Nancy Sinatra | |
|---|---|
 Sinatra in her television specialMovin' with Nancy, 1967 | |
| Born | Nancy Sandra Sinatra (1940-06-08)June 8, 1940 (age 85) Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Education | University High School |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1957–present |
| Known for | |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2, includingAJ |
| Parent(s) | Frank Sinatra Nancy Barbato |
| Relatives | Frank Sinatra Jr. (brother) Tina Sinatra (sister) |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Labels |
|
Musical artist | |
| Website | nancysinatra |
Nancy Sandra Sinatra[4] (born June 8, 1940)[5] is an American singer, actress, film producer and author. She is the elder daughter ofFrank Sinatra andNancy Sinatra (née Barbato) and is known for her 1965signature hit "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'".
Nancy Sinatra began her career as a singer in November 1957 with an appearance on her father'sABC television variety seriesThe Frank Sinatra Show but initially achieved success only inEurope andJapan. In early 1966 she had atransatlantic number-one hit with "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'". A TV promo clip from the era features Sinatra in high boots, accompanied by colorfully dressedgo-go dancers, in what is now considered an iconicSwinging Sixties look.[6][7] The song was written byLee Hazlewood, who wrote and produced most of her hits and sang with her on several duets. As with all of Sinatra's 1960s hits, "Boots" featuredBilly Strange as arranger and conductor.
Between early 1966 and early 1968, Sinatra charted onBillboard's Hot 100 with 14 titles, 10 of which reached the Top 40. In addition to "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'", defining recordings during this period include "Sugar Town", "Love Eyes", the transatlantic 1967 number one "Somethin' Stupid" (a duet with her father), two versions ofthe title song from theJames Bond filmYou Only Live Twice (1967), several collaborations with Lee Hazlewood – including "Summer Wine", "Jackson", "Lady Bird" and "Some Velvet Morning" – and a non-single 1966 cover of theCher hit "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)". In 1971 Sinatra and Hazlewood achieved their first collaborative success in theUK singles chart with the no. 2 hit "Did You Ever?", and the 2005 UK no. 3 hit byAudio Bullys, "Shot You Down", sampled Sinatra's version of "Bang Bang".
Between 1964 and 1968, Sinatra appeared in several feature films, co-starring withPeter Fonda inRoger Corman's biker-gang movieThe Wild Angels (1966) and alongsideElvis Presley in the musical dramaSpeedway (1968). Frank and Nancy Sinatra played a fictional father and daughter in the 1965 comedyMarriage on the Rocks.
Sinatra was born on June 8, 1940, inJersey City, New Jersey. She is the eldest of the three children born toFrank Sinatra and his first wife,Nancy Barbato. Both of her parents were ofItalian ancestry.[8] When she was a toddler, the family moved toHasbrouck Heights,New Jersey. They later moved again toToluca Lake, California, for her father's Hollywood career. There she spent many years inpiano, dance and dramatic performance lessons, and undertook months of voice lessons.[9]
Stefanie Powers was one of Sinatra's schoolmates atHollywood High School. She graduated fromUniversity High School (Los Angeles) in June 1958.[10][11][12]
Sinatra began to study music, dancing and voice atUCLA in the late 1950s, but she dropped out after one year.[13] She made her professional debut on her father's television showThe Frank Sinatra Show in November 1957 and then appeared on his 1960 television specialThe Frank Sinatra Timex Show: Welcome Home Elvis, which celebrated the return ofElvis Presley from Europe following his discharge from military service.[14] Nancy was sent to the airport on behalf of her father to welcome Presley when his plane landed. On the special, Sinatra and her father danced and sang a duet, "You Make Me Feel So Young/Old". That same year, she began a five-year marriage toTommy Sands.[15]
