''Swing Easy!'' is the eighth studio album by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

. It was released in 1954 as a 10" album (Capitol H-528) and consisted of only eight songs, as each side of the record only allowed approximately fourteen minutes of music. In 2000 it was voted number 368 in Colin Larkin's '' All Time Top 1000 Albums''.

Background

The album was Sinatra's second for Capitol and the first to feature arrangements by Nelson Riddle (Riddle had merely conducted on '' Songs for Young Lovers''). As its title implies, the record concentrates on up-tempo swingers done with a light touch. Again, the songs were all standards -- "Just One of Those Things," "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams," "All of Me"—which the singer felt benefited from the new thematic setting, new arrangements, and his increasingly playful and textured vocal style. In 1955, the eight songs were combined with the eight songs from the 10" album '' Songs for Young Lovers'' on a new, 16 song, 12" LP (Capitol W-587) called ''Swing Easy!'', featuring the ''Swing Easy!'' cover but including a miniature inset of the ''Songs for Young Lovers'' cover. In 1960, the 1954, 8 song, 10" album was re-released as a 12 song, 12" LP (Capitol W-1429) with four additional songs added to expand the running time: "Lean Baby", "I Love You", "How Could You Do A Thing Like That To Me?", and "Why Should I Cry Over You?".

Original album track listing

Side one

#" Just One of Those Things" (

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

) #" I'm Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write Myself a Letter)" ( Fred E. Ahlert, Joe Young) #"

Sunday Sunday (Latin: ''dies solis'' meaning "day of the sun") is the day of the week between Saturday and Monday. Sunday is a Christian sabbath, day of rest in most Western countries and a part of the Workweek and weekend, weekend. In some Middle Ea ...

" ( Chester Conn, Benny Krueger, Ned Miller, Jule Styne) #" Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" ( Harry Barris, Ted Koehler, Billy Moll)

Side two

#" Taking a Chance on Love" (

Vernon Duke Vernon Duke ( 16 January 1969) was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter who also wrote under his birth name, Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for " Taking a Chance on Love," with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche (1940), "I ...

, Ted Fetter, John Latouche) #" Jeepers Creepers" ( Harry Warren,

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Wallichs Music Cit ...

) #" Get Happy" ( Ted Koehler,

Harold Arlen Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck; February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American composer of popular music, who composed over 500 songs, a number of which have become known worldwide. In addition to composing the songs for the 1939 film ' ...

) #" All of Me" ( Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons)

Expanded LP track listing

#" Jeepers Creepers" ( Harry Warren,

) #" Taking a Chance on Love" (

, Ted Fetter, John Latouche) #" Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" ( Harry Barris, Ted Koehler, Billy Moll) #"Lean Baby" ( Roy Alfred, Billy May) #"I Love You" ( Harry Archer, Harlan Thompson) #" I'm Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write Myself a Letter)" ( Fred E. Ahlert, Joe Young) #" Get Happy" ( Ted Koehler,

) #" All of Me" ( Seymour Simons, Gerald Marks) #"How Could You Do a Thing Like That to Me" ( Tyree Glenn, Allan Roberts) #"Why Should I Cry Over You?" ( Chester Conn, Nathan "Ned" Miller) #"Sunday" ( Chester Conn, Benny Krueger, Nathan "Ned" Miller, Jule Styne) #" Just One of Those Things" (

)

Certifications

Complete personnel

–

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

* Nelson Riddle – arranger, conductor Tracks 1, 2, 3, 4: 07-April-1954 (Wednesday) - Hollywood. Harry Edison (tpt); Tommy Pederson, Ray Sims (tbn): George Roberts (b-tbn); Skeets Herfurt, Mahlon Clark (alt); Babe Russin, Eddie Miller (ten/cit); Joe Koch (bar); Bill Miller (p); Allan Reuss (g); Joe Comfort (b); Alvin Stoller (d); Frank Flynn (vib); Nelson Riddle (arr/cond). Tracks 5, 6, 7, 8: 19-April-1954 (Monday) - Hollywood. Harry Edison (tpt); Tommy Pederson, Ray Sims (tbn); George Roberts (b-tbn): Skeets Herfurt, Abe Most (alt); Babe Russin, Eddie Miller (ten/cit); Joe Koch (bar); Bill Miller (p); Bob Bain (g); Joe Comfort (b); Alvin Stoller (d); Frank Flynn (vib); Nelson Riddle (arr/cond). Put Your Dreams Away: A Frank Sinatra Discography

References

{{Authority control Frank Sinatra albums Capitol Records albums 1954 albums Albums produced by Voyle Gilmore Albums arranged by Nelson Riddle Albums conducted by Nelson Riddle Albums recorded at Capitol Studios