Line #28 Music/InTheWeeSmallHours


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/frank_sinatra_in_the_wee_small_hours_cover_art_4572.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350: ''"In the wee small hours of the morning\
3	While the whole wide world is fast asleep\
4	You lie awake and think about the girl\
5	And never, ever think of counting sheep."'']]
6
7	->''"Actually, the very first [[ConceptAlbum 'concept' album]]. The idea being you put this record on after dinner and by the last song you are exactly where you want to be. Sinatra said that he's certain most baby boomers were conceived with this as the soundtrack."''
8	-->-- '''Music/TomWaits''', who in 2005 put ''In the Wee Small Hours'' in the number 1 spot of his 20 personal favorite albums.
9
10	''In the Wee Small Hours'' is the ninth studio album by Music/FrankSinatra, released in 1955 through Creator/CapitolRecords. It was recorded while the singer went through marital troubles with his second wife, Creator/AvaGardner, which would eventually lead to their divorce two years later.
11
12	This mood of melancholic loneliness in the wake of failed relationships [[CreatorBreakdown was reflected in the central theme of all the songs]], making the record an early example of a ConceptAlbum, virtually a whole decade before rock artists such as Music/FrankZappa [[note]]on ''Music/FreakOut'' from 1966[[/note]], Music/TheBeachBoys [[note]]on ''Music/PetSounds'' from 1966, though some argue ''Little Deuce Coupe'' from 1963 is an early concept album[[/note]] and Music/TheBeatles [[note]]on ''Music/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand'' from 1967[[/note]] would make the genre popular; the only older example is Music/WoodyGuthrie's ''Music/DustBowlBallads'' from 1940, and even that is debatable (''In the Wee Small Hours'' is unified by theme and mood in a way that the narrative-oriented ''Dust Bowl Ballads'' is not). In many ways, it's considered the UrExample of the modern idea of a music album, both because of its use of a central concept and because of its popularization of the 12" long-playing record as ''the'' format for albums prior to the advent of the Platform/CompactDisc (previously they were literal album books filled with 78 rpm records).
13
14	A success from the start, this album effectively revived Sinatra's slumping music career. It transformed him from the teen idol he was before into an artist [[GrowingTheBeard that deserved to be taken seriously and who dealt with more mature themes]].
15
16	Nelson Riddle once again provides the arrangements and conducts the orchestra. This was the first album to showcase Riddle's own arranging style; of his previous efforts with Sinatra, ''Songs for Young Lovers'' mostly used George Siravo arrangements and ''Swing Easy!'' was orchestrated by Riddle [[InTheStyleOf in a style reminiscent of Red Norvo]].
17	----
18	!! Tracklist:
19	[[AC: Side One]]
20	# "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" (3:00)
21	# "Mood Indigo" (3:30)
22	# "Glad to Be Unhappy" (2:35)
23	# "I Get Along Without You Very Well" (3:42)
24	# "Deep in a Dream" (2:49)
25	# "I See Your Face Before Me" (3:24)
26	# "Can't We Be Friends?" (2:48)
27	# "When Your Lover Has Gone" (3:10)
28
29	[[AC: Side Two]]
30	[numlist:9]
31	# "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (2:35)
32	# "Last Night When We Were Young" (3:17)
33	# "I'll Be Around" (2:59)
34	# "Ill Wind" (3:46)
35	# "It Never Entered My Mind" (2:42)
36	# "Dancing on the Ceiling" (2:57)
37	# "I'll Never Be the Same" (3:05)
38	# "This Love of Mine" (3:33)
39	[/numlist]
40	----
41	!! Bonus Tracks (2007 Reissue):
42	[numlist:17]
43	# "Three Coins in the Fountain" (3:08)
44	# "Young at Heart" (2:55)
45	[/numlist]
46	----
47	! ''In the Wee Small Tropes of the Morning'':
48	* AddedAlliterativeAppeal: "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning"
49	--> ''(...) While the whole wide world is fast asleep''
50	* AlliterativeTitle: "'''D'''eep in a '''D'''ream".
51	* BreakupSong: Virtually all the songs deal with broken relationships, loneliness and depression.
52	* ColourCodedEmotions: Sinatra is wearing a blue suit on the album cover, expressing him feeling "blue".
53	* ConceptAlbum: This album is considered one of the earliest forerunners of the genre. All the tracks are about the sad feelings you have about a broken relationship.
54	* ContinuityNod: Sinatra leans against a lamppost at night, just like he did on the album cover of ''Music/SongsForYoungLovers'' (1954).
