Frank Sinatra
"MY WAY"
For those of you who may not know "My Way" was written by French Songwriters Claude Francosi and Jacques Revaux. The English Lyrics that Sinatra sings, were written 1967 by Canadian singer / songwriter Paul Anka. Anka heard the song called Comme d Habitude (as Usual), sung by Claude Francois while on vacation in the South of France, and liked it as a potential song. Paul Anka flew to Paris to meet with the song writers, where he obtained adaption, recording, and publishing rights for a mere $1 ...
Some time Anka was in Florida having lunch with Sinatra at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach where Sinatra was filing Tony Rome. The story goes Frank was hinging out with some Mobsters, when Anka proposed the song Sinatra. Sinatra told Anka, "I'm quitting the Business. I'm Sick of It. I'm getting the Hell Out."
Anka rewrote the song one night in New York. Anka recalls that he sat down with his IBM typewriter at 1 O'Clock in the morning. and said to himself, "If Frank were ,writing this song, what would he say?" Anka finished the song by 5 o'clock in the morning. He called up Frank who was at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. Paul told Frank, "I've got something special for you."
Sinatra recorded My Way on December 20, 1968 at Western Recorders Studios in Los Angeles just a few hours before performing a concert at The Sands Hotel Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Frank Sinatra's daughter Tina says that even though My Way became Sinatra's signature song, he hated it, Tina said "He didn't like it. The song stuck and he couldn't get it off his shoe. He always thought the song was self-serving and self-indulgent."
Paul Aka says that his record producer was bad at Paul that he gave it to Sinatra, and didn't record it himself, but Anka said he could never sing it. It was for Frank. Sinatra's recording of My Way has sold 10s of Millions of copies over the year, and is not only a large part of Sinatra's History (like it or not), American history and part of 100s of millions of Americans and people all over the World who love the song and the memories it holds for them.
Basta !
Daniel Bellino Zwicke
Frank Sinatra at Western Recorders Studios
6000 Sunset Blvd
LOS ANGELES , CALIFORNIA
1960s Recording Session
SINATRA'S FAVORITE DISHES
FRANK SINATRA
LIVE at MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
NEW YORK
"The MAIN EVENT"
Frank Sinatra came out of retirement to do this Historical Concert which was broadcast live on ABC, with Howard Cossell doing a great introduction for the Concert and Mr. Francis Albert Sinatra.
I watched the Concert on my little Emerson Black & White TV live in my bedroom on Hoboken Road, Carlstadt , New Jersey with my brother Jimmy. Earlier in the day one of our teachers at Becton Regional High School in East Rutherford NJ was telling us at lunch in the school cafeteria that he (Mr. Taranto) was going to the Sinatra Concert at MSG that night. Well, I didn't make it to that concert. but in the years following this historical concert, I myself would see the Great Frank Sinatra oerform live in 7 wonderful concerts at Radio City Music Hall, Carnegie Hall, Brenden Byrne Arena, and Madison Square Garden as well.
I had a wonderful time with my brother Jimmy watching "The Main Event" Sinatra Concert live on television that night. It was a great performance, with Frank singing New York New York for the Finale, but not before singing My Way, where Frank announced before singing it, "We'll now do the National Anthem but you needed rise."
The MAIN EVENT FRANK SINATRA in CONCERT
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
OVERTURE
HOWARD COSSELL