer, comedian, impressionist, Broadway actress, author, recording artist and painter, continues to delight audiences throughout her acclaimed show business career.

Her extensive TV appearances include popular shows such as: The Jackie Gleason Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, Hullabaloo (performing with Sammy Davis, Jr.), The Hollywood Palace, The Dean Martin Show, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, The Merv Griffin Show, Regis and Kathie Lee, The Joan Rivers Show and many many more. Many of her fans will remember her starring as Fanny Brice in the National Company of Funny Girl.

Marilyn has worked alongside and met the biggest and best in show biz: Judy Garland, Barbara Streisand, Sammy Davis, Jr, Dean Martin, Liza Minnelli, Orson Welles, Debbie Reynolds, Carrie Fisher, Jerry Lewis, Jonathan Winters, Rich Little to Burt Reynolds and so many others.

Marilyn was kind to share the following about her very special and emotional connection with Frank, Dean and Sammy:

BOOK AVAILABLE via  https://www.marilynmichaels.com   (SHOP/CD)

Special thanks to Mark Wilk.

A few excerpts and anecdotes from the book follow:   

Chapter 3: Dean and John and Jackie and Dom, oh my...

Of all the extraordinary people I got to work with, Dean Martin was the epitome of cool charisma. Sparks flew when I sang with Dean, and for the record, no one can function as brilliantly as Dean Martin and take in the level of alcohol his "character" pretended. He was in control of everything. 

Chapter 3: God Forbid I Should Starve

It occurs to me that the road to success is paved with these great highs and lows; Robin Williams waiting till I got off the stage to say in his inimitable style, "Hey, man, you really kicked some ass in there." Martin Sheen wafting backstage during one Chicago matinee-the iconic theatre actress Helen Hayes popping into my dressing room in Hollywood... Rod and Alana Stewart visiting at Studio One-Buzz Aldrin, buzzing around me at an East Side bash...and in Vegas, all through my show, I couldn't figure out who that lady was with the continual crazy laugh...it was Lucy-and a delightful surprise when another funny girl, Mimi Hines, graciously sent me some rarefied sirloin steaks as a present in Chicago. God forbid, I should starve.

I can't answer for other performers, because today I rarely eat meat, but when you are doing 8 shows a week, that is what I craved. You need strength, none of this lettuce leaves and nuts business.

I have an indelible image of "The Great One," Jackie Gleason, vulnerably standing in a bathrobe ready to go into a Honeymooner sketch as I came off stage to healthy applause, and saying excitedly, "Kid, our numbers just went through the roof!"

Gleason loved to eat and so did Jonathan Winters, a true genius-but it was Dom DeLuise who gave me his cookbook. He was trying to convince me to contribute a recipe to the book, as the other celebs had, but I just laughed in his face.

Was it possible that all the celebrities in his book had actually made these recipes with their own hands? That people worked so hard to achieve fame, only to end up boasting to the world about their best fruit-mold?... I still can't believe it, that they did this sort of thing for pleasure and relaxation. Relaxation to me is achieved by other means, and none of them include silicone-tipped tongs.

I never attempted to make anything from books like that. It was a time when I lived on room service and found the ice cream shakes, and triple-decker sandwiches extremely comforting-especially when I was on my way to get my first divorce.

                                           Marilyn Michaels and Sammy Davis, Jr.  1966  (via Historic Images.com)

"Sammy: Suffice to say... he was my mentor... Little did I know when I became enamored with his talent as a singer dancer, impressionist.. starting out with his Dad and Uncle, we had a similar trajectory, as I started out in an act with my mom, Fraydlele Oysher... the Cantoress and actress! Then.. suddenly I was on national tv with Sammy and on and on working with him on Name of The Game, Flip Wilson, and more!!... I have stories about him in my new book ...HOW TO TALK DIRTY TO A WOMAN... and other essays......

              JAZZ BASSIST MARTIN PIZZARELLI                                   https://www.martinpizzarelli.com

Double Bassist Martin Pizzarelli's 30-plus year career has taken him across the Globe a few times over, where he has shared the stage with established jazz legends and rising stars alike. Throughout it all, a love and dedication to The Great American Songbook was cemented into place.

