Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. I Only Have Eyes for You
2. Kiss Me Again [#]
3. (There'll Be A) Hot Time in the Town of Berlin (When the Yanks Go ...)
4. Music Stopped
5. I Couldn't Sleep a Wink Last Night [#]
6. Way You Look Tonight [#]
7. I'll Be Around [#]
8. You've Got a Hold on Me [#]
9. Lovely Way to Spend an Evening [#]
10. She's Funny That Way
11. Speak Low [#]
12. Close to You [#]
13. My Shining Hour [#]
14. Long Ago (And Far Away) [#]
15. Some Other Time [#]
16. Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are [#]
17. Put Your Dreams Away (For Another Day)
18. And Then You Kissed Me [#]
19. All the Things You Are
20. All of Me [#]
21. Nancy (With the Laughing Face)
22. Mighty Lak' a Rose
23. Falling in Love with Love
24. Cradle Song [Version 1]
25. I'll Follow My Secret Heart [#]
26. There's No You
27. Someone to Watch over Me

Disc 2:

1. Let Me Love You Tonight [#]
2. Just Close Your Eyes [#]
3. If You Are But a Dream [#]
4. Strange Music [#]
5. Cradle Song [Version 2]
6. Dick Haymes, Dick Todd and Como [#]
7. None But the Lonely Heart - Frank Sinatra, , Bill Westbrook
8. Ol' Man River - Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern, Frank Sinatra
9. Homesick, That's All
10. Night Is Young and You're So Beautiful
11. Aren't You Glad You're You [#]
12. You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me [#]
13. I'll Never Smile Again
14. Without a Song
15. When Was the Last Time I Saw You (The Last Time) [#]
16. Don't Forget Tonight Tomorrow [#]
17. Oh! What It Seemed to Be
18. Over the Rainbow
19. Oh Bess, Oh Where's My Bess?
20. My Romance
21. Song Is You
22. I Fall in Love wth You Every Day
23. They Say It's Wonderful
24. You Are Too Beautiful
25. Come Rain or Come Shine [#]
26. Stormy Weather

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #201542 in Music
• Released on: 1998-07-28
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Great Great Music
I am one of a very few who do not particularly care for Sinatra's work with Columbia, Reprise and such. My favorite Sinatra is the music he made with The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra from 1940 - 1942 (See "The Song is You" boxed set). I also love the first recordings that Frank made in 1939 with The Harry James Orchestra (also available on disc). However, the material on this cd is beautiful. It is a wonderful bridge between Frank with Tommy Dorsey and the Frank Sinatra that is mostly played on radio. This collection is obviously historic for it features songs that Frank would never record again (with the exception of one or two). It is also historic in the fact that these recordings were not meant for the public. They were part of special albums that were shipped to our service men and women overseas, so, for the first time in over 50 years these recordings are for public consumption. I would advise any Sinatra fan -- casual or serious -- or any collector of war era music to get this collection.

different packaging
...Amazon must not have the right directives for this item. Anyway,the reason you see this item listed twice with two different SKUs and two different prices is because this item shown here is the original packaging for the two disc set. Sony has reconfigured many of their box sets so they could be placed in retail browser bins easier than the original boxes. In doing this,some of the art work was cramped to fit the jewel case but,in fairness to Sony,many of the prices were lowered to relect their lower costs. Since they never officially deleted the original(they didn't want to take back returns)the original "long box" version of this set appears to still exist. The graphics are nicer and may be worth the few extra bucks for them,especially if this is a gift. Both versions contain the exact same audio material.

Frank sings with clarity and precision--BRAVO, FRANK SINATRA !!!
Frank Sinatra - The V-Discs - Years: 1943-1947 is a wonderful two CD set of songs recorded by Frank Sinatra to be shipped overseas to the fighting men and the women primarily during the Second World War and a couple of years thereafter. The quality of the sound is rather good but there is some degree of surface noise on these older recordings; but I say they're still very much "worth it." The artwork is also very nicely done.

The first CD starts with Frank singing "I Only Have Eyes For You." I'm sure this brought many a happy memory of the men overseas as they heard this tune and thought of their sweethearts back home in the states! Frank aces this easily and it's even a major highlight of this two CD set. "(There'll Be A) Hot Time In The Town Of Berlin" held out hopes for the soldiers that they were going to win the war--it was only a mater of time. The big band arrangement works wonders for this ballad. Listen also for "You've Got A Hold On Me;" Frank massages the lyrics to this song and it sounds fresh and new even today! Great! In addition, Frank Sinatra does an excellent job on "Long Ago And Far Away;" the surface noise doesn't bother me because this number is so beautiful and it probably doesn't have many alternate takes for us to choose from because this was recorded so many years ago.

"All Of Me" gets the royal treatment from Frank; he swings brightly to make this number shine like silver and gold combined! The horns work well in the big band arrangement and Frank never sounded better! "Falling In Love With Love" also gets a fine interpretation from The Chairman Of The Board; and if you haven't heard this early rendition of this song by Frank I think you're going to like it!

"If You Are But A Dream" on the second CD starts with a wonderful musical flourish; and when Frank comes in this number takes off like a jet! "Ol' Man River" also impresses me as Frank sings this to perfection--and beyond! "I'll Never Smile Again" is a tune that Frank sings with panache and the backup vocalists enhance the natural beauty of this fine ballad. Similarly, "Was The Last Time I Saw You" charms me with its beauty and Frank makes this into a masterpiece that only he could sing this well. Frank also sings Judy Garland's signature song, "Over The Rainbow;" Frank delivers this with ease and he handles the complicated tempo and key changes like the pro he always was and still remains! "My Romance" features Frank front and center--and that's OK by me! There's also Frank doing a fine interpretation of "They Say It's Wonderful;" "They Say It's Wonderful" is another stunningly beautiful ballad that I'm sure the soldiers loved to hear. "Come Rain Or Come Shine" gets a somewhat slower tempo than I'm used to but it all works very well; and the second CD ends well with Frank Sinatra singing "Stormy Weather." "Stormy Weather" was a famous song when Lena Horne sang it; and Frank's version would have made Lena very proud!

Overall, this two CD set is an excellent one for Sinatra fans and people who enjoy music from the era of World War Two will love this two CD set as well.