♫ New York, New York ♫ (Redux)

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, History, music

No particular reason for this redux other than as I scrolled through the archives, it caught my eye and I suddenly wanted to hear it again!

Sometimes a bit of nostalgia isn’t a bad thing, y’know?  My first 18 years were spent between San Francisco and New York, with a few other locales thrown in for fun … my father was what’s known as a “troubleshooter”, which took us back and forth, here and there, hither and yon.  Much of what molded me, however, came from the two aforementioned cities.  That was where I learned that “people is people” no matter what their skin colour, or what kind of house they live in.  That’s where I learned to embrace the differences, take joy in the exchange of cultures, to try new foods, speak new languages, and enjoy it all.  Y’know, people say that big cities are cold, dangerous places, but … they are what you make of them.  As I’ve aged, I’m less inclined to want to live in the city … instead, I envision a small, isolated place to call my own.  But, back in the day, the city was … excitement.  It was life.  Sometimes, I just like to hear Tony Bennett sing I Left My Heart in San Francisco or Sinatra belt out New York, New York.  Well, enough of my introspection and nostalgia … let’s get the show on the road!

I always have and always will associate this song with Frank Sinatra, and I forget that it was actually Liza Minnelli who debuted it in the 1977 film of the same name, which was directed by Martin Scorsese and starred Minnelli and Robert De Niro as musicians and lovers. It was written for the film by John Kander and Fred Ebb, who wrote many songs for her, including the Cabaret songs Maybe This Time and Yes.

Frank Sinatra began performing this in 1978 at concerts in New York’s Radio City Music Hall. His version was released on his 1980 triple album Trilogy: Past, Present and Future, which was highly acclaimed and brought the singer back in the public eye. New York, New York quickly became one of Sinatra’s signature songs.

This was the last hit song Sinatra released. He was one of the most popular singers of the 1940s and 1950s, but took a hit when rock and roll music took hold. Still, he retained an enormous audience that preferred his meticulously crafted orchestral songs to the guitar rock and teen pop that was taking hold.

My preference, if you haven’t guessed, is the Sinatra version, but I will offer both here, as I understand that Liza Minnelli’s was more popular on the other side of the pond.

New York, New York
Frank Sinatra

Start spreadin’ the news, I’m leavin’ today
I want to be a part of it
New York, New York
These vagabond shoes, are longing to stray
Right through the very heart of it
New York, New York

I wanna to wake up, in a city that doesn’t sleep
And find I’m king of the hill
Top of the heap

These little town blues
Are melting away
I’ll make a brand new start of it
In old New York
If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere
It’s up to you, New York, New York

New York, New York
I want to wake up in a city that never sleeps
And find I’m a number one, top of the list
King of the hill, a number one

These little town blues, are melting away
I’m gonna make a brand new start of it
In old New York
And
If I can make it there
I’m gonna make it anywhere
It’s up to you, New York
New York
New York

Songwriters: Fred Ebb / John Kander
New York, New York lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

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26 thoughts on “♫ New York, New York ♫ (Redux)”

  1. Pingback: ♫ New York, New York ♫ (Redux) – THE FLENSBURG FILES

  4. Jill, this is one of the great city name songs. Frank also does justice to “my kind of town Chicago is.” But, my favorite is Tony Bennett’s “I left my heart in San Francisco.” As for New York, I would give the nod to Billy Joel’s “I’m in a New York state of mind.” Keith

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    • Ah yes … I do love that one by Tony Bennett! As for Sinatra, I think “My Way” is my favourite of his, though not a city song. And I had forgotten about Billy Joel’s! Maybe I’ll play that one soon! (At the risk of offending poor Clive’s ears 😉 )

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  5. I don’t really care for the song, either, but prefer Liza’s version, personally, because I knew of and saw the movie. Thank you for including both; I rarely listen to channels that might play this genre, and those tend to play the Sinatra version, so I haven’t heard the song in a while. It’s a rainy, thundery day, and it was nice to hear Liza belt it out!

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  6. I went to Buffalo once. I like a story with my music.Harry Chapin was a favorite, I’ve been listening to Warren Zevon all morning. Frank and Bing were my moms favorite performers, she would be 101 today.

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    • Frank and Dean (Martin) were my mum’s favourites … she would be just 98 today! I remember her dancing around the house listening to Sinatra, and calling my love of The Beatles just “so much noise”!

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  8. It wss too commercial for me, no matter who sang it. (Same goes for Tony Bennet. But give me some Dean Martin, that I’ll take it.) Maybe I would feel different if I had ever lived in New York, but the closest I every got was an old thoroubred racetrack whose name I cannot remember. I went there from Philadelphia, where I was attending a wedding.
    I listened to crooners as a child, but once I stafted browing up I outgrew them pretty quickly. (Mwanwhile, my next music post be about San Francisco.)

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    • As I just told Clive, last time I played this, almost everyone loved it, but this time, nobody did! Ah well, I shan’t play it again soon! I will check out your post before I go to bed innabit!

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  9. This is schmaltzy in the extreme, whichever version you go for. Sorry, but I absolutely hate this one. By the way, I’m not sure why you think Minelli’s version was more popular here. She didn’t make our charts, but Sinatra did – twice, including #4 with a 1986 re-release.

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