Frank Sinatra Singing It My Way - The Voice of Ol Blue Eyes

The heart throb of many a teenage bobby-soxer in the 1940's, Frances Albert Sinatra's career spanned over seven decades. "Ol Blue Eyes," or "The Voice," as Sinatra was often referred, took the torch from idol Bing Crosby and continued the crooning craze until the end of his career in the late 1990's. Sinatra began his singing career in his hometown of Hoboken, New Jersey with a local band called the Three Flashes in 1935. Once "Frankie" joined the group, they were renamed the Hoboken Four. In 1939, Sinatra teamed up with the Harry James Band where he recorded and released his first commercial record, From the Bottom of my Heart. In November 1939, a huge milestone happened for the young crooner. Sinatra was asked by Tommy Dorsey himself to join his band; this would expose Sinatra to a vast audience and help skyrocket him to stardom. Dorsey and Sinatra's relationship was somewhat volatile due to contract negotiations that entitled Dorsey to one-third of Sinatra's entertainment royalties, for a lifetime. Sinatra was later let out of this agreement. Sinatra launched his solo career after leaving Dorsey's band in the latter part of 1942. During his time with Dorsey, Frank released over forty songs, one of which, I'll Never Smile Again, claimed the top spot in the charts for twelve weeks. Exuding an eroticism that gave him that sexy bad-boy image seemed to be just what the ladies were looking for at the time. Rumor has it; Ol Blue Eyes could make a young girl faint just by kissing her on the cheek. Melodic songs, oozing with romance, accompanied by Sinatra's piercing blue eyes and rebel attitude, gave him that yet unmatched sex appeal with a younger female audience. Lyrically seductive songs like All the Way, Embraceable You, Fools Rush In, Autumn Leaves and Close to You, sent girls into frenzy comparable to that which would be seen almost two decades later with a pelvic thrusting Elvis Presley. With his career in full swing by the late 1940's, Frankie was constantly the controversial figure in the public eye. Rumored to be linked with the mob, Sinatra was believed by many to be a part of some shady dealings. Under investigation by the FBI for many years, no conclusive evidence was ever disclosed that would prove that he participated in "underworld" affairs. He was politically public and hob-knobbed with presidents, vice-presidents as well as known mobsters like Chicago Mafia Boss, Sam Giancana. A staunch democrat from his youth, he switched political teams supposedly after being shunned by longtime pal, John F. Kennedy. He was a frequent guest at the White House during several administrations including those of Roosevelt (FDR), Kennedy, Nixon and Reagan. Sinatra was very outspoken regarding his disdain for rock and roll music. He thought it to be a passing trend and a deplorable style of music. He later recorded songs by many of the rock and roll greats such as Elvis Presley and The Beatles. He was predominantly influenced by jazz and his songs remained true to the crooner style throughout his career. Sinatra was said to suffer from frequent bouts of depression and today might very well have been diagnosed as bipolar. He openly discussed much of his struggles in this area in a 1950's interview. His personal life was made very public with the growing broadcast mediums and the American publics' overactive appetite for Hollywood scandals. With his career declining in the early fifties he re-emerged as a star of the big screen and won the Academy Award for his best supporting actor role in From Here to Eternity in 1954. After signing with Capital Records, Sinatra released hit albums such as Come Fly With Me and In the Wee Small Hours. He left Capital Records and formed his own record label, Reprise Records where he had great success with well-known hits like Strangers in the Night and My Way. Ol Blue Eyes saw his popularity waning in the late sixties and early seventies and announced his retirement from the entertainment business in 1971. That was short-lived and he was back in the mix by 1973. He spent his remaining years touring and appearing in television specials. He hit the Top 40 again in 1980 with New York, New York. Sinatra was the founding member of the famed "Rat Pack" and made several movies with fellow rat-packers, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop. This group of musicians starred in the original version of the movie "Oceans Eleven." Frank Sinatra was tagged the first real pop superstar and his music remains an American standard of today. A resurgence of his easy "crooner" technique is seen in talents like Michael Bublé and Michael Feinstein. Upon Sinatra's death in May of 1998, his fourth wife Barbara Marx and his three children by first wife, Nancy Barbato, survived him.