Customer Reviews

Columbia Years: 1943-1952

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4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
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Frank Sinatra's solo career can easily be divided into four major periods, each covered by one or two definitive box sets: the Columbia Years, the Capitol years, and the Reprise years. Of the three, the Columbia recordings, his earliest solo recordings, always struck me as the least interesting period. As a result, this was the last of his "complete" box sets that I picked up. Until now, I had settled for the four-CD abreviated set, The Best of the Columbia Years. Being the shameless completist I am, however, I finally closed my eyes, gritted my teeth, and forked over the 200 bucks for this box set. Was it worth it? Absolutely!

The packaging of this set is wonderful, easily the surpassing that of the Concepts and Complete Reprise Studio Recordings sets. Since this box was released in the early '90s, we have the music packaged in 12 jewel cases (say what you will about today's extravagant packaging, the immortal jewel case is still the most practical packaging method) and is accompanied by a hardcover book which gives wonderfully detailed session information. This alone would make this box set a treasure chest for the Sinatra collector. It also boasts wonderfully remastered sound, not noticeably improved by subsequent late-90s remasterings of some of this material. The sound here is about as good as it gets. Now to the music itself....

I must stand by my prevoius opinion of Sinatra's Columbia recordings. They are definitely the most dated and least interesting of his career. That doesn't mean they're bad, though. The Voice is there. Like another teen idol who would rise to superstardom in the 1950s, Frank can take even the worst dreck (ie. "Mam'selle", "The Tennessee Newsboy") soar with his incredible singing. And this is where the main problem lies. Under the mismanagement of Columbia uberproducer Mitch Miller, Sinatra was subjected to some of the worse material written in the 1940s and early 1950s. And it's all hear in its bleeding eardrum glory. Of course, there are also many, many great songs with great performances. Two versions of the immortal "Nancy (with the Smiling Face)", the stunning patriotic recitation "The House I Live In", and the early swinger "Saturday Night (is the Loneliest Night of the Week)" just to name a few.

Other notable performances are a strong early recording of "Soliloquy" (re-recorded by Sinatra in 1963) and a surprisingly strong "The Birth of the Blues" from one of his last Columbia sessions.

Do not expect to hear the classic swinging Sinatra of the '50s and '60s in this collection. The vast majority of these recordings are standard 1940's-era big band balladry which serve to date this box set much more than other Sinatra collections. It's not until discs 11 and 12 where we start to hear what Sinatra will give the world during the Capitol years of the 1950s.

This is definitely NOT a set for someone just getting into Sinatra. Newcomers to his Columbia music will be better served by either the 4-CD Best of the Columbia Years or the new "remastered" (but doncha believe it) single-disc Essential Frank Sinatra (The Columbia Years).

Since Sinatra's death I have really grown to appreciate his music and started collecting everything I could..first the Capitol Concept albums(what a struggle trying to find "Close To You!"),then the Reprise 20 CD set,then the James,Dorsey sets,the V Discs,the Capitol Singles collection and the 4 disc "Best of the Columbia Years"I wasn't terribly familiar with a lot of the Columbia stuff and the more I listened to the set,the more I appeciated the music,,the Stordohl arrangements, the purity of the voice and the overall sound. I knew would have to bite the bullet and spring for the 12 cd Complete recordings. It's the best move I made.The packaging is superb and that book that accompanies the set is oustanding. The information about the recording sessions is invaluable. I have the 20 CD Reprise set and that book is totally inferior to the Columbia product. It sure would have been nice to have information on allthe recordings he made for Reprise.If you are a lover of popular music and Sinatra, I can't recommend this set too highly.Sure there are a few clunkers in there,notably the Mitch Miller stuff, but that voice overpowers the material.I m very happy I sprung for this handsome collection. If you are a fan, you'll have to have this. Sinatras singing and phrasing was never sweeter.

One of the few indulgences in life with no regrets later is buying this lush box set. Twelve CDs with all the studio recordings FS made with Columbia. Included are dozens of tracks not available since their original issue in the Forties. Each jewel case duplicates the original cover art and each disc is well over the 60 minute mark. With glorious remastered sound, this is the most honest and accurate way to discover what the bobbysaxers knew that no one else could figure out.

Frank's voice is strong, but tender, even high pitched. His deeper, more mature delivery was jst around the corner. On these recordings we find a young man with a lovely regard for love and a smooth, caressing voice that keeps singer and listener enchanted. Axel Stordahl's lush string orchestrations are the perfect complement to Frank's voice. Most of the songs are strong, but there are a few recordings on the last discs that reveal why Frank wisely left the label once Mitch Miller took over A&R.

Go ahead, spend the money, enjoy life. Frank did.

OK...better late than never. I really was not much of a Sinatra fan perhaps due to the rather arrogant persona I had witnessed when he was on talk shows during my teenaged years. Then I discoverd some reissues of his "concept" albums for Capitol Records and changed my mind. A few years ago I bought the Rhino set of Sinatra's Hollywood soundtracks- love it. After buying a few re-releases of Columbia CDs I realized that I was gong to have to buy the whole shebang. And a few days ago I finally purchased it. I don't know what else to say but wow, what a voice. Now I understand what all the fuss was about. No need to go over all the songs here as they are listed. And yes, there are a few awful recordings here thanks to Mitch Miller who also tortured Rosemary Clooney with his crapola. But for the most part, this is an amazing collection of songs where the artists- the singer, arrangers, conductors, musicians, techies, and everyone else involved, were creating art. My set arrived last night and after doing some chores I just sat down and read the extensive notes on the recording dates as I listened to one of the sweetest voices imaginable. If you think you want this set and perhaps are thinking of buying the smaller 4 CD set as an audition then do yourself a favor: don't wait until it's too late. Buy it! It's truly stunning.