If music were learned through osmosis, Martin Pizzarelli would be a virtuoso of several instruments. The son of guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, Martin grew up in a house filled with music and musicians. Whether it was playing ping-pong in the basement with Zoot Sims, sharing Ovaltine with Slam Stewart or just hanging with Benny Goodman, these musicians were a part of the family.

In the summer of 1977, Martin accompanied his parents to the Jazz Festival in Nice, France where Bucky was performing with the legends of the day. It was here that Martin would carry Sonny Stitt's horn from stage to stage and meet Dave Brubeck, Clark Terry, Woody Herman, Stéphane Grappelli, Chuck Berry and BB King among so many others. The big picture was coming into focus.

Martin was 14-years old when he picked-up the electric bass for the first time at the insistence of his brother John, who needed someone to fill-in for his garage band. Soon he was playing garage band gigs while being schooled in all things jazz by his father. Eventually, electric bass yielded to double bass and at the age of 16, a career was born when he played his first professional gig alongside Bucky at The New School in New York City, NY with Al and Joe Cohn.

As bassist for the John Pizzarelli Trio, Martin performed with Dave Brubeck at Carnegie Hall, he opened for Frank Sinatra on a European tour and he's shared the stage with Monty Alexander, Jeff Hamilton, Duduka de Fonseca, Ray Kennedy, Larry Fuller, Daniel Jobim, Mike Renzi and Russ Kassoff just to name a very few. He's made appearances on The Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Melrose Place and performed in the movie,"The Out of Towners" and on the soundtracks of "Forget Paris," "Ready to Wear" and "Two-Family House." He was also a part of a long-runnning advertising campaign for Foxwoods Casino.

Now fronting his own band, Martin Pizzarelli has teamed with Hyuna Park on piano, Grammy Award-winning clarinetist/saxophonist Linus Wyrsch and guitarist Félix Lemerle for a tight, solidly-swinging show. The next journey in a lifetime commitment to jazz has begun. 

TV EXECUTIVE PRODUCER HARRY BRING

Advisory Board Member Harry Bring shares that his Dad, Band Leader Lou Bring and his orchestra performed with Al Jolson for many years on the Kraft Music Hall Radio Show. 

Lou Bring had an office at Capitol Studios, where Harry recalls fond memories of his time spend there.  

Frank Sinatra has become synonymous with the iconic Capitol recording studio, as Mr. Sinatra was one of the early vocalists to record there. 

                          Al Jolson and the Lou Bring Orchestra - Kraft Music Hall Radio Program

Links

https://www.museumoffamilyhistory.com/1/radio/kmh-cary-grant.htm

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGh6t1_KhTA   radio program 

Vocalist Steven Maglio  

Vocalist Steven Maglio           

www.StevenMaglio.com

 Photo above of Steven Maglio singing with Deana Martin

At eight years old, I discovered the Frank Sinatra album, "A Man And His Music." That was the beginning of my Rat Pack addiction. My regular bedtime was 10pm, but I was allowed to stay up until 11pm on Thursdays to watch The Dean Martin Show. Peter Lawford & Joey Bishop were fabulous, but I wanted to sing, so it was Frank, Dean & Sammy that caught my attention.

Since 2004, I've been singing the Sinatra tribute shows at The Carnegie Club in NYC. Two shows every Saturday. Between the shows they play the Rat Pack show from 1965 in St. Louis on the televisions, and I sit and watch it every week. I say, "People come here to see me, but I come here to see them."

Frank sang "to" the women, Dean sang "for" the men, and Sammy sang and danced "to" and "for" the child in everyone. They were strong, sharp, funny, cool, romantic. There will never be a more perfectly matched and balanced cast of talent. They came, they saw, they conquered ..... and then they left us.

Thankfully, they left behind a treasure trove of movies and recordings, but even more, they gave inspiration for others to continue what they started. Sexy is still alive and well as long as we practice Rat Pack Swagger. Thanks Guys.

