Softly, as I Leave You (album)

Infobox Album | Name = Softly, As I Leave You
Type = Album
Artist = Frank Sinatra


Released = 1964
Recorded = August 27, 1962–October 3, 1964, Los Angeles
Genre = Classic pop
Length = 33:33
Label = Reprise Records
Producer =
Reviews =
* Allmusic rating|3|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:cmeb97w7krjt link]
Last album = "12 Songs of Christmas"
(1964)
This album = "Softly, As I Leave You"
(1964)
Next album = ""
(1965)

"Softly, As I Leave You" is a 1964 album by Frank Sinatra.

This album was Sinatra's first tentative attempt to come to terms with Rock & Roll.

Arranged by Ernie Freeman, "Softly, As I Leave You," "Then Suddenly Love," and "Available" are definitely stabs at incorporating rock & roll into Sinatra's middle-of-the-road pop, featuring drum kits, backing vocals, and keyboards.

The rest of the album is pieced together from leftovers from various early-'60s sessions, from many different arrangers and conductors, giving the album a rather uneven finish.

The title track was the first of at least four attempts to mimic the chart success of Dean Martin's #1 hit "Everybody Loves Somebody", using a driving beat, heavy strings and choral tracks. Sinatra, arranger Ernie Freeman and producer Jimmy Bowen would incorporate the same sound to songs like "When Somebody Loves You", "Tell Her You Love Her(Each Day)" and "Somewhere In Your Heart" without major chart success.

Track listing

#"Emily" (Johnny Mandel, Johnny Mercer) – 2:58
#"Here's to the Losers" (Robert Wells, Jack Segal) – 3:05
#"Dear Heart" (Jay Livingston, Ray Evans, Henry Mancini) – 2:43
#"Come Blow Your Horn" (Sammy Cahn, Jimmy Van Heusen) – 3:07
#"Love Isn't Just for the Young" (Bernard Knee) – 2:57
#"I Can't Believe I'm Losing You" (Don Costa, Phil Zeller) – 2:43
#"Pass Me By" (Cy Coleman, Carolyn Leigh) – 2:25
#"Softly, As I Leave You" (Hal Shaper, Antonio DeVito, Giorgio Calabrese) – 2:50
#"Then Suddenly Love" (Ray Alfred, Paul Vance) – 2:15
#"Available" (Sammy Cahn, Ned Wynn, L.B. Marks) – 2:47
#"Talk to Me Baby" (Robert E. Dolan, Mercer) – 3:00
#"The Look of Love" (Cahn, Van Heusen) – 2:43

Personnel

* Frank Sinatra - Vocals
* Neal Hefti - Conductor
* Nelson Riddle - Arranger, Conductor
* Marty Paich - Arranger, Conductor
* Ernie Freeman - Arranger, Conductor
* Billy May - Arranger