In a surprise move Bob Dylan is to release a new album on 3 February consisting solely of standards made popular by Frank Sinatra. The album, Shadows In The Night, his 36th album for the Columbialabel, features ten newly recorded tracks of well known standards such as ‘Some Enchanted Evening’, ‘That Lucky Old Sun’, ‘Autumn Leaves’, ‘The Night We Called It A Day’, ‘I’m A Fool To Want You’ and ‘Where Are You?’ all previously recorded by Sinatra, the latter four tracks all coming from Sinatra’s 1957 Capitol album Where Are You?

Produced by Dylan, a longtime Sinatra fan, under his producer pseudonym Jack Frost, the aim was to strip the tunes back for a small quintet rather than the overloaded big band and strings approach that standards albums often take. “It was a real privilege to make this album” said Dylan in a Columbia announcement. “I've wanted to do something like this for a long time but was never brave enough to approach 30-piece complicated arrangements and refine them down for a five-piece band. That's the key to all these performances. We knew these songs extremely well. It was all done live. Maybe one or two takes. No overdubbing. No vocal booths. No headphones. No separate tracking, and, for the most part, mixed as it was recorded. I don't see myself as covering these songs in any way. They've been covered enough. Buried, as a matter a fact. What me and my band are basically doing is uncovering them. Lifting them out of the grave and bringing them into the light of day.”

Dylan released one of the tracks, ‘Full Moon and Empty Arms’ (see video above) earlier this year and has recently been performing ‘Stay With Me’ live as part of his never-ending-tour. Judging by the sound of ‘Full Moon and Empty Arms’, which has spare, atmospheric feel and melancholic pedal steel guitar, the musicians are his regular band and his voice sounds warm, less gravelly and a little smoother than his recent albums. Dylan has previously recorded standards on his 1970 Columbia album, Self Portrait, including ‘Blue Moon’ and ‘Let It Be Me’.

Commenting on the album, Columbia Records Chairman Rob Stringer said: “There are no strings, obvious horns, background vocals or other such devices often found on albums that feature standard ballads. Instead, Bob has managed to find a way to infuse these songs with new life and contemporary relevance. It is a brilliant record and we are extremely excited to be presenting it to the world very soon.”

The complete Shadows In The Night track listing is:

1. ‘I'm a Fool to Want You’
2. ‘The Night We Called It a Day’
3. ‘Stay With Me’
4. ‘Autumn Leaves’
5. ‘Why Try to Change Me Now’
6. ‘Some Enchanted Evening’
7. ‘Full Moon and Empty Arms’
8. ‘Where Are You?’
9. ‘What'll I Do’
10. ‘That Lucky Old Sun’

– Jon Newey (story and photo)

from Jazzwise Magazine (UK)