In the Wee Small Hours

For the Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode, see In the Wee Small Hours (Law & Order: Criminal Intent).

In the Wee Small Hours
Studio album by Frank Sinatra
Released	1955
Recorded	February 8, 1955–March 4, 1955, (except Last Night When We Were Young, March 1, 1954) KHJ Studios, Hollywood
Genre	Vocal Jazz, Classic pop
Length	48:41
Label	Capitol
Producer	Voyle Gilmore
Frank Sinatra chronology
Swing Easy! (1954) In the Wee Small Hours (1955) Songs for Swingin' Lovers (1956)

In the Wee Small Hours is an album by Frank Sinatra. Released in 1955, it was the ninth studio album Sinatra recorded, and is generally regarded as one of the first concept albums. Sinatra had been developing the idea of the concept album since 1946, with his first album release, The Voice.

History

The album was originally issued both as a double-10" set and a single 12" LP. The double 10" was an unusual format for an album at the time, and the LP release was Sinatra's first. Like his two previous Capitol releases, In the Wee Small Hours was not a compilation of past recordings, but contained a set of songs recorded specifically for the occasion. Consequently, In the Wee Small Hours is generally considered one of the first concept albums.

Speculated to have been Sinatra's response to his and Ava Gardner's separation, the album features only ballads dealing with isolation and lost love. The title track (which had been composed for the album) is followed by a selection of pop standards featuring Nelson Riddle's stark, restrained arrangements. The singer was backed by either brooding strings or a small ensemble, often highlighted by woodwinds or celesta. The album cover reflected the theme, featuring Sinatra smoking a cigarette on a gloomy, deserted avenue.

In the 1980s, the album was reissued with an abridged track listing.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic

In 2003, the album was ranked number 100 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The album is also the first album reviewed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die by Robert Dimery. In 2007, Time Magazine selected it as one of The All-TIME 100 Albums. Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented in Allmusic that the album had an authentic melancholy mood, and is "one of Sinatra's most jazz-oriented performances".

Legacy

The title track, "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning", has been recorded by a number of artists following Sinatra's version, including Johnny Hartman, Astrud Gilberto, Lou Rawls, Carly Simon, Art Blakey, Count Basie and His Orchestra, Andy Williams, Wes Montgomery, Ruby Braff, Jamie Cullum, John Mayer, Susan Wong, and many others. A cover version of the title track is also featured as the last track on Curtis Stigers' 2009 album, Lost in Dreams. In his autobiography, B.B. King speaks about how he was, and is, a "Sinatra nut" and how he went to bed every night listening to "In the Wee Small Hours." Tom Waits has named it one of his favourite albums. His album The Heart of Saturday Night features cover artwork based on In the Wee Small Hours.^{[citation needed]}

Track listing

1955 12" release

Side one

1. "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" (Bob Hilliard, David Mann) – 3:00
2. "Mood Indigo" (Barney Bigard, Duke Ellington, Irving Mills) – 3:30
3. "Glad to Be Unhappy" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) – 2:35
4. "I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)" (Hoagy Carmichael, Jane Brown Thompson) – 3:42
5. "Deep in a Dream" (Eddie DeLange, Jimmy Van Heusen) – 2:49
6. "I See Your Face Before Me" (Howard Dietz, Arthur Schwartz) – 3:24
7. "Can't We Be Friends?" (Paul James, Kay Swift) – 2:48
8. "When Your Lover Has Gone" (Einar Aaron Swan) – 3:10

Side two

1. "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (Cole Porter) – 2:35
2. "Last Night When We Were Young" (Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg) – 3:17
3. "I'll Be Around" (Alec Wilder) – 2:59
4. "Ill Wind" (Arlen, Ted Koehler) – 3:46
5. "It Never Entered My Mind" (Rodgers, Hart) – 2:42
6. "Dancing on the Ceiling" (Rodgers, Hart) – 2:57
7. "I'll Never Be the Same" (Gus Kahn, Matty Malneck, Frank Signorelli) – 3:05
8. "This Love of Mine" (Sol Parker, Henry W. Sanicola, Jr., Frank Sinatra) – 3:33

1955 10" release

Side one

1. "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" (Bob Hilliard, David Mann) – 3:00
2. "Mood Indigo" (Barney Bigard, Duke Ellington, Irving Mills) – 3:30
3. "Glad to Be Unhappy" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) – 2:35
4. "I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)" (Hoagy Carmichael, Jane Brown Thompson) – 3:42

Side two

1. "Deep in a Dream" (Eddie DeLange, Jimmy Van Heusen) – 2:49
2. "I See Your Face Before Me" (Howard Dietz, Arthur Schwartz) – 3:24
3. "Can't We Be Friends?" (Paul James, Kay Swift) – 2:48
4. "When Your Lover Has Gone" (Einar Aaron Swan) – 3:10

Side three

1. "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (Cole Porter) – 2:35
2. "Last Night When We Were Young" (Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg) – 3:17
3. "I'll Be Around" (Alec Wilder) – 2:59
4. "Ill Wind" (Arlen, Ted Koehler) – 3:46

Side four

1. "It Never Entered My Mind" (Rodgers, Hart) – 2:42
2. "Dancing on the Ceiling" (Rodgers, Hart) – 2:57
3. "I'll Never Be the Same" (Gus Kahn, Matty Malneck, Frank Signorelli) – 3:05
4. "This Love of Mine" (Sol Parker, Henry W. Sanicola, Jr., Frank Sinatra) – 3:33

Selected personnel

• Frank Sinatra – vocals
• Voyle Gilmore – producer
• Nelson Riddle – arranger, conductor