Customer Reviews

Ring a Ding Ding

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A major reason Sinatra peeled away from Capitol Records in 1961 to form his new Reprise label was to work with a variety of arrangers with innovative styles. "Ring-a-Ding-Ding" was the maiden album he recorded for his new enterprise, and what a debut it was! Johnny Mandel's jazz-infused arrangements proved a perfect foil for Sinatra, who at this point was still at his peak of vocal abilities. As was their custom for a number of Sinatra's albums over these years, Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn composed the title track for their long-time buddy, and it certainly sets the tone for this varied and very swinging program. Old standards such as Irving Berlin's "Be Careful, It's My Heart" and "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" are revitalized with Mandel's winning charts, while a pair of Cole Porter gems, "In the Still of the Night" and "Easy to Love" find Sinatra and Mandel in full sympathy, producing results that are at once swinging and sophisticated. The light-heartedness continues with the witty "Coffee Song" and intoxicating readings of Harold Arlen's "Let's Fall in Love" and the Kern/Fields classic "A Fine Romance." During the same session, they also recorded an excellent rendition of "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart," which was cut from the final album release, since it was a thirteenth and "odd man out" track. Thankfully, it survived the intervening years and was included in several of Sinatra's Reprise retrospective collections. It is unfortunate Sinatra collaborated with Mandel for just this single occasion. They display real rapport here, and produced one of Sinatra's best albums of his Reprise era...actually, one of his best...period...

This record launched Frank's Reprise years and what a debut! Five stars isn't sufficient for an album that contains some of the great vocal tracks ever sung by Sinatra. This is an album where you can put it on, hit play and never fast forward, all the songs are eminently Sinatraesque and exuberant. "The Coffee Song" is fantastic, "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" is another sleeper but as catchy as anything Sinatra ever sang. The highlight of this album is undoubtedly the title track, "Ring a Ding Ding," it's a never-ending joy to listen to this song, it will always make you happy.

If you love Sinatra, you will already have had this on vinyl and cassette (maybe even eight track). If you're new to Frank, don't hesitate one moment: grab it and listen to it for the rest of your life.

Ring-a-Ding Ding! is yet another fine album from The Chairman Of The Board, Mr. Frank Sinatra. This is, as you may already know, Frank's first record for his own label called Reprise Records; and he certainly is in excellent form throughout! The quality of the sound is excellent and the artwork is great! This is sure to be a great CD for any Frank Sinatra fan.

The album begins with the title song, "Ring-A-Ding-Ding." Frank sounds absolutely upbeat and even joyous on this tune; and he delivers this tune with sensitivity and lots of positive energy at once! The musical arrangement uses that big band `60s style that works so well for numbers like this one; and I'm sure you're going to love this terrific tune. "Let's Fall In Love" features Frank squarely in the spotlight--and that's completely for our benefit! Frank sings this very well with a lot of happiness in his voice; his excellent diction enhances his performance and the natural beauty of this ballad as well. "Be Careful, It's My Heart" shines brighter thank both silver and gold together as Frank sings this out with panache; I'm very impressed--what a strong beginning for Frank on his own record label!!!

"A Foggy Day" sounds fresh and new when Frank delivers this so sensitively; and the melody is very pretty and rather upbeat again! Listen also for "In The Still Of The Night;" "In The Still Of The Night" has Frank belting this one straight out of the ballpark and that's all right by me! This tune was made for Frank to sing it and the big band arrangement uses the brass and the percussion very well.

"When I Take My Sugar To Tea" gets a sublime rendition from The Chairman; and there's a wonderful tune called "Let's Face The Music & Dance" which, I believe, was first sung by Fred Astaire in an old Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers musical. "Let's Face The Music & Dance" has a fine arrangement and I'm sure Fred Astaire must have been proud of Frank's delivery of this classic pop number! Similarly, "You'd Be So Easy To Love" has Frank swinging brightly as he sings this with all the style and grace of the ultimate champ that he always was! The album also ends very strong with Frank Sinatra performing the wonderful ballad "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm." Many artists have performed this number but when Frank sings it his rendition easily becomes your favorite without a doubt.

