SINATRA featuring DON COSTA ORCHESTRA DVD/VHS Video

Original Airdate: USA November 5 1969
Running Time: 50 Min.
Director: Tim Kiley

TRACKLIST

For Once In My Life
Please Be Kind
My Way
Film-Clip-Medley with Highlights from:
I Couldn’t Sleep A Wink Last Night
Your’re Sensational
All The Way
The Tender Trap
Little Green Apples
Out Beyond The Window
A Man Alone
Didn’t We
Forget To Remember
Fly Me To The Moon
Street Of Dreams
Love’s Been Good To Me
Goin’ Out Of My Head
My Kind Of Town

Eclectic is the best word that I can use to describe this 1969 FS TV special. So many different kinds of material done in 52 minutes.

He opens with For Once In My Life. An exciting version. Better than the album version. To me, it's the type of song that Frank does much more justice to in front of an audience.

Please Be Kind follows. Magnificent, exciting. And, of course, My Way. Frank has never gone wrong with that song. The amazing thing about Frank is that even if he did a song a thousand times, there will always be a difference each time he sings it.

We also get to see film clips from Frank's old movies with Frank really poking fun of himself. He made some of them sound worse than they were. But it was very funny.


Then Frank is back singing two great standards - All the Way & The Tender Trap. What more can you say about those two?

And then we're back to a contemporary song - Little Green Apples. I never gave too much listen to this song until I heard this live version. He puts so much feeling into the song.

And we're treated again to a few more contemporary songs - Out Beyond the Window; A Man Alone; Didn't We; Forget to Remember. Frank gave these songs his all. Longing, pain and regrets. I found them very touching. Shows he can handle any kind of material thrown at him.

We're back again to a great FS standard - Fly Me To the Moon. Another one of those songs I don't think FS could do bad. And Street of Dreams was terrific. I love hearing that done live.

And then he sings Love's Been Good To Me. That version really got to me. It gave me goosebumps hearing that song - no matter of how many times I hear it.

And finally, he closes with Going Out of My Head and My Kind of Town.

Another Frank Sinatra essential!

[russkish3]

You have stoked my curiosity with your review. If there is one gaping hole in my Sinatra collection, it's in the area of available video. Your capsule descriptions of this program make me want to check it out. Sounds like a winner.

Best regards,

Russell Kishi
Glendale, California

[Adam]

This show is excellent.

'Please Be Kind' is the best version i have ever heard of the song. "Say you wont bite my ear......." Superb.

'My Way' is actually done with a higher note right at the end, this is a great touch and takes the song to new heights, literally.

The clip from 'Couldnt Sleep A Wink' is warmly done, as is the clip from 'Didnt We'.

I only wish he had performed those in full, those clips are so good they make you want to hear the whole song.

Adam

[Watertown]

I didn't even know this existed!!! Can anyone tell me where I can pick up a DVD copy?

i picked it up in a music store in my city centre. is from a 9 strong series of live performances ranging from a 1964 performance with Nelson Riddle and eventually through to the main event in madison sqaure garden and then finally "sinatra in japan". its a wonderful little series which capture all his quality qualities.
its made under the "Warner Music Vision" i dont know if they have a website or anything, there's nothing on the box at least.

[alan.murrie]

<<...is from a 9 strong series of live performances...>>

In fact, there are 13 of these Warner Music Vision DVDs currently available (although 2 or 3 of these are not available outside Europe). The first 10 were released in two waves here in the UK, in two 5-disc boxsets or available individually. The remaining 3 titles were released here in September 2002. Here's the full set:

A Man & His Music (1965)
A Man & His Music - Part II (1966)
A Man & His Music + Ella + Jobim (1967)
Francis Albert Sinatra Does His Thing (1968)
Sinatra (1969)
Sinatra In Concert (1970)
Ol' Blue Eyes Is Back (1973)
The Main Event (1974)
Sinatra And Friends (1977)
Sinatra: The First 40 Years (1979)
The Man & His Music (1981)
Concert For The Americas (1982)
Sinatra In Japan (1985)

These are all listed in this section, but I just thought I'd add them in here.

[Yvonne]

Thanks for drawing up this list.
I found that so far I only have 5 of these DVDs, that's truly a shame.

[russkish3]

I have begun checking local retailers for this DVD title. Thus far, I have had no luck in finding it. Something tells me this was a popular item during the height of the Christmas buying season. And unfortunately many of the local retailers are very slow to restock items once their inventory is depleted. This will make a welcome purchase after the new year.

Best regards,

Russell Kishi
Glendale, California

Another thread has been started for this show/DVD at
http://www.sinatrafamily.com/forum/s...threadid=13293

Maybe it could get merged into this one here.

Bernhard.

[Adam]

Bump.......

Adam

[Marty]

with the comment that I actually prefer this version of The Tender Trap over the earlier studio recording. Also a big fan of Frank's jumper during the "A Man Alone" sequence

[Adam]

Originally posted by Marty
with the comment that I actually prefer this version of The Tender Trap over the earlier studio recording.

I agree, Marty.

This version is excellent, and the rocket-powered close to the song makes it one of my favourite live performances.

Adam

I just ordered this dvd! It's the one I've been missing!

I can't wait. Looks like great stuff.

Well finally got to open the dvd today and watched it. I just loved it, especially the part where Frank makes fun of his films and shows clips from various moments in his films and puts a funny spin on them. It really made me laugh especially at the part when he said he had to display a range of emotions and he showed clips of himself in the pride and the passion with very non emotional faces.

I loved that he sang "I couldn't sleep a wink last night". It was such a fantastic version of "goin' out of my head" and "little green apples" was just so beautiful!!. It was cute how he added extra things to "My kind of town" in the line "chicago is" as the credits rolled.

This was a great dvd one of my faves

[jeane frankphan]

Hi Melissa,
Which DVD did you get? What was the title? Thanks in advance. Trying to update my collection of DVDs. Thanks in advance...jeane

I am one of those people who get nightmares at the mention of the words "Don Costa", whom I credit for the worst material Frank ever recorded (except for their first opus together, Sinatra & Strings). Mushy, soppy arrangements, boring and predictable crossover, middle-of-the-road songs... The idea of a TV show done by him and not Riddle or Jenkins is a bit scary to say the least, but your comments make me feel like I should give it a try some time.

Originally Posted by jeane frankphan

Which DVD did you get? What was the title?

Hi Jeane,

The title is simply SINATRA. The US DVD version is the typically plain black Warner/Reprise video release, with the "Sinatra" signature in red. The European issue is shown in the lead post of this thread, with the subtitle "featuring Don Costa and his Orchestra."

Alan mentions all 13 of the Warner/Reprise DVD releases in a post above, or you can consult my Master Index web page, for links to all of these, here: Televised Specials and Concerts on DVD/VHS Video.