Frank Sinatra – In The Wee Small Hours of The Morning – 70 Years of a Masterpiece. Chapter 9 – Repertoire: “When Your Lover Has Gone”
“When Your Lover Has Gone”
(Einar Aaron Swan, 1931)
This song became very famous in 1931, with illustrious versions by Benny Goodman and Louis Armstrong. It was performed either as a melodramatic lament or a soft foxtrot meant for dancing with a tear running down one’s cheek. Its composer died prematurely at just 37 years old, due to a cerebral hemorrhage.
Frank Sinatra had recorded a first version in December 1944, with beautiful arrangements by Axel Stordahl. Those were the days when he stood at the peak of his fame and had within reach every pleasure he could desire. That early rendition is moving thanks to Sinatra’s prodigious interpretive abilities, but the version he created with Nelson Riddle for In the Wee Small Hours gives the piece a new identity—darker and more complex—because it stems from genuine pain.
The lyrics speak of the boundless emptiness left behind when a beloved woman departs, taking with her the meaning of all things. They eerily reflect the singer’s own emotions, as he flees each night from the telltale silence with music and parties. His voice naturally reveals its astonishing tonal richness, conveying an inconsolable sorrow while also a sense of acceptance that keeps the emotion from overflowing. The orchestration paints the desolate setting awaiting the singer when the laughter and liquor run dry, with passages that seem to echo the protagonist’s sighs.
“What good is the scheming, the planning and dreaming
That comes with each new love affair
The dreams that we cherish, so often might perish
And leaves you with castles in air
When you’re alone,
who cares for starlit skies
When you’re alone,
the magic moonlight dies
At break of dawn,
there is no sunrise
When your lover has gone
What lonely hours,
the evening shadows bring
What lonely hours,
with memories lingering
Like faded flowers,
life can’t mean anything
When your lover has gone.”
Article written by Mahnuel Muñoz (Al Mal Tiempo, Frank Sinatra) https://www.facebook.com/groups/120950148274703/
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