Sinatra hit his peak with Capitol Records from 1953-1960. Nothing done before for RCA and Columbia, nor after for Reprise ever came close. The recordings contained in this set don't begin to give a glimpse of what Sinatra was about to metamorphosize into in the 1950's until the last two records. These recordings are the work of a Big Band singer gone solo who had not quite cut the cord with his past or realized he had a lot to say and that, lo and behold, the public would listen. No art can be looked at in a vacuum or outside of it's historical context and within those parameters this was the best work Sinatra could do at the time, hobbled as he was in a transitional period between the big bands and solo standards singers.
As historical artifacts these recordings are quite important. As art, I believe, with some exceptions, they are less so. Should you buy this set?
If you are a fan of Sinatra then you owe it to yourself to own every recording ever made by him including some real (no pun intended) dogs like "Mama Will Bark" with swedish "actress" Dagmarr and a batch of Gospel recordings he made in his "down and out" period in the late 40's and early fifties. Buy this, in one form or another, because you need to understand the totality of a giant of an artist like Sinatra. But don't expect to love most of it.
You want love? Buy anything you can lay your hands on, legit or bootleg, recorded by Sinatra between 1953 and 1960.

285 songs here for almost exactly 45 dollars. That works out to less than 16 cents per song. Amazing. Another way to look at it -- this is 12 cds worth of music at a price of less than four dollars per disc.

Brief warning: if you are new to Sinatra, perhaps you might not want to start here. Having said that -- THIS IS GREAT MUSIC; the music that made Frank Sinatra famous. Yes, he would make even better music later, in the 1950s (which is the place for newcomers to start) but that would have been impossible if he had not made this music first. This collection is a bargain at twice this price, which is the minimum you would pay for the same music on factory discs in jewel cases and a collectible box on the world's largest auction web site (you know what I'm referring to).

The question is: do you want to get all Sinatra's earliest recording here as an mp3 download? Or do you want the full 12 disc set for more than twice this price? Or do you want something smaller and more digestible?

If you really don't want to wade through 285 mp3 songs, then I suggest starting with Portrait Of Sinatra: Columbia Classics, a two disc set which really does hit the high points of this important and formative phase of Sinatra's career. It is a five star set, which can be had used for less than 20 dollars (and is also available at many public libraries). For many people that is all they will ever want from this phase of Sinatra's career. If you want it all, however, this is a fabulous way to get it cheap. You can make your own discs for pennies and then sequence the discs any way you want.

You make the choice, but anyone who loves Sinatra's music shouldn't ignore this era. It is mellower and less emotional than his later material. That's not a bad thing. Yes, it does take a little adjustment to your ears because recording techniques and musical tastes have changed so much since this material was recorded 60 some odd years ago, and recording technology even more so. Still, eventually devoted Sinatra fans end up loving this music.

This is a marvelous compilation of Sinatra's early work. It gives the listener a chance to see how Sinatra's style of singing began and evolved during a very influential time in his career and in popular music. Unlike many boxed recording sets that are merely collections of already existing material, this set gives new generations of listeners a chance to hear a great deal of his work that has not been available for decades; many selections have not been heard since the 78rpm era. Listening to this music digitally remastered is a treat to the listener and allows you to spend hours enjoying music that has stood the test of time.

This is it! The very best music made this century. Sinatra at his peak. He sings superbly in this collection. His voice was at his absolute best! Listen to 1945's "I Fall in Love Too Easily", there has NEVER been a more hearfelt and touching ballad. All the well known standards are there of course, but you will fine many obscure gems too! Listen to "Every Man Should Marry", "Somewhere in the Night", "You'll Know When It Happens", "The Girl That I Marry", "Laura", for instance. These are every bit as good as the better known ballads and most of them only available here in this collection. So save up your pennies and get this 12 CD box set, it is the finest musical investment you'll ever make.

this is the second phase of frank sinatra's career. after his intial success as a vocalist with tommy dorsey,(the entire output of that collaboration is available in another box set from rca), sinatra began his solo career with columbia records. this box set contains his complete recordings for that label, and maybe a lot more than you need. sinatra's greatest era, his capitol years, were still ahead of him,and he also did many recordings for reprise(also available in a box set) which are superior to the columbia material. there is some great stuff in this set and many of his signature songs are here, but there are several less complete collections available. but if you have to have it all then you will have to have this and you don't need to be reading my review!

I'm 63 years old and have been listening to The Chairman Of The
Board since I was six years old. This marvelous boxed set is
absolutely incredible!! I should never have waited this long to
purchase this set and I'm extremely fortunate to have found it
at AMAZON.COM. If you truly love Frank Sinatra, get this box
before it's too late. This is vintage early Sinatra that
preceded his flagship years at Capitol and Reprise. What a joy
to now own all of his commercially released studio recordings.
This beautiful boxed set was my last "missing link!" BUY IT!!!