Ol' Man River - Frank Sinatra Cover

Live Rehearsal Recording 24/04/20

Ol' Man River is one of the most legendary musical songs in American history.  It is famously from the classic 1927 musical Show Boat and was originally sung by Jules Bledsoe in a stage production of the show in 1927 and again in a film version in 1929.  However, the most famous version that most people will recognise was sung by Paul Robeson in the 1936 film Show Boat.  He changed the lyrics somewhat for his later renditions but contiued to recite the lyrics as wriitten for most of his recorded performances.

Written by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstien, Frank Sinatra gave his rendition of the song in a recording made in 1946.  He sang the song a few more times throughout his career, but his best performace (in my opinion) was his first.  This is the version I have chosen to cover.