Frank’s Biggest Fans

as far as I can tell, right now anyway, are Mark Steyn and Bob Dylan. Steyn has been posting his take on Sinatra’s take on the Great American Songbook. Here is an overly long quotation I especially like:

Not all icons survive death: I think of Leonard Bernstein or Bob Fosse, both at their passing the most celebrated practitioners in their respective fields, or Bing Crosby, the biggest selling recording artist of all time at the time he left us, and these days little more than a guy who gets played on the holiday channels in the month before Christmas. Either because of inept stewardship of the legacy, or a reputation that depended on live presence to maintain the conceit, or a combination of both, even the most dominant pop culture celebrity can dwindle away to the point where a decade later on no-one can quite recall what all the fuss was about. With Frank Sinatra, the opposite seems to have happened. When the gravelly old bruiser of the global stadium tours finally expired in 1998, it made it easier for a younger generation to see the man in his prime: the best singer of the best songs by the best writers in the best arrangements. Just about everything short of his morning mouthwash gargles has been excavated, digitally remastered and released on CD.

Well said, as usual. Frank’s other big fan at present is Bob Dylan, who recently recorded an entire album of songs sung earlier by Sinatra. NPR has included a link to Stay With Me to accompany the question, Diamond in the Rough or just Rough? I say Diamond, but then I would. Steyn—again, as far as I can tell—loathes Dylan, and I’m looking forward to hearing what he has to say.

Looking forward to whatever anybody else has to say as well.