Sinatra Tribute Satisfies by Staying True to the Music

When composer-arranger-bassist Jack Prather put together the Great American Music Company’s tribute to Frank Sinatra, he took a page from Sinatra’s book and did it his way.

In Prather’s case, that meant leaving out “My Way” and some of Sinatra’s other novelty hits and concentrating on the composers, arrangers and lyricists who supplied the raw material that Sinatra spun into musical gold.

The program, presented Monday at DeMario’s in Dana Point and to be repeated Monday, also largely ignored the tabloid side of the singer’s life. Here, the focus was on his music.

Sinatra’s voice, the very thing that set him apart, framed the 90-minute program, thanks to brief recorded passages of Ol’ Blue Eyes in his prime crooning “All or Nothing at All.”

The show, wisely, was ordered chronologically, beginning when a young Frank, after seeing a performance by Bing Crosby, announces that someday he’ll be up on the bandstand like Bing. From there it progressed through his history of hits, record companies and musical associations, with songs and more songs serving as touchstones.

Singers Stephanie Haynes and Dewey Erney also wisely did things their way. Both singers have well-established styles and they stuck with them rather than trying to mimic Sinatra’s phrasing and dynamics.

Erney’s cool and patient phrasing came closest to Sinatra’s style, while Haynes’ clean and cogent tones were as distinguished as her subject’s.

Prather’s narrative--informative, witty and filled with characters that ranged from Benny Goodman and Mitch Miller to Phil Silvers and Toots Shore--followed Sinatra through the bands of Harry James and Tommy Dorsey to his contract with Columbia Records and, later, Capitol.

The greatest emphasis was on those who wrote the music Sinatra sang: Sammy Cahn and Jules Styne in the ‘40s; Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen in the ‘50s. Arrangers also figured into the tale, especially Nelson Riddle.

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The performance ultimately became a tribute to the great American songbook as the ensemble performed “The Song Is You,” “World on a String,” “Nancy With the Laughing Face” and “One for My Baby,” which featured Dick Shreve’s bluesy piano stylings. There were less familiar numbers as well, notably Matt Dennis’ “Violets for Your Furs.”

The program, like Sinatra’s voice, seemed to run out of steam when it reached the ‘60s and focused more on Sinatra forming his own record company (Reprise) and the kind of material he began pursuing then.

While this wasn’t the most polished of the company’s performances, it still was a satisfying mix of music and musical history for Sinatra fans, or anyone wishing to learn more about the greatest pop singer of his time.

* The Great American Music Company repeats “The Music of Frank Sinatra” on Monday, at DeMario’s, 17 Monarch Bay Plaza, Dana Point. 7 p.m. $12 cover, $10 minimum. (714) 240-9436.