UMG | Akateeminen Kirjakauppa

Alan & Marilyn Bergman, winners of two Academy Awards and members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, were husband and wife, and their professional collaboration produced memorable lyrics cherished by superstars from Bing Crosby, Tony Bennett and Johnny Mathis, to Sting, Barbra Streisand, and Frank Sinatra.

This expanded CD highlights their great songs as sung by Sinatra. “His readings were always on the money and more than what we heard in our minds,” the Bergman’s write in the liner notes. “He sang to us. He spoke to us. And we listened.” Frank Sinatra Sings Alan & Marilyn Bergman is a newly curated collection, including Sinatra’s timeless performance of “Nice ‘n’ Easy,” which the Bergman’s coauthored with Lew Spence and arranged by Nelson Riddle. There are four more songs written with Spence and arranged by Riddle, including the swinging nursery rhyme “Ol’ MacDonald” and the deeply affecting “Love Looks So Well On You,” and “Sleep Warm,” both of which were originally available only as a single release. The Bergman’s also collaborated frequently with Michel Legrand, and the album includes their songs “What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?,” “The Summer Knows,” “Summer Me, Winter Me” and the Oscarnominated “How Do You Keep the Music Playing?” Rounding out the collection is “”L.A. Is My Lady,” a latterday Sinatra classic the Bergman’s wrote with Quincy Jones.

The CD release adds three rare bonus tracks, with two of them unreleased: “Leave It All To Me,” coauthored with Paul Anka, from a 1988 session long sought after by fans, and an earlier version of “How Do You Keep the Music Playing?” from 1983. Also included is the rare holiday song, “Christmas Memories.”