                           Vocalist & Impressionist TOM STEVENS                        https://tomstevenstributes.com  

I was born on June 8th 1958, one day after Dean Martin turned 41. My first memory of being exposed to Dean and his music was when he started his TV show on Thursday nights. I was just 7 years old when on Sept 16th 1965 his first TV show aired on NBC. I can remember my father's laughter at Dean's antics and how every Thursday we just had to watch Dean.I started doing impressions at a very young age and would always try to emulate characters and celebrities I would see on TV. My very first one was Frank Fontaine's character, Crazy Guggenheim from the Jackie Gleason show. 

When I turned 14 my mom bought me a tape recorder and I started recording my voices and practicing sounding like different people. Rich Little was my biggest inspiration at that time as well as other impressionists who were on TV like Frank Gorshin, John Byner, George Kirby, Fred Travelina and Marilyn Michaels. I had picked up a better idea of talking like Dean from John Byner who did Dean's voice for the cartoon "The Ant and The Aardvark." John did both voices for the cartoon. The aardvark was Jackie Mason's voice.

On a visit to my Aunt Sophie's house I heard a record of Dean Martin playing at her house. I showed such pleasure in listening to that album, she gave me album when I left. The song "You're Nobody Till Somebody Loves You" was on that album. Back then there was no such thing as Karaoke tracks to buy so when the music interlude of "You're Nobody came on during that song I would hold up my little microphone as I sat next to our stereo record player and sing as Dean to the musical interlude. I would play it over and over and try to sound like Dean.

Fast forward to my mid 30's, I moved to Florida from Long Island and was working my cosmetology profession. I dabbled with performing some private parties and such while I was primarily focused on my hairdressing. One night I went to a local club where they had some entertainment going on on the weekends.I had got to know the lead singer, Ronnie Davis who also did impressions of Elvis as well as other singers. We became friends and he had me get up a few times and perform my impressions. One night I put on a tuxedo and sprayed my hair black ( I am a natural blonde) and went down to Sirones. Ronnie brought me up as Dean Martin and I sang a few songs as Dean. The place went nuts. Ronnie had introduced me to a gentleman namedPat Cavalier who did a Frank Sinatra tribute. He had a show he was working on with another gentleman who did Perry Como, his name was Don Barrie.They were looking for a Dean Martin tribute artist to join their show. I was 20 years younger than these guys so I had to make myself look older.That is when I started wearing the glasses and spraying my hair grey to try and fit into the group. Our show was called "The Italian's Are Coming" and we toured all over Florida performing at many of the condos and theaters through out the state.

After the death of Dean in 1995 his hometown of Steubenville, Ohio started "The Dean Martin Festival" headed by Rose Angelica. I found out about the festival and sent them a video of me as Dean and asked if they would allow me to attend the festival and sing as Dean for the fans. I had just turned 40and thought how cool it would be to have the opportunity to really see what the people who knew Dean would think of my tribute. Well I performed for over an hour and a half...they wouldn't let me off the stage. Then we heard Deana Martin Griffith, Dean's daughter, was going to attend the festival in 1998. I again attended the festival that year and not only got to meet her but also sing with Deana during my set. She said "I have never met anyone look and sound more like my Daddy".Needless to say I was floored by her comment and continued headlining the festival for 16 years.

                                 Dean Martin's daughter Deana and Tom Stevens at the Dean Martin Festival

                     At the Dean Martin Festival in Dean Martin's hometown Steubenville, Ohio,                                                          Tom Stevens with the head of the Festival Rose Angelica

I had an opportunity to perform in Las Vegas with Dave Salera who I met at the Festival. He was a Frank Sinatra tribute artist and we put a show together called Frank Dean and Friends. I was Dean as well as "The Friends". The Suncoast Hotel and Casino in Summerlin Las Vegas gave us the opportunity to perform an afternoon show in their showroom for 18 shows. My wife Perla, who worked with us and ran all the music tracks for the show, and I were so sure of what we had that we took a shot and moved out to Vegas. Those 18 shows turned into a career in show biz for us.