Sinatra was signed to her father's label,Reprise Records, in 1961. Her first single, "Cuff Links and a Tie Clip," went largely unnoticed. However, subsequent singles charted in Europe and Japan. By 1965, without a hit in theUnited States, she was on the verge of being dropped by the label. Her singing career received a boost with the help of songwriter/producer/arrangerLee Hazlewood, who had been making records for ten years, notably withDuane Eddy.[14] Hazlewood's collaboration with Sinatra began when Frank Sinatra asked Lee to help boost his daughter's career. When recording "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'", Hazlewood is said to have suggested to Nancy, "You can't sing like Nancy Nice Lady anymore. You have to sing for the truckers." She later described him as "partHenry Higgins and partSigmund Freud".[16]
Hazlewood had Sinatra sing in a lower key[17] and crafted songs for her. Bolstered by an image overhaul – including bleached-blond hair, frosted lips, heavy eye makeup andCarnaby Street fashions – Sinatra made her mark on the American (and British) music scene in early 1966 with "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'",[18] its title inspired by a line fromRobert Aldrich's 1963 western comedy4 for Texas, starring her father andDean Martin. One of her many hits written by Hazlewood, it received threeGrammy Award nominations at the9th Annual Grammy Awards, including two for Sinatra and one for arrangerBilly Strange. It sold more than one million copies and was awarded agold disc.[19] A TV promotional clip featured Sinatra in high boots, accompanied by colorfully dressedgo-go dancers, to iconicSwinging Sixties effect.[6][7]
A run of chart singles followed, including two 1966 US Top Ten hits: "How Does That Grab You, Darlin'?" (no. 7) and "Sugar Town" (no. 5). "Sugar Town" became Sinatra's second million-seller.[19] The ballad "Somethin' Stupid" – a duet with her father – reached number one in the US and the UK in April 1967 and spent nine weeks at the top ofBillboard'seasy listening chart.[20] Frank and Nancy became the only father-daughter duo to top the Hot 100, but DJs[who?] dubbed the track "the incest song" because it was sung as if by two lovers.[20] The record earned a Grammy Award nomination forRecord of the Year at the10th Annual Grammy Awards and remains the only father-daughter duet to hit number one in the US; it became Nancy's third million-sellingdisc.[19]
Other singles showcasing Sinatra's forthright delivery include "Friday's Child" (US no. 36, 1966) and the 1967 hits "Love Eyes" (US no. 15) and "Lightning's Girl" (US no. 24). She rounded out 1967 with the low-charting "Tony Rome" (US no. 83), the title track from the detective filmTony Rome starring her father. Her first solo single in 1968 was the more wistful "100 Years" (US no. 69). That same year she recorded "Highway Song", written byKenny Young and produced byMickie Most, for the European markets. The song reached the Top 20 in the UK and other European countries.
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Sinatra enjoyed a parallel recording career cutting duets with the husky-voiced,country-and-western-inspired Hazlewood, starting with "Summer Wine" (originally theB-side of "Sugar Town"). Their biggest hit was a cover of the 1963 country song "Jackson". The single peaked at no. 14 on theBillboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1967, just a few months afterJohnny Cash andJune Carter Cash hit big on the country chart with their cover of the song.