Frank Sinatra was one of the greatest male vocalists of all time; and albums like this one prove it. This is a must have for Frank's fans; and this is also a wonderful starter CD for newcomers to Frank's artistry. People who enjoy the "oldies" and classic pop vocals will want this for their collections, too.

This, along with the "Sinatra's Swingin' Session" album, are in my opinion, proabably the best albums Frank ever did in the big band jazz idiom. Johnny Mandel wrote most of the arrangements on this album, and they are a bit more jazz-oriented than the Nelson Riddle charts from the 5 or so years before. This band and this record really swing. On one cut, "Let's Fall in Love", Sinatra pauses after the intro for a full two bars before he (and the band) pick it up again and jump into a great piano-backed arrangement that is really "in the pocket". It's the greatest use of dead space I can think of, and one of my favorite Sinatra moments of all time. The album is just full of great moments like this, very syncopated and finger-snapping. The songs here are not all standards, but that doesn't make the music any less enjoyable or interesting. The arrangements, great jazz intrumental performances, Sinatra's voice, and his phrasing make this whole album such a fun ride. It's hard to imagine anyone not enjoying this album, so rest assured it's worth twice the price of the CD.

From the blaring horns at the beginning of the title track, it is quite evident this is one happenin', exciting release from the Chairman of the Board. Still in peak form from his Capitol years, this first release on his own Reprise label is a must have CD. Crank up the volume for this one, baby, because it is scorching! Johnny Mandel's arrangements create a wall of sound that hits like a brick. Try not singing along with "A Foggy Day," "In the Still of the Night," "The Coffee Song" or really any of these songs. Each is fabulous. The only gripe I have is the length of the CD, which clocks in at barely half an hour. I realize this was standard for the time and we have grown accustomed to 60-70 minute compilations, though we often expect more for $12. Nonetheless, even at a dollar per song, this is one of the best investments for entertainment you can make.

Tired of listening to "children's music" on long family drives? You know what sappy dreck I mean. This is our official family traveling CD. Courtesy of Messrs. Sinatra and Mandel, you can engage in fun family sing-a-longs while teaching your kids how to be cool. My 5 year old and 18 month old have left Raffi at the last rest stop, and love our new hitchiker, Ol' Blue Eyes. Now, if only I can teach them to make a perfect Rob Roy...

SiriuslySinatra satellite radio ("Good Music has a Home") just today introduced some of us die-hard Sinatra fans (I have more than 70 of his CDs) to the only track on this album we'd not heard before: Frank's abortive attempt at "HAVE YOU MET MISS JONES?"

Just as an immediate aside if I may, and speaking as a life-long worshipper of Richard Rodgers' music, I would say "Miss Jones" is the weakest 'famous' melody written by my favorite melodist -- mated as it is `after-the-fact' to Larry Hart's least appealing, most plodding lyric. [The song is from a deservedly long-forgotten (1937) Broadway show no one ever heard of, called "I'd Rather Be Right." (See - you never heard of it, either right?)]

So. On the evening of December 19, 1960 for the very first album of his then-brand-new "Reprise" record label Sinatra attempted then discarded this `weak sister,' from Rodgers & Hart after not getting much past the lame opening verse:

It happened - I felt it happen
I was awake - I wasn't blind.
I didn't think - I felt it happen
Now I believe in matter over mind
And now you see we mustn't wait
The nearest moment that we marry is too late!"

[refrain]

"Have you met Miss Jones?" someone said, as we shook hands. She was just Miss Jones to me Then I said, "Miss Jones, you're a girl who understands, I'm a man who must be free . . . Now I've met Miss Jones, and we'll keep on meeting till we die, Miss Jones and I.

----

Singers stayed away in droves from this song -- no one famous was associated with it, until Sinatra made his first earnest attempt in the 1940s. And so, on a December night 20 years later, `The Voice' can't get beyond a couple of 'dry' run-throughs of the opening verse. Seemingly alone among the musicians present, Sinatra had spotted something wrong in the harmonies of the arrangement by Johnny Mandel (still today the `dean' of living arrangers, now in his 86th year).

