by James Kaplan
First published 2010
James Kaplan strips away the mythology surrounding Frank Sinatra to examine the man behind America's most famous voice. The author follows Sinatra from his 1915 birth through 1954, chronicling his rise from Hoboken's working-class neighborhoods to the pinnacle of entertainment fame. Kaplan explores how Sinatra transformed popular music by infusing his songs with his own volatile emotions and internal conflicts. The biography examines Sinatra's dramatic fall from celebrity heights and his subsequent resurrection through his Oscar-winning performance in From Here to Eternity. Kaplan argues that Sinatra made listening to popular music an intimate, personal act for audiences. The book includes rare photographs and provides new insight into the psychology driving Sinatra's artistic choices. Rather than simply recounting career highlights, Kaplan attempts to capture what it felt like to inhabit Sinatra's turbulent inner world as both performer and human being.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, american, music
Vibes: intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: biography, character-study
Setting: Hoboken, United States
Period: 1915, 1954
800 pages · Hardcover · Doubleday