In December 1967 Sinatra and Hazlewood released the single "Some Velvet Morning" (US no. 26), accompanied by apromo clip. The recording is regarded as one of pop's more unusual singles; criticCathi Unsworth wrote, "The puzzle of its lyrics and otherworldly beauty of its sound [offer] seemingly endless interpretations."[21] The BritishbroadsheetThe Daily Telegraph placed "Some Velvet Morning" atop its 2003 list of the Top 50 Best Duets Ever ("Somethin' Stupid" ranked no. 27.)[22] The song appeared on the duo's 1968 albumNancy & Lee, about whichNational Public Radio commented in 2017, "... its sly, sultry movements both are a gem of traditional '60s pop and an inversion of traditional conceptions of romance."[23]
Sinatra recorded thetheme song for theJames Bond filmYou Only Live Twice in 1967. In the liner notes of the CD reissue of her 1966 albumNancy In London, Sinatra states that she was "scared to death" of recording the song, and asked the songwritersLeslie Bricusse andJohn Barry: "Are you sure you don't wantShirley Bassey?" There are two versions of the Bond theme. The first is the lushly orchestrated track featured during the opening and closing credits of the film. The second – and more guitar-heavy – version appeared on thedouble A-sided single with "Jackson", though the Bond theme stalled at no. 44 on theBillboardHot 100.[24] "Jackson"/"You Only Live Twice" was even more successful in the UK, reaching no. 11 on the singles chart during a 19-week chart run (in the Top 50); it ranked 70 in the year-end chart.[25]
Sinatra traveled toVietnam to perform for US troops in 1966 and 1967.[14] Many soldiers adopted her song "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" as their anthem, as shown inPierre Schoendoerffer's documentaryThe Anderson Platoon (1967) and reprised in a scene inStanley Kubrick'sFull Metal Jacket (1987). Sinatra recorded severalantiwar songs, including "My Buddy", which was featured on her albumSugar, "Home", co-written byMac Davis and "It's Such a Lonely Time of Year", which appeared on the 1968 LPThe Sinatra Family Wish You a Merry Christmas. Sinatra recreated her Vietnam concert appearances on a 1988 episode of the television showChina Beach. Sinatra still performs for charitable causes supportingVietnam veterans, includingRolling Thunder.[26]
Sinatra played a secretary in the 1963Burke's Law episode "Who Killed Wade Walker?" She starred in threebeach party films:For Those Who Think Young (1964),Get Yourself a College Girl (1964) andThe Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966), performing songs in the latter film. After securing the role that eventually went toLinda Evans inBeach Blanket Bingo, she withdrew because the film's character is kidnapped – a parallel she found too close to actual events when her brotherFrank Sinatra Jr. waskidnapped in December 1963.[27]
Sinatra appeared as a guest withWoody Allen on the game showPassword in 1965. She appeared as herself inThe Oscar (1966), and also starred inThe Last of the Secret Agents?, in which she sang the title song, andThe Wild Angels the same year. She appeared in the 1968Elvis Presley musical comedySpeedway, her final film.
Sinatra appeared onThe Virginian,The Ed Sullivan Show,The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In,The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, andThe Kraft Music Hall, hosted bySandler & Young. She also appeared in her father's 1966 specialA Man and His Music – Part II[28] and a 1967 Christmas-themed episode ofThe Dean Martin Show which featured the Sinatra and Martin families.
NBC aired Sinatra's own special,Movin' with Nancy, in 1967. It featured Lee Hazlewood, her father and hisRat Pack pals Dean Martin andSammy Davis Jr., her brother Frank Sinatra Jr. andWest Side Story dancerDavid Winters, whochoreographed the show.Jack Haley Jr. directed and produced the special, for which he received anEmmy Award forOutstanding Directorial Achievement in Music or Variety at the20th Primetime Emmy Awards. During the special, Sinatra shared a kiss with Davis Jr., about which she has stated, "The kiss [was] one of the first interracial kisses seen on television and it caused some controversy then, and now. [But] contrary to some inaccurate online reports, the kiss was unplanned and spontaneous."[29] Winters was nominated for an Emmy in the Special Classification of Individual Achievements category for his choreography but lost to co-winnersThe Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour andThe Jackie Gleason Show.[30]Movin' With Nancy was sponsored byRC Cola.[31]
Sinatra remained with Reprise until 1970. In 1971, she signed withRCA Records, resulting in three albums:Nancy & Lee – Again (1971),Woman (1972) and a compilation of some of her Reprise recordings calledThis Is Nancy Sinatra (1973). She released the non-LP single "Sugar Me"b/w "Ain't No Sunshine" in 1973. "Sugar Me" was written byLynsey De Paul andBarry Blue and, with other covers of works by early-'70s popular songwriters, resurfaced on the 1998 albumHow Does It Feel?[32][33]
In the autumn of 1971, Sinatra and Hazlewood's duet "Did You Ever?" reached no. 2 in the UK[34] In 1972 they performed for a Swedish documentary,Nancy & Lee In Las Vegas, which chronicled theirLas Vegas concerts at theRiviera Hotel and Casino and featured solo numbers and duets from concerts, behind-the-scenes footage and scenes of Sinatra's mother and her husband, Hugh Lambert.[35] The film did not appear until 1975.
