Six Artists You Didn’t Know Covered Frank Sinatra

Frank Sinatra has one of the best singing voices of all time.

Videos by American Songwriter

That’s why it can be so hard to cover his songs. Yet many skilled artists still attempt to undertake the task. And some even succeed.

And that is what we’re going to dive into here today. Below are six covers by a wide variety of artists who have taken on tunes from Ol’ Blue Eyes. From Lady Gaga to Shawn James, these are the best of the best.

1. Shawn James

The big and heavy-voiced singer brought his acoustic into the booth with him to sing a rendition of the song “That’s Life,” and, well, nailed it. Check out James, who has a flexible heft timbre that brings a whole new twist to Sinatra’s signature tune. What a pleasure.

2. Ben l’Oncle Soul

The French soul singer and songwriter performed a version of Sinatra’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” and, as a result, the artist is under ours in the best way possible. With a fluttering voice and a deep, rich performance style, this version is terrific and not to be forgotten.

3. Miley Cyrus

The famed celebrity and skilled artist is like a jukebox, she can do any song by anybody. And here, Miley Cyrus takes on Sinatra’s famous tune, “My Way.” In one way, we’re all living in Cyrus’ world as she continues to find new peaks for her career. And this is certainly one of them.

4. Pavlo Ilnytskyy 

The crooner decided to perform this rendition backed by a full orchestra. Check out his rendition of “Strangers In The Night” while a myriad of violins and cellos and more swell and tug at our own heartstrings. This rendition is heartfelt and pronounced. It’s like a lounge version crossed with a symphony. Truly inspiring.

5. Chase Eagleson

Taking advantage of an emotive Spanish-style guitar, Chase Eagleson performed a version of Sinatra’s “The Way You Look Tonight” acoustically. Whereas Sinatra offers a big, full voice, Eagleson performs with his restrained, gravelly tone. It’s a pillow talk version of the song that gives off goosebumps.

6. Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga may be the best artist on Planet Earth suited to cover Sinatra. She’s got his prowess as a performer, the gravitas of a celebrity, and just seems at home with a big band behind her. Put a fedora on her golden head and she fits the bill to perfection. Check out her rendition of “New York, New York” here below in which she sings about her hometown.

One Comment

Leave a Reply
  1. Dear Jacob…

    The first sentence of this article should have been “Frank Sinatra never wrote a single song in his entire life.” Referring to Sinatra’s repertoire as “his songs” is the equivalent of calling “Wind Beneath My Wings” a Bette Midler song. It’s not only inaccurate, but disrespectful to the songwriting profession.

    I have complimented your writing in the past. But, with all due respect, you obviously haven’t a clue when it comes to songwriting… which is inexcusable, because you write for a magazine called American Songwriter!

    Sinatra was one of the greatest and most influential song stylists to every render a tune. However, to give him credit for creating the songs he so skillfully and uniquely interpreted is to deny the brilliance of the legendary songwriters who actually birthed the material. As a professional tunesmith, this infuriates me. Because it pervades the myth that the singer is always responsible for the song and that those who toil behind the scenes decade after decade to cobble together words and music don’t matter.

    Every single title in Sinatra’s cannon has been performed by myriad singers. Those songs are standards. And, while certain titles may be closely associated with Sinatra, they are NOT HIS SONGS!!! A performer who also covers one of those songs is not covering Sinatra.

    Please give credit where credit is due. And, if you’re running out of ideas for your column, give the songwriting community a break and take a week off.

Leave a Reply

Rapper Master P Grieves After Death of Daughter Tytyana: “With God, We Will Get Through This”