In 2016, Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” That same year, he released Shadows in the Night, a GRAMMY-nominated album showcasing his love and admiration for the Great American Songbook, American standards and the great crooners of the past. “I’m a Fool to Want You,” originally co-penned by Frank Sinatra in 1951, opens the program.
The arrangement of Dylan’s version from Shadows in the Night places his own gravelly, heartfelt reading of the lyrics front and center. While Sinatra was a known traditionalist, who openly opposed the burgeoning rock and roll movement, Dylan has openly sung the praises of Ol’ Blue Eyes on numerous occasions. He once said: “People talk about Frank all the time. He had this ability to get inside of the song in a sort of conversational way. Frank sang to you — not at you.”
Like this article? Get more when you subscribe.