Entertainment

Few people credit it to him now, but Frank Sinatra was one of the key figures in inventing the concept album. Sinatra's themes here were brooding, suffering, the aches of a love affair gone wrong and the late night isolation that follows it. Pretty much every track is a searing ballad. Legend has it, this album was a response to his break-up with Ava Gardner.

Sinatra's voice has never been so deeply emotive, and it isn't all just him either. The sumptuous arrangements from Nelson Riddle and his orchestra builds around a spare rhythm section and aching strings. While his previous concept album triumph 'Songs for Young Lovers!' was jovial and romantic, this is introverted and lonely but never depressing - just a perfect album to put on in the background during the wee small hours.

Buy 'In The Wee Small Hours' from Amazon