                                                        Tom Stevens as Dean Martin & Tony Lewis as Jerry Lewis

In 2012 a man from Australia contacted me, his name is Tony Lewis and he does a Jerry Lewis tribute. He was looking for a "Dean" for 27 years and was so thrilled with my tribute to Dean that he reached out to me to see if I would be interested in working with him. After seeing his talent I agreed to give it a try.I had photo shopped a picture of him and I together ( I attached the photo here) and emailed it to him. He was performing in Sydney at the time and when he opened the photo the agent saw it and asked why he put his picture next to Dean Martin. He said that is not Dean it's a guy from Vegas named Tom Stevens. The guy was so taken backby our looks that he made a poster from that photo and sold the show to two venues in Sydney that sold out immediately...AND WE DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A SHOW YET!!!We immediately got to work and over Skype wrote and put together our show " The Martin and Lewis Tribute Show" which has been toured all over Australia and the United States for the past 10 years.  You can see more of that show at www.MartinandLewistribute.com. 

Entertainer Bob Anderson 

ENTERTAINER BOB ANDERSON      https://bobanderson.com/

FRANK THE MAN THE MUSIC SHOW

 Voted Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year 3 times. Inducted into Casino Legends Hall of Fame and The Las Vegas Entertainment Hall of Fame

One of the greatest evenings in Bob's career was the night Frank and Dean caught his show in Atlantic City.

"I started off with Tony Bennett," Bob recalls, "then Sammy, then Dean, Frank began laughing. They didn't think I'd have the guts to do Sinatra, but I did and he loved it!"

After the show, Frank invited Bob to sit with him and Dean and then spoke the magic words, "This kid's got a hell of an act!"

Bob (in an email to The Rat Pack Music Alliance Founder Karen Morris) about his show FRANK THE MAN THE MUSIC replied:

My objective was to write and perform a show for the younger generation who would leave their high-tech world behind, and travel back to Circa 1970 and see what the entertainment world used to be like, and by doing so.... see the quintessential reenactment of Frank Sinatra, the finest saloon singer who ever lived, performing his show on stage at Caesars Palace in the Circus Maximums showroom.

More from Bob:

STORY

"When I started to work on being FRANK, I spent more than a year getting up at 6 am, four days a week practicing two hours a day. When word got out that I was working on this project, I received a number of Sinatra video performances from friends as well as fans that I had never met. I watched every gesture he made and at what point in a song he would make it. The way he cocked his head and pointed his finger, his walk and everything else that makes him who he is. I wanted everything to be as close to reality as I could get it.

The first person I went to when I got the idea, was Vince Falcone, Sinatra's musical director and most trusted musical advisor for years. As a conductor, musical director and accompanist, no one is respected more than Vince Falcone. 

As far as the look goes, I commissioned one of Hollywood's top make-up artists, Kazu Tsuji (photo above), to turn me into Frank Sinatra. His work is extraordinary. Kazu provided the make-up and facial reconstruction for Brad Pitt in, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and Jim Carry in, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", the revised others.

Because Kazu's schedule did not allow him to leave Los Angeles for more than two or three days at a time, I was then introduced to Emmy Award Winner, Ron Wild. Ron is a master of his craft and became my make- up artist for almost all of my performances in the show. Both Kazu and Ron told me that they could only go so far when it comes to capturing the exact look of another person in make-up. They got it pretty close." 

It takes two hours for the transformation into Frank Sinatra, then Anderson does the rest...the posture, the walk, the smile, the mannerisms and the voice. 

Vocalist Henry Prego 

Vocalist with the Frank Sinatra Alumni Band       www.henrypregoshow.com

The Man Across The River

My name is Henry Prego and I sing the songs of Frank Sinatra.

I'm from New York City. Both my parents were born and raised down on the Lower East Side where they met, got married, and they had me. The lower east side if you don't know it, is a wonderfully diverse section of the city where a lot of the immigrant families from the last century settled after passing through Ellis island. I have many wonderful memories from my childhood growing up there. 

