Sinatra, Frank - The Gal That Got Away Lyrics






The night is bitter, the stars have lost their glitter
The winds grow colder, suddenly you're a lot older
And all because of a gal who got away
No more her eager call, the writing is on the wall
All those dreams you dreamed, they have all gone astray

The gal who won you, she's run off and undone you
That great beginning has seen the final inning
I don't know what happened, its all a crazy game
No more - no more that all time thrill because you have been put though the mill
And never a new love will ever be the same

Good riddance, good-bye
Every trick of hers you are on to
But fools will be fools and where's she gone?
Where has she gone?

The road gets rougher, it's lonelier and it's tougher
With hope ya burn up, tomorrow maybe she'll turn up
There ain't no let up, live-long night, night and day

Ever since, since this world began
There ain't nothin' sadder than
A long-lost loser
Lookin' for his gal who got away

Please come back
Won't ya come back?

Mm, mm, mm
Mm mmmm





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Sinatra, Frank The Gal That Got Away Comments
  1. S.... R....

    Tony Papa, I subscribed to your channel based on uploading Francis Sinatra, King of the Rat Pack. May he continue to live his legacy gift to the world through content YouTube creators like you. Big 💋

  2. S.... R....

    Francis, I love you dearly. Msn, the Italian King of Swing doing his thing! Love it that he is singing his beloved Judy's song. You can tell He has lived this song from the heart and soul. Plus, like Frank once said of Judy, and now I say about him, he died a little each time he sang. Msny blessings of joy, peace, and Love to you my sweet Francis.

  3. M.... C....

    Harold Arlen & Ira Gershwin & Frank & Judy climb inside Their Creation Beautifully...... W/ Passion & Soul !! The Brilliance & Artistry of 'The American Songbook'......

    M.... C....

    So many of us can relate to these poignant lyrics....... I suspect ??

  4. S.... R....

    Damn ... this sweeps me away every playback.

  5. D.... M....

    💗👍🏻💗👍🏻💗👍🏻💗👍🏻💗👍🏻🎤🍸💋

  6. C.... O....

    Hi Ronan.

  7. b.... ....

    Good job, but this will always be Judy's.

  8. T.... ....

    My step-uncle

  9. R.... C....

    Where's that pinky ring. Q wears it to this day.

  10. H.... ....

    Too bad this cuts out in the middle. :( But at the end, it should be "one woman-man," not "one-man woman," if you want to keep it from a guy's perspective.

  11. I.... L....

    Love his tougher voice and delivery. A lotta punch.

  12. A.... H....

    The dreams you dreamed have all gone astray ....

  13. R.... L....

    Frank was an Oscar winner yet he wanted to be remembered for his vocals. Kudo's to that. Phrasing!!!!!

  14. a.... v....

    usually I love Frank Sinatra..But in this case I 'm disappointed...I think it'a cold and flat rendition of the wonderful song...I think it's impossible to match Judy Garland's depth...and to be honest I think Sammy Davis' rendition is superior than Sinatra's...Forgive me frank!

    a.... v....

    Understood. It's a great version, provided you haven't heard Judy's at her best.

  15. N.... 4....

    For you C.K.

  16. N.... 4....

    For you C.K.

  17. N.... 4....

    For you C.K.

  18. C.... S....

    okay for all the moronic gay broadway boys who do not have the pipes who have the balls to sing this song, and their vibratos go wildly out of control, and much of the meaning is muddled as only Broadway can do today. Watch Sinantra keep the bot bubbling till it boils over with emotion then lets out in full crooning style which is different than Judy's emotionally brilliant renditions. So for all you Broadway babies who claim to be professionals watch and learn. Maybe most Broadway boys should not sing this song because they do not have the pipes or the control, but when you do have the pipes, the control, and a mind the understands and translates the emotional story than BAM!, you have a major whopper of an amazing rendition of a song, not all the mediocre ones that have popped up lately.

  19. S.... R....

    I love Judy's version from a woman's perspective and frankly (no pun intended) I'd always wondered who would be perfect to sing this from a mans perspective and well here comes Mr. Sinatra to bring it all home for me. Many thanks Frank darling 💖

  20. M.... ....

    Sinatra was singing brilliantly during this Hollywood Palace show, with beautiful vocals and clear melodic lines. He also gave a memorable concert with Martin and  Davis in St. Louis, a benefit for Dismas House that is recorded on DVD.

  21. R.... C....

    The line between this and fine art is very thin indeed. These people created, on this night, some of the finest art that led later on to some even more refined music.

  22. T.... W....

    Frank Sinatra pointed out to Ira Gershwin that, aside from switching a few pronouns, all that was needed was a modification to the ending:

    Ever since this world began
    There is nothing sadder than
    A one-man woman looking for
    The Man That Got Away...

