The Swinging Side of Bobby Darin

During the early '60s, the Capitol Tower had begun to lose its luster as the home of traditional pop. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin had departed for Reprise, which soon became the home of pop with recordings from Sinatra and Martin plus Sammy Davis, Jr. One of Capitol's counter moves was to sign Atco's Bobby Darin, who had started as a teen idol but, thanks to his smashes "Mack the Knife" and "Beyond the Sea," crossed over to adult audiences. Darin boasted additional appeal thanks to his knockout club act and a series of film appearances (five in 1962 alone) that eventually earned him an Academy Award nomination. It seemed like a natural fit. Unfortunately, Darin never filled the shoes of Sinatra or even Martin. As his Atco period displayed, he was much better when he introduced material. Unlike most jazz singers, he wasn't a standards singer at heart and couldn't bring anything fresh to his readings of "Fly Me to the Moon," "All of You," or "I Got Rhythm." The Swinging Side of Bobby Darin, released to coincide with the 2004 Darin bio-pic Beyond the Sea, presents a short program of Darin's jazz sides recorded at Capitol. (Since Darin was even then moving into folk-pop, few of these songs were even released at the time.) Capitol initially paired him with Billy May, an obvious choice for arranger, and the results certainly fit the bill for swinging in the '60s. Before long, however, Darin had left behind the world of traditional pop, and Capitol never recouped its investment.