Dear Editor:

Here we are some thirteen years since the passing of Frank Sinatra on May 14, 1998. His music endures through performances that can be seen and heard on DVDs, TV and CDs. The First time I saw Frank was in the early 1940's at the NY Paramount and the movie was “Our Hearts Were Young and Gay.” He was the lead vocalist with Jo Stafford and the Pied Pipers in the Tommy Dorsey orchestra. A couple of standout tunes featuring Frank were “Oh, Look At Me Now” and “Everything Happens To Me” complete with a garish green spotlight to highlight an emaciated-looking Sinatra that was part of his boyish persona. However, there was no denying he had that 'certain something' in his voice that appealed to his male fans as well as the thousands of Bobby-Soxers who came to sit through five or six shows a day! His music lives on despite the attempt by 'American Idol' to honor Frank last year but wound up a dismal failure. Alas, there was no single performer who came close to giving a perfo rmance that would do justice to any of the songs associated with Sinatra. So it falls on veteran singers Tony Bennett, Michael Buble, Harry Prime, Harry Connick, Peggy King, Diana Krall, Jane Monheit, Jill Corey, Billy Jon Coogan and include Hannah Flanagan, the charming wife of the late bandleader Ralph Flanagan, conductor/composer George Roumanis plus shows on Sirius-XM satellite radio et al, to carry on the legend of Old Blue Eyes' music. I fervently hope the younger generation will produce some talented singers who have studied the music of Frank Sinatra and in turn will honor the gift and pick up on the the classic pop music that was given to all of us fans around the globe as we take a moment to remember the legend destined to live on forever.

There is a behind the scenes video featuring Sinatra singing 'Body and Soul' with the orchestra conducted by Frank, Jr. arranged by Torrie Zito (John Lennon's 'Imagine'). It combines Sinatra's vocal of 1984 with the studio orchestra of 2007 and it's narrated by Frank, Jr. I hope the Sinatra family will see fit to include it in a future Sinatra DVD. Well worth your attention.

Herb Stark