Seems Mandel's arrangement -- with its lovely, modern string harmonies -- took liberties with the original melody (as Frank recalled singing it, to a Sy Oliver arrangement with the Tommy Dorsey band). The resulting `session patter' (heard here for the first time in 50 years) makes for fascinating listening, not least for what it tells us about Sinatra's innate and superior musicality!

[Just as an aside, has something like this ever happened to you? You're in church and attempting to harmonize with the familiar melody of an old hymn, and suddenly you realize you're `out-of-tune' - but only because the pianist or organist is playing the most rudimentary (original) chords, or the simplest `lead sheet' variations. But your attempts to harmonize are thwarted! You must stick to the original tune and the simplest possible harmony or risk sounding discordant! Something very similar is at work here.]

We hear Sinatra interrupt the first run-through, with a question to either the arranger or Sinatra's regular concertmaster, Felix Slatkin: "Have you got the right arrangement?" He gently advises the musicians to take another look at the sheet music, which doesn't match the original melody: "That's what it sounds like to me. Felix? The A-flats in bar 56 . . . you should set the two (consecutive, correct melodic notes) up, right away, in bar 15."

"Okay," says a voice from the control room (after laughter and tuning-up noises from musicians, oblivious to what Frank has just said). "109 -- take one." After reaching the words, "nearest moment that we marry is too late," Frank interrupts again:

"Wait! Hold it. You got some wrong notes in there. Or give me some notes to match the strings . . . in bar 13 - or 12, rather, -- take it four beats, slowly" (the orchestra plays the passage in `slow-motion' as the singer patiently demonstrates exactly what's wrong. Johnny Mandel (or whoever is at the piano) slows it right down to single notes, and sings what HE thinks Sinatra should be singing - but then, unconvincingly, gets lost himself. Before Sinatra says pleasantly,

"I don't care!" (and to the sound of sheet music being set aside:) "I don't think we should do that! [Next! Let's do] "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm."

Oh yes, and did I say the 2011 re-mastering, with its 'drier' (less reverberant) sound is simply splendid! Worth purchasing for that reason alone -- so much more beautiful than previous editions: Kudos to the studio engineers and the Sinatra family for making this happen. [Any chance of a new (and dry) "SINATRA & STRINGS" (my other favorite Reprise album) as the next project?]

Mark Blackburn
Winnipeg Manitoba Canada

I agree with most of the reviews on here but some of these people are way off base. This is one of his finest works and indeed should be on the top ten of anyone's FS collection. One of the bonus tracks on the later release, "Zing Went The Strings" was part of these sessions but Frank asked that it be destroyed. Thanks to some engineer he did not do so and it came back on the later release. Frank's voice and his timing are utterly flawless. I listen to this over and over. While I Remember Tommy was a great album, it does not hold a candle to this one.

This one is great for those of us who are in the mood for songs of a more happy nature. Ring-A-Ding Ding, Let's Fall In Love, A Foggy Day... ahh heck, they are all great songs and they have that wonderful Big Band Swing sound. I keep this one in my car so I can enjoy my Sinatra Cranked up high and it never brings me down!!! There is not one song on this cd that I'd delete, if I had the chance.

This is a great, jazzy album with Sinatra in superb vocal form. Don't believe the ALL MUSIC GUIDE TO JAZZ (book) review of 3 stars ( out of 5 ). This is definitely 5 star Sinatra. The previous three reviewers are really dead-on in their assessments. I particularly like Scott Porter's statement that "RING-A-DING-DING" is the Reprise era's equivalent to the Capitol release "SONGS FOR SWINGIN' LOVERS". I feel that "R.A.D.D." is one of the 5 best REPRISE recordings that Sinatra made ( along with SINATRA & STRINGS, FRANCIS ALBERT SINATRA & ANTONIO CARLOS JOBIM, SINATRA-BASIE and SEPTEMBER OF MY YEARS ). The only possible criticism I have about "R.A.D.D." is that the recorded sound is not as good as the Capitol era sound. This is, however, a common problem with many of the Reprise era recordings. Mind you, the sound is in no way an impediment to enjoying "R.A.D.D." and, thankfully, the ongoing 20-BIT remastering program by REPRISE ( & CAPITOL ) is doing a lot to improve the sound quality of REPRISE era recordings ( check out SWING ALONG WITH ME for a great example ).