    The lyricist considered the matter and, with Frank hanging on the telephone line, Ira improvised:

    Ever since this world began
    There is nothing sadder than
    A lost, lost loser looking for
    The Gal That Got Away...

    Frank liked the line and wrote it down. "His excellent recording resulted, and 'The Gal That Got Away' got away with it," wrote Ira, while primly noting that "a sex transilience of this sort is unusual".

    Ira Gershwin's right: Sinatra's record, to a great Nelson Riddle arrangement, is indeed "excellent". I'm not sure one can say the same about that "lost, lost loser" modification. But "The Gal That Got Away" entered the Billboard charts in July 1954.
    Judy Garland released her version at the same time.
    Sinatra respected her professionally and, perhaps out of deference to her claim on the song, he didn't return to "The Gal That Got Away" as often he might have. However, he did sing it live with the COUNT BASIE band on the "Hollywood Palace" TV show in 1966, and it's a magnificent performance.

    The gal that won you
    She's run off and undone you
    That great beginning
    Has seen the final inning
    I don't know what happened
    It's all a crazy game...

    He's slowed down the Riddle arrangement, and it's on its way to becoming a saloon song:

    No more that all-time thrill
    'Cause you've been through the mill
    And never a new love will be the same...

    The next passage - around "But fools will be fools" can be especially tough for a singer, as the vocal line and the harmony seem to part company, and it's very easy to find yourself adrift while almost atonal chords are flying all around you. Frank and the Basie band get through it, and he's so on top of all the drama, all the storytelling. Sinatra could be very tentative on TV, especially in ballads, because there are so many technical considerations and he hated having to do retakes. But on live TV he was often more relaxed. And on this broadcast he got just a wee bit too relaxed and made one mistake - but it's a doozy. In an otherwise peerless rendition, he botched Ira Gershwin's ending and reverted to the female original:

    Ever since this world began
    There ain't nothing sadder than
    A one-man woman...

    Uh-oh. You can hear a little something in his voice - he knows he's gone astray - but there's nowhere to go, so he concludes Sapphically:

    ...a one-man woman looking for
    The Gal That Got Away...

    And he takes a pause before starting the leisurely out-vocal and you can see on his face that he knows he's blown it. But it's still a great performance, and it shows that even, after the arrangement and the recording and the chart hit, Sinatra didn't stop thinking about ways to improve the song, to serve it better.
    __________
    The above excerpted from http://www.steynonline.com/7077/the-gal-that-got-away

  23. L.... H....

    simply put : The USA at its best.Singer,song,the band,Quincy J.   Madonn' and AMEN

  24. c.... ....

    I saw Judy Garland performing at Newport many years ago. She was absolutely brilliant. This was one of the songs that she sang that night. I never heard it sung as well by anyone else. Frank Sinatra's version was very good and Frank never ruined a song. He was much too talented and much too great to ever ruin any song.

  25. J.... N....

    I'm sure Frank meant to say, "A one-woman man..."

    J.... N....

    Janine Nichols or a lost lost loser, as he did in many concerts

  26. t.... ....

    Sinatra, Basie, and Quincy Jones conducting...
    Can it be any better than this?
    Francis Albert's honesty and vulnerability are searing here, go 'way beyond a mere "performance" here...
    He sings this as if he believes it.

    t.... ....

    There seems to be such a profound sadness about him as he sings so passionately...

  27. A.... S....

    Gosh Darn it. When i listened to Judy Garland singing her version - i thought, how about this song from a man's perspective - the Gal that got away. But of course, Frank beat me to it.

  28. j.... ....

    Its definitely sonny payne on drums with the count basie band.
    This was actually in September of 1966 when he hosted he hollywood palace I believe.

    And yeah...he loused up on the last words, instead singing the female lyrics...which from his body/facial expressions he realized

  29. T.... D....

    It's Sonny Payne I think??

  30. S.... ....

    I don't think it's Buddy on drums, or Sonny Payne. I don't know,might be Buddy..if anyone knows for sure, please post.
    Thanks

    S.... ....

    Buddy Rich didn't play with the Count Basie Orchestra in the 1960s.
    Percival "Sonny" Payne is cited as the drummer on the personnel list for
    "Live at the Sands" in 1966, so I would guess that is him here.

