Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Frank Sinatra Available Now
We had two mono pressings, one on the first label, one on the second, and both were unacceptable, especially the reissue.
Side one of the early label pressing was big and tubey but the vocals were gritty. Side two was hot, crude and midrangy.
Which raises the question: what is the general sound of the mono pressing on the early label?
Answer: it has no sound, or more accurately, it has two very different sounds, and if we had ten of them we could probably say it has a lot more sounds than the ones we described. Our advice:Beware of small sample sizes, especially sample sizes of two.
The stereo pressings we listed recently had superb sound. The monos, however, just sounded like old records, and not very good ones at that. The typical record collection is full of them.
Only an old school audio system can hide the faults of a pressing such as this one. The world is full of those too, even though they might comprise all the latest and most expensive components.
The mono pressings are hopeless on today’s modern stereos, and for that reason we say stick with stereo. For other albums that don’t sound good in mono, click here.
If you see this album in mono at a garage sale, pick it up for the music, and then be on the lookout for a nice stereo original to enjoy for the sound.
More on the subject of mono versus stereo.
Want to find your own top quality copy?
Consider taking our moderately helpful advice concerning the pressings that tend to win our shootouts.
As of 2025, shootouts for this album should be carried out:
Nothing else will do for the sound of a Sinatra recording with him fronting Billy May’s orchestra.
Get ready to swing with the Chairman of the Board on this superb pressing of his classic album from 1959! Billy May and his orchestra back Frank with wonderful arrangements here, and a copy like this lets you appreciate everyone’s hard work. On the better pressings, the brass blasts on side two are to die for!
It’s tough to find good-sounding copies of almost any Sinatra album, finding amazing copies of his most classic albums like this one is a ridiculously tough task. Even for us, the guys who do nothing but search for and audition records all day every day! So we were thrilled to play a copy like this one that did just what we wanted from music like this.
If you never thought you’d hear a Sinatra record sound as powerful as the man himself came across — this is the pressing that you’ve been looking for. Most copies were either smeary or edgy, but this one was wonderfully smooth with impressive clarity.
Sinatra fans, don’t miss out — we don’t find records like this too often.
Side One
Come Dance With Me
Something’s Gotta Give
Just in Time
Dancing in the Dark
Too Close for Comfort
I Could Have Danced All Night
Side Two
Saturday Night
Day in Day Out
Cheek to Cheek
Baubles, Bangles and Beads
The Song Is You
The Last Dance
AMG 5 Star Rave Review
Working with Billy May again, Frank Sinatra recorded his hardest swing album ever with Come Dance with Me! Driven by an intensely swinging horn section, the album has a fair share of slower numbers, but the songs that make the biggest impression are the up-tempo cuts. With May’s charts wildly careening all over the place, Sinatra relies on his macho swagger; as a result, Come Dance with Me! is an intoxicating rush of invigorating dance songs.
