Articles by Alex Segal

The Lyrics They Are 'A Changing: Lyrical Liberties In "Lover, Come Back To Me" And "Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise"

by Alex Segal
May 29, 2024

Frank Sinatra's greatness is evident in his making the songs he sang his own. And his doing this is connected to his, on occasion, changing the lyric of a song--even a very good lyric. But according to good anecdotal evidence, Cole Porter and Ira Gershwin--suppliers of some of the best lyrics Sinatra sang--did not take kindly to his changing their words, no matter how much they may have appreciated his greatness. Probably most commentators side with ...