  31. P.... S....

    As usual with Sinatra, what brings this performance to an exalted level is the phrasing. This is a "story" song, definitely the kind of song that Frank favors because he can bring his own life experiences and personal emotional state to bear on the lyrics. As for John Robinson's distaste for the way Frank sings "away' at the end of the song, I think he needs to appreciate phrasing a little more. He hears  a-way-ee, which is three syllables; I hear a-way, with the second syllable extended for emotional effect. Phrasing it this way also gives Frank an opportunity to show off both his exceptional breath control and his ability to sing a long note. It leaves me in awe every time I hear it.

    P.... S....

    Talk about that breath control some more.  He learned it from horn players and seemed to hold notes almost too long but to effect.  Each time he did a song he did it differently.  A great artist could never do an exact copy of a masterpiece and rarely do it as well.  Sinatra could and did.

  32. K.... F....

    =best version of that song! Power and expression, best orchestra and VOICE

  33. H.... S....

    @ Mike Coruzzi...this is classic Sinatra...recommend you hear a couple more. = )

  34. m.... c....

    judy garland version is so painful to listen to, frank gives this song life! i swear thats buddy rich on drums

  35. m.... c....

    frank kills this one, sorry... i do like the newer version he did

  36. r.... ....

    I like Sammy's better but i love Franky

  37. R.... ....

    "Only Sinatra can sing like Frank Sinatra" (Tony Bennett). Amazing rendition of the song and powerful expression of the notes...

  38. i.... ....

    Tremendo...

  39. M.... R....

    How f****n great was this man?!

  40. J.... R....

    At 2:51 he sings "a one man woman" from the "female" version of the song. It makes no sense when a man is singing it! And that long last note -- where he sings the "eeee" part of the word away (a-way-eeee) is dumb, if you ask me. No one did or ever could express the epic feelings in this song like Judy Garland did.

    J.... R....

    As far as I'm concerned the holding of the last note is the icing on the cake and possibly the best part of the entire song

  41. J.... M....

    Sinatra in great form, love the way he holds that last note.

  42. s.... ....

    If you get the chance, find a recently listed concert of Sinatra/Basie at Forrest Hills...same time period and is one of the very best concerts...ever!!

  43. T.... J....

    Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion (in the U.S. anyways..) Having said that, however, I have to disagree. You obviously don't appreciate his talent, which has been unmatched since..I do agree with you, in that certain songs probably should stay with the original singer they were intended for, but Frank is THE exception to that rule. Hell, he broke all the rules anyways..thats what makes him so thrilling to witness. Have a good one!

  44. d.... ....

    Overrated as a vocalist? Is that why Robert Merrill told him he could have been an opera star as a lyric baritone?

  45. I.... ....

    It's way better than the version that came out in the album.

  46. s.... ....

    Best version...when Sinatra sings it, you believe it. Sinatra/Basie hard to beat!!

  47. S.... E....

    I know I could possibly end up at the bottom of the river sleeping with da fishies, but I always thought that ol' blue eyes was extremely overrated as a vocalist. As far as him tackling this one, for me ... it's about as absurd as Eydie Gorme's infamous rendition of Bacharach's "This GAL'S in Love with You". It just doesn't work.

    S.... E....

    Sinatra may have been overrated by you but he was voted the "voice of the century" and there is nothing absurd about changing the pronouns in a lyric.

  48. M.... ....

    I believe that this is from The Hollywood Palace when Sinatra hosted the show in 1964 or 1965. He had toured across the Country and he was in optimum vocal form. The musical sequences from The Hollywood Palace shows should be digitally re-mastered and released on bluray DVD; they contain memorable numbers from Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Groucho Marx, Tony Bennett, Gene Kelly and many others.

  49. h.... ....

    better of judy of course.

  50. S.... ....

    It's good but I don't think it has that raw emotion Judy had.

  51. J.... ....

    This song is excellent and this is why I date only.

  52. s.... ....

    APPLAUSE APPLAUSE!!!

  53. I.... ....

    what is a Judy Garland?

  54. J.... ....

    wish they'd recorded this for 'Sinatra - Basie' - blows away both the version he did in the 50s and the one from 'She Shot Me Down'. thanks for uploading it!

  55. c.... ....

    How did I not know about this?

  56. F.... ....

    Great stuff. This performance is like Absorbine Jr. on a sore back.

  57. f.... ....

    Brilliance all around. Sinatra and Basie in top form!! Thanks for sharing this video.

  58. B.... ....

    Wow. Makes your hair stand up.

  59. J.... L....

    Thanks for this!

  60. J.... C....

    What the heck was this from? A TV special?

    J.... C....

    Hollywood Palace.

  61. H.... S....

    How lucky has the great Quincy Jones been????

    Brilliant!

    H.... S....

    'Quincy was passionate & brilliant right outta the gate'......

  62. s.... ....

    Just doesn't get much better...Basie,Q, Sinatra.. GREAT!!