"In the Blue of Evening" is a song byAl D'Artega andTom Adair recorded and released in 1943 byTommy Dorsey and his Orchestra, withFrank Sinatra as the main vocalist. It was subsequently re-recorded by Sinatra, but did not feature on a release until a 1993 reissue of the albumI Remember Tommy.
"In the Blue of Evening" was written byAl D'Artega andTom Adair, and recorded byFrank Sinatra with theTommy Dorsey Band.[1][2] Recorded June 1942, it was released in 1943 as a double A side alongside "It's Always You", another Sinatra and Dorsey recording, in Victor's regular pop series (catalog #27947) to celebrate the signing of Dorsey's band to theVictor Red Seal label.[3][4] "In the Blue of Evening" reached number one in theBillboard charts following the 1943 release.[5] This recording also hit number ten on theHarlem Hit Parade chart.[6]
Sinatra later re-recorded it withSy Oliver for his 1961 albumI Remember Tommy, a tribute to Dorsey following the bandleader's death.[7] But it was not included on the album for the original release, only being added in a 1993 reissue. Unlike the other songs on the album, it was recorded with a 12-piece band and played in a manner similar to Dorsey; the other songs were all re-recorded with a 20-piece band. Replacing Dorsey, James Decker played thetrombone solo at the start of the song.[7]
Janice Rhea, while writing for theNaugatuck Daily News after the initial recording in 1942, described "In the Blue of Evening" as a "thrilling, romantic song", which Sinatra performed in his "usual captivating fashion". She added that the trombone solo by Dorsey was a "piece of superlative horn work". She recommended it "unhesitatingly", and said it was "summer music of the very best quality".[8] InThe Mason City Globe-Gazette review from 1943 following the release, it was described as the "epitome of all that the name Frank Sinatra means to his avid admirers and followers", while Dorsey was described as having "mastery of that lush trombone quality of which never fails to bring the house down".[3]
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