Recently I posted a couple of items about Mitch Miller. It’s been said that the low point of Frank Sinatra’s recording career was towards the end of his contract with Columbia, when Miller had him record Mama Will Bark. Cactus Lizzie wrote to say…
WCBS New York is doing “the dog days of summer” today on-air. They mentioned “Mama will Bark” and said it was available for review on their web site. There’s a write-up of it here at this link below, and the video which they took from YouTube.
http://wcbsfm.radio.com/2010/08/12/mama-will-bark/#more-14660
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRNRaMToK1g
Follow-up: Denro saw Cactus Lizzie’s comment about the flip side, “I’m A Fool to Want You”, and he says…
Here’s a link to the 1951 version. Mitch may have made him record “Mama” but he also let him record and release this song — co-written by Sinatra himself (one of the few). By the way, Mitch remembers Frank being okay with recording it at the time. He seems to be having some fun with it and even gets a good last line in. It’s no better or worse that some of the stuff that Perry Como or Rosemary Clooney were doing during the same period. The worst part was probably having Dagmar try and do the vocal, in retrospect an early TV flash-in-the pan. That’s the real novelty part. Then again, it’s still pretty poor!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEQm–gWvfA
Being the BIG Sinatra fan I am, I’d like to add that the flip side of “Mama Will Bark” is the song “I’m a Fool to Want You.” And that is, I think, a stunning rendition of the story of a man who knows the woman is no good, but is pathetically hooked on her. I’ve heard “I’m a Fool…” interpreted by other singers, but in my opinion none could touch the heartbreaking feeling that Sinatra put into that song.
“I’m a Fool to Want You” was included on Sinatra’s “Where Are You?” album, another collection of the sad (NOT the “swinging”!!) side of Sinatra’s repertoire of songs. The LP (now CD) stands alongside what is arguably Frank’s greatest blues-y album, titled “Only the Lonely.”
I usually listen to Sid Mark’s syndicated weekend radio program “Saturdays/Sundays with Sinatra,” which is carried mainly on AM radio stations that play standards and big band music. I have heard lots of songs played by Sid Mark repeatedly, but I have NEVER even KNOWN about “Mama Wil Bark” until today! I can only assume that Sid Mark considers “Mama Will Bark” an embarrassment of a song, or else Mr. Mark is showing respect for his personal friend Frank, who was not at all happy about “Mama Will Bark.”
I’m kind of puzzled, quite frankly, by the supposed notoriety of that “horrible” song. It’s a novelty song, in fun. So what? Hey, it’s still better than the song “Surfin’ Bird.” Some people would say it’s better than “Honey,” which many rank as their #1 most hated song of all time. But I must admit….I like the dogs barking “Jingle Bells” better than “Mama Will Bark.”