Sinatra, King Classics Resonate Without Lyrics

Williams and Belden, two of the finest arranger-composers in contemporary music, have given themselves unusually demanding musical challenges in these two seemingly disparate, but oddly similar recordings. In each case, the program of music consists of songs primarily associated with a singer: Frank Sinatra in “Sinatraland,” Carole King in “Tapestry.” The latter material was also composed by King, while most of the “Sinatraland” numbers--despite their status as American songbook classics--have received their contemporary modeling from the Sinatra renderings.

The essential problem faced by both Williams and Belden is obvious: without the lyrics which are so important to the songs, what does an arranger do to fill in the gap created by the absence of words, and of the essential story contained within each of the works? Beyond the lyrics, however, the challenges to the arrangers take separate paths.

The songs on the “Sinatraland” recording--tunes such as “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “The Song Is You” and “In the Still of the Night”--are rich blendings of melody and harmony, the kind of material long favored by jazz musicians as a foundation for improvisation. King’s “Tapestry” tunes, however, trace to a rock style based upon relatively simple, gospel-tinged melodies and groove-style rhythms--not exactly a typical framework for jazz soloing.

So it’s not surprising that the arrangers chose different solutions to the problem.

For Williams, who also is an established film composer (“The Grass Harp,” “That Old Feeling,” “All of Me”) and the winner of three Emmys and two Grammys, the answer was directly associated with the problem. If these songs were memorialized by Sinatra, and if the album was intended as a kind of salute to Sinatra, then why not assemble orchestrations which resonate with the jaunty, macho swing and the late night moodiness of the Nelson Riddle, Billy May and Gordon Jenkins charts which framed the classic Sinatra style of the ‘50s and ‘60s? And that’s exactly what Williams--who wrote the arrangements for Sinatra’s two “Duets” album--has done.

The result is a straightforward, bright and brassy musical collection which manages to add a few unexpected surprises to arrangements and performances rich with Sinatra references. Williams comes up with some unusually subtle textures (Hubert Laws’ flute work with the ensemble on “You Make Me Feel So Young” is a good example), and there is some solid soloing from alto saxophonists Phil Woods (“The Song Is You” and “Where or When”) and David Sanborn (“I Hadn’t Anyone”) and clarinetist Eddie Daniels (“I’ll Be Around,” “Just One of Those Things”).

Belden--whose arrangements include work on Joe Henderson’s “Porgy & Bess,” Herbie Hancock’s “The New Standard” and Incognito’s “Beneath the Surface”--has taken a crack at covering rock music in previous albums. His “When Doves Cry” was based on songs by Prince, and “Straight to My Heart” was Belden’s set of variations on Sting tunes.

“Tapestry,” a Carole King album which, after its 1971 release, served as a virtual soundtrack for the boomer generation, was a harder nut to crack.

Belden has approached the music, wisely, in a loose, improvisatory fashion. Segments are stretched here and there to create vamp-like foundations for improvisation, and John Hart’s guitar--which roves between Wes Montgomery and rock--brings some urgent energy to the proceedings.

It’s also interesting to hear Belden open up a bit as a soloist--an opportunity he too rarely grants himself. And, in fact, the most attractive moments on the album take place when jazz fusion rhythms come front and center, and associations with King’s still memorable readings fade into the background.

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