Sinatra’s Eight Great Ways

Usually the great ones die young. But Frank Sinatra seems bound and determined to take it all the way.

Sinatra turns 80 on Tuesday. Of course everybody is trying to cash in. All three of the labels he recorded for - Columbia, Capitol, Reprise - have new Sinatra collections out. An upcoming TV tribute (9 p.m. Thursday on ABC) features other singers, including the ever-present Hootie and the Blowfish, doing their Sinatra favorites.

So for those too young to remember and whoever else needs reminding, here are eight reasons (one for each decade of his life) why Sinatra matters.

1. He wears a song like no one else

Before Sinatra, most pop singers played it completely straight. They sang songs pretty much as they were written, sticking to the tempo, holding tight to the melody.

But Sinatro molds words and lines like Play-Doh. He waits until the last possible moment and rushes through a line breathlessly. He lingers on a word and pulls it until it aches.

These days we expect that sort of phrasing. But 50 years ago, nobody - at least nobody in the mainstream - had even thought about it.

2. He risked his career for good songs

Sinatra was a huge star for Columbia Records in the ‘40s. But when pop music went through a sickly-sweet phase in the early ‘50s - “How Much Is That Doggie In the Window” was a typical hit - Columbia execs pressured Sinatra to ride the wave. He briefly caved in - even recording a song called “Mama Will Bark” - but eventually he refused.

Columbia dropped him and Sinatra, almost 40, nearly washed out. But Capitol Records took a chance that the fads would fade and signed Sinatra in 1953. He proceeded to make some of the finest records in pop history.

3. He invented the concept album

In the early ‘50s, as long-playing albums slowly became the most popular way to present music, Sinatra pushed to make records that captured a single theme or mood.

His string of ‘50s albums for Capitol - in general, his best work - included a dozen or so concept albums. In fact, if you want to own just one or two Sinatra records, start with two that fit like the bookends of love: “Only the Lonely” and “Songs for Swingin’ Lovers.”

4. He proved that you don’t have to be a saint to make great music

Of course these days it’s a given that the quality of the art doesn’t always match the quality of the person - the exhibit table is stacked with everyone from Chuck Berry to Courtney Love.

But from hanging out with mobsters to eating breakfast off some showgirl’s belly, Sinatra set the standard. He was one of the first to force people to sort out the problem: Is it OK to enjoy the art even if the artist is a jerk?

5. He shares the credit

In concert, before every song, Sinatra always tells you who wrote it, who arranged it - and why he thinks it’s great. Few other singers give so much credit to the people who created the songs.

6. He perfected the saloon song

Even if you’re a teetotaler, you know the feeling. Somehow love has slipped away again. You’re alone in a crowd. You know you have to wallow in the pain to get rid of it.

So you play “Angel Eyes.” Or “Someone To Watch Over Me.” Or what may be Sinatra’s single finest song, “One For My Baby (and One More For the Road).” Nobody’s songs go better with whiskey. Or with melancholy.

7. He created the record company that signed Jimi Hendrix

Sinatra’s Reprise label, which he created in 1961, started out as a way for him to keep creative control; later, after Warner Bros. bought a majority share, it became home to a huge variety of music, from the Electric Prunes to Fleetwood Mac. The label is still around, signing bands such as Green Day.

8. Finally: He’s still around

Right now Sinatra is “retired” (for about the fifth time); for years now, his concerts have been sad to watch, full of forgotten lyrics and notes he can’t reach. At $50 or $100 a ticket, it’s hard to justify.

But somehow it’s exciting, the idea of the old man knowing what he can’t do anymore, but going out there anyway. Maybe it’s ego, and maybe it’s just the money. Maybe he laughs at all the suckers who come out.

Maybe, even at 80, the chance to sing a great song still gets him off.

My guess is, at least one more time, Ol’ Blue Eyes will be back.