One in particular that relates to my show "Henry Prego Sings Frank Sinatra" is of long walks with my grandpa Pete. My grandpa Pete was a retired Merchant Marine Seaman, He loved to walk. He walked everywhere, and sometimes he would take me along on these walks and we would usually head over one block to the East River and proceed south down and through Battery Park (which If you aren't familiar with the city is the most southern tip of Manhattan.) then up along the Hudson River where you can look across and see the state of New Jersey. My Grandpa Pete would always say ''Henry that's the state of New Jersey and that's where Frank Sinatra Lives'' At the age of six I always thought to myself he's just some man he knows. Now, I wasn't the dumbest kid in the world, within a few years I figured out that Frank Sinatra was a very famous person who made music, films, and was on the TV. My mom alway's played A Jolly Christmas with Frank Sinatra on the phonograph every holiday, But honestly it didn't make much of an impression on me at that time, not till quite a few years later when I happened to stumble across an album called Sinatra at the Sands with the Count Basie Orchestra! One of the best live albums ever recorded! That's when my eyes and ears opened wide. That is when I decided I wanted to try to sing this great music. oddly enough I knew a lot of the lyrics to the songs due to my mothers record collection.

There was a small jazz club in Seaford Long Island called Sonny's Place which is where I cut my teeth and I was fortunate enough to meet and be mentored by musicians like Billy Mitchell and Frank Wess from the Count Basie Band who by the way also worked with Sinatra and were on all the Basie recordings. They taught me all about phrasing and how to put a song across and I am indebted to them to this day.

Skipping ahead my wife and I decided we had had enough of New York and we moved to California, to a place called Palm Desert. Don't go there in the summer!!! Anyway, I was a happy guy working as a Big Band singer doing all the big events and tournaments in and around Palm Spring CA as well as singing Jazz with smaller combos. Then one day the phone rings and it's a friend of mine and he's hysterical. ''Henry you need to get up here, get in touch with the producers of this show in Las Vegas GO FOR THE PART OF SINATRA!'' ''What? What show?'' I say. It turns out to be the Rat Pack is back show at the Sahara Hotel, Just getting underway.

I told him NO WAY! First off I'm not an actor, I've never done any acting before. Secondly, and the most terrifying thought to me as a singer, to play the part of SINATRA? pretending, convincing people that I'm FRANK SINATRA? I'd rather throw myself off of a cliff, Head first.

I told my wife about the call, we had a laugh and dropped it. A few days later my wife Debbie; now how can I put this; She's an Italian from New York! calls me over to the mirror and says ''look in the mirror. you've got the blue eyes, you've got the same ears, you already sing all the songs... Then turns and looks me in the face with a determination and says, ''Comb your hair the same way, go up to Las Vegas, smile and take the check!"

Well I did, and I got the job. The show became a big hit and then the producers of another show in London's West End asked me to join their cast and as a result have gone on to travel the world to do and see things I never would have otherwise. Most recently Walt Johnson who was the lead trumpet for Frank Sinatra and Frank Sinatra Jr. asked me to front the newly formed Frank Sinatra Alumni Band. We are currently booking shows throughout the country.

These days I consider myself an Ambassador to the Sinatra Songbook performing the music as it should be heard with the help of the wonderful musicians who have been part of this rich history. As I like to do in my performances, A toast! Here's to the man across the river, thank you Mr. Sinatra for all the wonderful music.

Vocalist Eddie Sessa

Vocalist Eddie Sessa

"When I was just a young man I went with my Uncle and Godfather to see Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, who were doing concerts together at the original Golden Nugget Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. They knew my uncles and we had dinner with them after the show. I was hooked!

Many great singers sang all the same standards, but when Sinatra put his twist on them, magic happened! That's why there are so many entertainers like myself who are doing the music in the style of Sinatra, mimicking his phrasing, enunciation, tone... because simply put, nobody ever came close to doing the songs the way he did.

