On Saturday, March 23, the Springfield Symphony Jazz Orchestra will present “Sinatra Sings, Basie Swings” at the John Legend Theater. The concert is dedicated to the legacy of the two icons of 20th century American popular music, Frank Sinatra and Count Basie, and will feature guest vocalist Robbie Lee . Todd Stoll, director of the orchestra, joined WYSO midday Music host Evan Miller to discuss the upcoming performance.
In 1962, Frank Sinatra and the Count Basie Orchestra released their first joint album, Sinatra–Basie: An Historic Musical First. They followed it up two years later with Might as Well be Swing, which included hit recordings of “Hello Dolly” and “Fly Me To the Moon.” It was Sinatra’s first album arranged by hitmaker Quincy Jones. According to Todd Stoll, albums like Sinatra-Basie and Might as Well be Swing represented a significant step toward racial integration in American popular music:
“This came about at a time when Frank Sinatra was the most important and influential white entertainer in the world, and Count Basie had the most popular black big band and jazz orchestra in the world. They'd been around since the ‘30s…This came on the cusp of the influence of the civil rights movement, and their partnership predates the signing of the Civil Rights Voting Act of 1964. This had major cultural implications as well as entertainment implications.”
According to Stoll, Sinatra and Basie also shared a sense of social engagement that brought them together outside of the recording studio. “Frank Sinatra toured prisons with the Count Basie Orchestra,” he told Evan. “He believed in the Constitution, he believed in democracy, he believed in humanity, and he believed in the Count Basie Orchestra and in this music.”
The Springfield Symphony Jazz Orchestra’s “Sinatra Sings, Basie Swings” begins at 7:30pm on Saturday, Mar. 23rd at the John Levent Theater in Springfield. Tickets are available for $30 . For more information about the Springfield Symphony Jazz Orchestra, visit springfieldsym.org.
Text by Peter Day, adapted from an interview recorded by Evan Miller on 3/20/24.