55	* CoverVersion: "Mood Indigo", a cover of Music/DukeEllington, "I Get Along Without You Very Well", a cover of Hoagy Carmichael, "What Is This Thing Called Love?", a cover of Music/ColePorter.
56	* CradleOfLoneliness: Sinatra had just gone through a few broken relationships himself; this gloomy feeling can be felt in the lyrics too. For instance in "When Your Lover Has Gone":
57	--> ''What lonely hours, the evening shadows bring''
58	--> ''What lonely hours, with memories lingering''
59	--> ''Like faded flowers, life can't mean anything''
60	--> ''When your lover has gone''
61	* CryLaughing: "Glad to Be Unhappy".
62	--> ''But for someone you adore''
63	--> ''It's a pleasure to be sad''
64	* DramaticWind: "Ill Wind".
65	--> ''Blow ill wind,''
66	--> ''Blow away,''
67	--> ''Let me rest today.''
68	* DidNotGetTheGirl: "Deep in a Dream", "Can't We Be Friends?", "When Your Lover Has Gone", "I'll Be Around" and "I'll Never Be the Same" all reflect his mood on not getting the girl of his dreams.
69	* FaceOnTheCover: Sinatra leaning against a lamp post. He is very visible in the frame and the background has no details that detract from the action.
70	* FoolForLove: "What Is This Thing Called Love?"
71	--> ''What is this thing called love?''
72	--> ''This funny thing called love?''
73	--> ''Just who can solve its mystery?''
74	--> ''Why should it make a fool of me''
75	* {{God}}: Sinatra even asks Him "What's This Thing Called Love?"
76	--> ''That's why I ask the Lord up in Heaven above''
77	* HeartbrokenBadass: Despite being heartbroken it's still Sinatra, folks!
78	* HopeCrusher: "I'll Never Be the Same", where Sinatra feels he'll never get over his broken relationship.
79	* IWillWaitForYou: "I'll Be Around" in which Sinatra sings he'll be around for his loved one when her current partner is gone.
80	* LoveHurts: Nearly all the songs follow this theme.
81	* LyricalDissonance: The musical arrangements are sweet and pleasant despite being gloomy, while the lyrics are downright depressing.
82	* ManOnFire: "Deep in a Dream":
83	--> ''My cigarette burns me, I wake with a start'';
84	--> ''My hand isn't hurt, but there's pain in my heart''.
85	* ObsessionSong: "I See Your Face Before Me"
86	--> ''I see your face before me''
87	--> ''Crowding my every dream''
88	--> ''There is your face before me''
89	--> ''You are my only theme''
90	--> ''It doesn't matter where you are''
91	--> ''I can see how fair you are''
92	--> ''I close my eyes and there you are, always''
93	* QuestioningTitle: "Can't We Be Friends?" and "What's This Thing Called Love?"
94	* ReCut: Initial CD releases in 1987 drop "Last Night When We Were Young"; the track would later be restored in 1991. While the song's exclusion was never explained, Creator/CapitolRecords worked around its absence by advertising the 1987 version as a "special abridged Compact Disc version of the album."
95	* ShoutOut: Music/TomWaits' album cover for ''Music/TheHeartOfSaturdayNight'' (1974) is a {{homage}} to ''In the Wee Small Hours''.
96	* SmokingIsCool: Sinatra smokes a cigarette on the album cover.
97	** "Deep in a Dream":
98	--> ''The smokes of my cigarette climbs through the air.''
99	* TitleTrack: "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning"
100	--> ''In the wee small hours of the morning''
101	--> ''While the whole wide world is fast asleep''
102	--> ''You lie awake and think about the girl''
103	--> ''And never, ever think of counting sheep''
104	* TorchSong: An entire album of them. Sinatra would revisit the concept with such subsequent albums as ''Where Are You?'' (1957), ''Only the Lonely'' (1958), ''No One Cares'' (1959), and ''All Alone'' (1962).
105	* TropeCodifier: For the album format itself, arguably. It was one of the first 12" long-playing pop music albums to be released. (Previously, 10" was the standard for pop releases, with 12" being mostly reserved for classical music.) While neither the first album ever nor the first Sinatra ever recorded, it is usually the oldest record in many "Greatest Albums" lists.
106	* UnrequitedLove: A major theme. In "Glad to Be Unhappy", Sinatra even mentions "it's a bore and I've got it pretty bad".
107	* WhamLine: "I'll Never Be the Same"
108	--> ''Once love was king / but kings can be wrong''

Context Music / InTheWeeSmallHours