Frank Sinatra “In The Wee Small Hours” 70th Anniversary Tone Poet Vinyl reissue

Released Nov 14

Talk about an “elusive disc”, Sinatra’s 1955 masterpiece about lost love and heartbreak In The Wee Small Hours is almost impossible to find on the used market in a near-mint Scranton mono pressing. I must have purchased three or four advertised near mint only to be disappointed by records disfigured by excessive wear.

So, great news from Tone Poet, Joe Harley’s amazing series of jazz reissues, they are beginning what hopefully will be a series of Sinatra releases.

As usual with Tone Poet releases, all the audiophile stars are aligned. “Mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology Inc. (RTI), and comes packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket featuring session photos by William Claxton and Ken Veeder, as well as an essay by Rita Kirwan.”

Interestingly, Capitol produced two master tapes, with one put aside. The unused tape was discovered and this was the tape used for the reissue. Fresh!

The album was a special one for Sinatra. The song choices represented what was basically the first concept album—a cohesive, emotionally unified artistic statement rather than a mere compilation of singles. Sinatra was still recovering from his breakup with wife Ava Gardner. In fact, many at the time called In The Wee Small Hours “The Ava Album”. Yet, at the same time Sinatra was motivated by his motion picture success in From Here To Eternity (Oscar and Golden Globe awards), success that also jumped started his singing career after the bobby soxers from the ‘40s and early ‘50s had dumped him.

Helping to capture the emotional pain Sinatra was experiencing from his break up with Ava Gardner, was his master at arms, arranger Nelson Riddle. Along with Sinatra’s famous interpretations, Riddles arrangements perfectly capture the essence of Sinatra’s doleful mood—lush yet restrained, often built around muted horns, brushed drums, and slow tempos.

The time away from the recording studio and his heartbreak had only served to deepen his voice, his interpretive qualities, breath control and intonation. As such, many Sinatra scholars, including our own dearly missed Harry Currie (Harry won the maximum prize on the game show The $128,000 Question with the subject of Sinatra), consider In The Wee Small Hours neck and neck with Frank Sinatra Sings For Only The Only, an album in many ways similar, as the best of Sinatra. I agree.

The Tone Poet reissue is another Harley home run. The glorious cover art is glossy on a perfect Stoughton tip on gatefold jacket. Typical is the interesting session photography. The record arrived direct from Blue Note flat, silent and with labels centred and spindle holes sized correctly

I played the mono pressing on my mono set up (Pure Fidelity Harmony Mk II Turntable, Origin Live Enterprise MK4 Tonearm, IKEDA Sound Labs 9mono MC Phono Cartridge, and on the first mono curve of my Phasemation EA-350 Phono Amplifier with mono switch). This was a magical presentation.

Frank’s in the room. You’ll feel his emotional depth and love his personal interpretations. He’s placed dead centre with Riddle’s great musicians spread out just behind him. It’s mono, but it’s lush and feels like rich stereo.

From the opening bars of the first track, you know you are in the company of masters. Riddle’s arrangements are perfection—listen to the violins on In The Wee Small Hours and the jaunty winds on Mood Indigo, and you never hear such vibrant violin pizzicato on a Scranton original. Also, the brass chorale blend and Frank’s deep baritone at the start of Deep In A Dream are so musical as is Frank’s phrasing throughout.

So no Frank swinging, but he’s so brilliant at these torch songs, you won’t miss the ring-a ding ding.

The entire recording is so alive and attune to every nuance from all the musicians. Another masterpiece of remastering by Kevin Gray.

I have not heard any of the plethora of vinyl reissues (DOL, Waxtime, and the highly regarded UMe from 2014) but I would posit fairly confidently this new Tone Poet is the top of the heap. It’s a wonderful addition to the Sinatra discography. Very highly recommended.

Side 1

1. In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning(Dave Mann-Bob Hilliard)

2. Mood Indigo (Duke Ellington-Irving Mills-Barney Bigard)

3. Glad to Be Unhappy (Richard Rodgers-Lorenz Hart)

4. I Get Along Without You Very Well(Hoagy Carmichael)

5. Deep in a Dream (Jimmy Van Heusen-Eddie DeLange)

6. I See Your Face Before Me (Arthur Schwartz-Howard Dietz)

7. Can’t We Be Friends? (Kay Swift-Paul James)

8. When Your Lover Has Gone (E.A. Swan)

Side 2

1. What Is This Thing Called Love? (Cole Porter )

2. Last Night When We Were Young(Harold Arlen-E.Y. Harburg)

3. I’ll Be Around (Alec Wilder)

4. Ill Wind (Harold Arlen-Ted Koehler)

5. It Never Entered My Mind (Richard Rodgers-Lorenz Hart)

6. Dancing on the Ceiling (Richard Rodgers-Lorenz Hart)

7. I’ll Never Be the Same (Matty Malneck-Frank Signorelli- Gus Kahn)

8. This Love of Mine (Sol Parker-Henry Sanicola-Frank Sinatra)