The same goes for Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. . It really wasn't just about the music, but the way they presented it. It was the whole vibe. You couldn't help but be mesmerized by them on stage! "

Jazz-Opera Vocalist Rose Kingsley

Vocalist Rose Kingsley

www.rosekingsley.com

Two of my favorite Sinatra songs are "OLD MAN RIVER" & "THE SOLIlLIQUY" from "CAROUSEL ! Here Frank demonstrates his "operatic" training technique ! (both songs that are usually performed by classically (Opera) trained singers !) Bravo , Maestro Sinatra !!!!!

On another note ............

My Father-in-law , Tony Senerchia, was an amazing Pianist who played for TOMMY DORSEY. He played for Frank , when he performed with Tommy Dorsey at THE MEADOWBROOK, in Cedar Grove , NJ. They became fast friends..My Father in law used to drive Frank after the show to the train that he caught to go home to Hoboken ! When my sister-in-law was married  in 1959, Frank Sinatra was one of the Honored Guests !!

Being an International Dramatic Soprano including THE METROPOLITAN OPERA for most of my Life ....... 5 years ago I discovered that God had given me another "Gift " as the critics have "tagged" me ..."OPERA GREAT Turned JAZZ GREAT "!  When I debuted at NYC's BIRDLAND, critics called me " The Female Sinatra" ! It's not so much that I sounded like Mr. Sinatra, but it was the way I PHRASE and "Tell A Story" as only Frank could !!!!! One famous Agent told me after hearing me ....... " You are a MABEL MERCER"..who not only had a beautiful voice , but NO ONE Could PHRASE & Tell a Story like she could !! I later found out that it WAS MABEL MERCER who FRANK learned from !!!!!!! No Wonder..!!

Vocalist Zack Alexander

 Vocalist Zack Alexander   

2016 winner of Hoboken's Sinatra Idol contest

"I'll never forget the first time I heard Frank Sinatra's voice. I was 6 years old at my grandmother's house. She took out her Victrola record player and played a Sinatra 45. The Summer Wind single was the first Sinatra tune I ever heard and that began my addiction to the immortal icon known as Frank Sinatra. Growing up in New Jersey with Italian heritage, it isn't shocking that I was exposed to The Rat Pack at such a young age. Which, ultimately lead to my obsession with the Great American Songbook and other musical talents in the genre.

I was born in October 1995. Dean Martin passed that Christmas and Sinatra passed a few years after that. If I could travel back in time to witness these giants perform I would do it in a heartbeat. Fortunately, I was able to see the great Tony Bennett twice in concert and being able to witness that was a highlight in my young adult life. Frank Sinatra's voice filled the theatre to introduce Tony and you can't get much of a better intro than that. It was magic.

It took me years to realize that I too could croon the songbook. About a decade later, at age 16, I started to really study the style and swagger of Sinatra and The Rat Pack. Their charisma and charm truly captivated audiences. I consumed as much media as possible including taped concerts, television shows, movies, and recorded music. I began to sing along to Sinatra vinyls in front of a mirror, hidden in my bedroom. I was also belted out private concerts in the shower! Eventually, I found the confidence to publicly sing at 18. My family was throwing a 1970s themed summer party and I decided to sing "The Love Boat" theme song recorded by Jack Jones. My family was stunned and told me to audition for the upcoming Sinatra Tribute Gala at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey. Lo and Behold, my first public performance was with The Red Bank Jazz Orchestra for Frank Sinatra's Birthday.

Since then I took it upon myself as someone of my generation to preserve the legacy of The Rat Pack and The Great American Songbook because it is exactly that, great American music. I have performed with the Red Bank Jazz Orchestra on a few occasions, once with Deana Martin (Dean Martin's daughter). I am the regular male vocalist with Swingtime Big Band, a 17-piece big band, paying tribute to the greatest music in existence. I am also the 2016 winner of Hoboken's Sinatra Idol contest. 

Frank Sinatra has had such an influence on my life that I was able to turn my passion into a career and I take great pride in that. I can only hope and pray that people of my generation and younger folks keep this iconography and music alive, for there will only be one Frank Sinatra. The man may be gone, but the music lives on and it's an honor to pay tribute to such a legend. God Bless."