UMe, in conjunction with Frank Sinatra Enterprises, has announced a new Frank Sinatra double vinyl set. The Giants of Jazz features Sinatra’s historic collaborations with Count Basie and Duke Ellington. The release features a pair of albums—It Might As Well Be Swing with Count Basie and His Orchestra and Francis A. & Edward K. with Duke Ellington—newly remastered from the archival recordings. The collection includes a new gatefold jacket design that incorporates rare photographs as well as the original artwork. The package is available for pre-order and is out September 26, 2025.
Originally released in August 1964, It Might As Well Be Swing saw Sinatra accompanied by Basie alongside an orchestra for ten tracks. It was their second time working together following 1962’s Sinatra-Basie and Sinatra’s first studio album arranged by Quincy Jones. Recalled the arranger: “Since his days with Tommy Dorsey and Harry James in bands where the instrumentalists were the stars and the singers the relief team, Sinatra had approached working with a big band as an almost religious experience, and treated it with profound respect.”
In 2001, Jones acknowledged that working with Sinatra took him to another level: “Looking back, that call from Frank was a major turning point in my career and my life.”
It Might As Well Be Swing features some of Sinatra’s most celebrated material, ranging from “The Best Is Yet To Come” to the definitive recording of “Fly Me To The Moon (In Other Words).”
January 1968’s Francis A. & Edward K paired Sinatra with Ellington and his big band. It features an iconic rendition of “All I Need Is The Girl” and “Indian Summer,” which includes a standout solo by saxophonist Johnny Hodges. Jazz legends Cootie Williams, Cat Anderson, Paul Gonsalves, Russell Procope, and others are also part of the Ellington orchestra and Sinatra’s long time arranger, Billy May, did the arrangements.
Buy The Giants of Jazz on vinyl now.
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