By 1975, Sinatra was releasing singles on thePrivate Stock Records label. Among the singles were "Kinky Love", "Annabell of Mobile", "It's for My Dad" and "Indian Summer" (with Hazlewood). "Kinky Love" was banned by some radio stations for its suggestive lyrics. It appeared onSheet Music: A Collection of Her Favorite Love Songs in 1998, andPale Saints covered the song in 1991.[36]
By the mid-1970s, Sinatra had slowed her musical activity and ceased acting to concentrate on her family. She returned to the studio in 1981 to record a country album withMel Tillis calledMel & Nancy. Two of their songs made theBillboard country chart: "Texas Cowboy Night" (no.. 23) and "Play Me or Trade Me" (no. 43).[37]
In 1985, Sinatra wrote the bookFrank Sinatra, My Father.[38]
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At 54, Sinatra posed forPlayboy in the May 1995 issue and made appearances on TV shows to promote her albumOne More Time. The magazine appearance caused some controversy. On the talk-show circuit, she said that her father was proud of the photos. Sinatra toldJay Leno on a 1995Tonight Show that her daughters gave their approval, but her mother said that she should ask her father before committing to the project. Sinatra said that when she told her father whatPlayboy would be paying her, he said, "Double it".[39]
In 1995, Nancy wrote the bookFrank Sinatra, An American Legend. This was followed by an updated version in 1998 following Frank's death.
Taking her father's advice to own hermasters, Sinatra owns or holds an interest in most of her material, including videos.[29] Sinatra appeared live at theEdinburgh International Festival in August 2002. The sold-out, one-off concert was filmed by theBBC and later aired onBBC Four. She collaborated with formerLos Angeles neighborMorrissey on a 2004 version of his song "Let Me Kiss You", which was featured on her albumNancy Sinatra. The single – released the same day as Morrissey's version – charted at no. 46 in the UK, providing Sinatra with her first hit in more than 30 years. The follow-up single, "Burnin' Down the Spark," failed to chart. The album featuredU2,Sonic Youth,Calexico,Pete Yorn,Jon Spencer,Pulp'sJarvis Cocker andSteven Van Zandt, all of whom have cited Sinatra as an influence. Each artist crafted a song for Sinatra to sing on the album.[40]EMI releasedThe Essential Nancy Sinatra, a UK-onlygreatest-hits compilation featuring the previously unreleased track "Machine Gun Kelly", in 2006. The album was Sinatra's first to make the UK charts (no. 73) since 1971'sDid You Ever? reached no. 31.[41] Sinatra recorded "Another Gay Sunshine Day" forAnother Gay Movie in 2006.[42]
Sinatra received a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame on May 11, 2006. A Golden Palm Star on thePalm Springs, California,Walk of Stars was dedicated to her in 2002.[43]
Sinatra appeared as herself on one of the final episodes ("Chasing It") of theHBO mob dramaThe Sopranos. Her brother Frank Jr. had previously appeared in the 2000 episode "The Happy Wanderer". Sinatra andAnoushka Shankar recorded a 2007public-service announcement for Deejay Ra's Hip-Hop Literacy campaign, encouraging reading of music and film-related books and screenplays.[44] Sinatra's digital-only albumCherry Smiles: The Rare Singles, featuring previously unreleased tracks and songs only available as singles, was released in 2009.[45][46] She released the 2013 digital-only albumShifting Gears, featuring 15 previously unreleased tracks, including a rendition ofNeil Diamond's "Holly Holy". Theorchestra tracks were recorded in the 1970s while Sinatra was touring with a 40-piece orchestra, and her vocal tracks were recorded within 10 years of the release of the collection.[47] Sinatra's 1967 hit duet with Lee Hazlewood, "Summer Wine", was featured in retail apparel giantH&M's "The Summer Shop 2017" ad campaign.[48]
