Saturday 9

 I Would Be in Love (Anyway) 1970

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Frank Sinatra sings, "If I knew then what I know now." If you were giving advice to a recent high school grad, based on that phrase, what would you say? Take a moment to enjoy your youth. I'm thinking of my post below about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. As a teen, she was she was very critical of her own appearance, even though she was very pretty. I look at pictures of myself when I was at my best and recall only concentrating on my flaws. Nora Ephron said it best (of course, Nora Ephron said most things best).

2) This song is about a man looking back on his marriage, which has ended. While he is sad, he is not sorry he loved her. Do you believe that it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all? Not always. Looking back, I truly believe my life today would be happier if I had spent my 20s alone instead of with the man I wasted them on. 

3) Sinatra married four times. He met his first wife, Nancy, when he was 19. He saw a pretty girl sitting on her front porch, giving herself a pedicure, and he rushed home for his ukulele so he could serenade her. Have you ever sung to anyone? Has anyone ever sung to you? I sing to my cat Connie all the time. Usually to "Swanee." (Connie! How I loves 'ya, how I loves 'ya, my dear old Connie ...) It must be said that I am a terrible singer and that Connie is a good sport about it.

 

4) According to Barbara, his final wife, they met when they were neighbors in Rancho Mirage, California. Sinatra had his own tennis court, needed a fourth for doubles with his houseguests, and invited the lady next door to play. Tell us about your neighbors. Mark is on my left. He's tall, perhaps 6'3, with white hair and glasses. We're on the condo board, and I appreciate his conciliatory style. Zoraida is across the hall. She is a bank teller who always -- always! -- wears her false eyelashes. Her fiance is there most of the time and he is as shy as she is outgoing. I've met my neighbor to the right a handful of times and, while he is very pleasant, he makes little impression on me.

 
5) When not performing before an audience or cameras, Sinatra often wore hats and caps because his hair was thin and his toupee annoyed him. Is there anything you wear for "dress up" that you're happy to ditch when you go casual? I prefer going without makeup.

6) Frank had a sweet tooth and to the end of his life, he enjoyed chocolate-covered apricots, ordered from Lepore's in his hometown of Hoboken, NJ. If you could have any sweet treat right now, what would you request?  It changes. Right now, I'd like a dish of Neapolitan ice cream.

7) This song was written specifically for Sinatra by Bob Gaudio, best known as a member of The Four Seasons. That 1960s quartet is now legendary. In addition to 25 Top Ten Hits, they are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and inspired the Broadway play and movie musical, Jersey Boys. Do you have a favorite Four Seasons song? Sing along! You know you want to.

 

8) In 1970, the year this record was released, The Mary Tyler Moore Show premiered. Were you a fan?  I think I've seen every episode.

        

9) Random question: Have you ever named your car or truck? Nope.