SINGS SONGS FOR ONLY THE LONELY   -  Frank Sinatra

YEAR:  1958
LABEL:  Capitol
TRACK LISTING:  Only the Lonely,  Angel Eyes,  What's New?,  It's A Lonesome Old Town,  Willow Weep For Me,  Goodbye,  Blues In the Night,  Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry,  Ebb Tide,  Spring Is Here,  Gone With the Wind,  One For My Baby (And One More For the Road)
BONUS TRACKS:  Sleep Warm,  Where or When
IMPRESSIONS:  I've said previously the only Frank Sinatra I'm really interested is the suicidal one; the one that sounds like he's about to slash his wrists.  This album, perhaps more than any other, fulfills that function.  In the mid 1970s, according to John Rockwell's biography "SINATRA: AN AMERICAN CLASSIC", Sinatra unhesitating called ONLY THE LONELY his all-time favourite of all his albums.  This, along with the earlier masterpieces "IN THE WEE SMALL HOURS" and "WHERE ARE YOU?", is the perfect "late night" album.  Sinatra's singing is far from maudlin or wallowing but instead sounds easy and unforced.  I don't think he was in the mood to be melodramatic when he recorded this album since it was made just after Sinatra's divorce from Ava Gardner was finalized.  The emotions and delivery we hear from the singer are all too real.  Also, arranger Nelson Riddle's mother and daughter had both just died.  "If I can attach events like that to music," Riddle proclaimed, "perhaps ONLY THE LONELY was the result." 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Only the Lonely,  Angel Eyes,  What's New?,  It's A Lonesome Old Town,  Willow Weep For Me,  Goodbye,  Ebb Tide,  Spring Is Here,  Gone With the Wind,  One For My Baby (And One More For the Road),  Sleep Warm,  Where or When
GUEST ARTISTS:  Nelson Riddle (arranger),  Felix Slatkin (conductor)
FACT SHEET:  SINGS FOR ONLY THE LONELY is Frank Sinatra's tenth album for Capitol Records.  Originally Gordon Jenkins (producer of the previous magnificent WHERE ARE YOU? album) was intending to produce this album but he was unavailable so Sinatra returned to his previous Capitol Records producer Nelson Riddle (who also did arrangements).  Three tracks were recorded for this session with Riddle conducting but they were not used; after Riddle went on tour with Nat King Cole, Felix Slatkin conducted the songs ONLY THE LONELY.  An aborted attempt of "Lush Life" was attempted by Sinatra for this session; it exists only as a bootleg and the singer would never officially record the song.  The cover painting of Sinatra as a Pagliacci-like clown is by Nicholas Volpe and won a Grammy for "Best Album Cover" and the album itself was nominated for "Best Album" at the first Grammy Awards.