In October 2020, Sinatra andLight in the Attic Records announced plans to release the Nancy Sinatra Archival Series. The first release was aRecord Store DayBlack Friday exclusive 7" vinyl single featuring two Sinatra/Hazlewood duets, "Some Velvet Morning" and "Tired of Waiting for You". A new 23-track compilation,Start Walkin' 1965–1976, followed in February 2021.[14] The first single, a remastered reissue of Nancy & Lee's 1976 Private Stock single "(L'été Indien) Indian Summer", was released as a digital exclusive on October 21, 2020. Some of Sinatra's past albums were issued on CD for the first time, including her first record with Hazlewood, 1968'sNancy & Lee, and its follow-up, 1972'sNancy & Lee Again.[49] Sinatra's debut album,Boots, was reissued on vinyl, picture disc, compact disc, 4-track, 8-track, and digital by Light In The Attic Records on September 17, 2021. The second wave of the Nancy Sinatra Archival Series kicked off on September 29, 2023 with the digital release of a new 25-song compilationKeep Walkin': Singles, Demos & Rarities 1965-1978.[50] Physical release followed on October 20, 2023. Sinatra participated in her firstYouTube live chat on November 2, 2023.
Sinatra has publicly stated her personal opposition to the affairs and presidency of U.S. presidentDonald Trump.[51][52][53]
Sinatra has progressive positions on political issues, advocating for advances inwomen's rights,healthcare and reversal ofclimate change.[53]
On March 30, 2012, theScreen Actors Guild (SAG) and theAmerican Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) completed a merger of equals forming a new unionSAG-AFTRA. As a result of this merger, a group of actors including Sinatra,Michael Bell,Wendy Schaal, Schaal's former stepmotherValerie Harper,Clancy Brown, former SAG PresidentEdward Asner,Martin Sheen, andEd Harris immediately sued against the current SAG PresidentKen Howard and several SAG Vice Presidents to overturn the merger and separate the (now merged) two unions because of their claims that the election was improper.[54] The plaintiffs dropped their lawsuit several months later.[55]
Marriages:
Children (with Lambert):
Both women were left US$1 million from their grandfather Frank Sinatra's will, in a trust fund started in 1983.[57]
Between marriages, Nancy was engaged to producerJack Haley Jr., who later marriedLiza Minnelli.[58] She has also datedMichael Caine[59] andPhil Spector.[60] She also lived with architect David Clinton, who designed and built both of her homes inBeverly Hills.
Solo studio albums
Collaborative studio albums
Soundtracks
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | For Those Who Think Young | Karen Cross | |
| Get Yourself a College Girl | Lynne | ||
| 1965 | Marriage on the Rocks | Tracy Edwards | |
| 1966 | The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini | Vicki | |
| The Oscar | Herself | Cameo appearance | |
| The Last of the Secret Agents? | Micheline | ||
| The Wild Angels | Mike | ||
| 1968 | Speedway | Susan Jacks | |
| 2003 | Mayor of the Sunset Strip | Herself | Documentary |
| 2020 | Jay Sebring....Cutting to the Truth | Herself | Documentary |
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | The Frank Sinatra Show | Herself | 2 episodes |
| 1963 | The Virginian | Cary | Episode: "If You Have Tears" |
| Burke's Law | Jill Stacy | Episode: "Who Killed Wade Walker?" | |
| 1966 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Coco Cool | Episode: "The Take Me To Your Leader Affair" |
| A Man and His Music – Part II | Herself | Special | |
| 1967 | Movin' with Nancy | Herself | Special |
| Off to See the Wizard | Jill (voice) | Episode: "Who's Afraid of Mother Goose?" | |
| 1988 | China Beach | Herself | Episode: "Chao Ong" |
| 2007 | The Sopranos | Herself | Episode: "Chasing It" |
| 2015 | Sinatra: All or Nothing at All | Herself | Docuseries |
