The Columbia Years 1943–1952: The V-Discs is a 1998 compilation album

Compilation album

A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...

 by the American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 singer Frank Sinatra

Frank Sinatra

Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...

.

The two-CD

Compact Disc

The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

 set contains recordings from V-Disc

V-Disc

V-Disc was a morale-boosting initiative involving the production of several series of recordings during the World War II era by special arrangement between the United States government and various private U.S. record companies. The records were produced for the use of United States military...

s that were sent to troops during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The V-Discs were the only recordings that the musician's union allowed Sinatra to record during the session musicians strike between 1942 and 1944 and he took full advantage, knowing that although the records would not be sold, it would keep him in the public ear, and allow him to perfect his technique.

Although a heavy set, it does not contain every V-disc Sinatra recorded. A more complete set would not become available until 2003 with the release of The Real Complete Columbia Years V-Discs

The Real Complete Columbia Years V-Discs

The Real Complete Columbia Years V-Discs is a 2003 compilation album by the American singer Frank Sinatra.The 3-CD compilation includes four transcription discs pressed for Armed Forces Radio Service but not released on The Columbia Years 1943-1952: The V-Discs...

.

Disc one

1. "I Only Have Eyes For You
   I Only Have Eyes for You
   "I Only Have Eyes for You" is a popular song by composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dubin, written in 1934 for the film Dames where it was introduced by Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler....
   
   "
2. "Kiss Me Again"
3. "(There'll Be A) Hot Time In The Town Of Berlin"
4. "The Music Stopped"
5. "I Couldn't Sleep A Wink Last Night"
6. "The Way You Look Tonight
   The Way You Look Tonight
   "The Way You Look Tonight" is a song featured in the film Swing Time, originally performed by Fred Astaire. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1936. The song was sung to Ginger Rogers as Penelope "Penny" Carroll by Astaire's character of John "Lucky" Garnett while Penny was busy...
   
   "
7. "I'll Be Around
   I'll Be Around (1942 song)
   I'll Be Around" is a popular song written by Alec Wilder and published in 1942. The song has become a well-known standard, recorded by many artists....
   
   "
8. "You've Got a Hold On Me"
9. "A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening
   A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening
   "A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening" is a popular song with music by Jimmy McHugh and lyrics by Harold Adamson, published in 1943.The song is considered a pop standard, recorded by many artists.-Recorded versions:*The Angels*Shirley Bassey*Shocky...
   
   "
10. "(I Got a Woman Crazy For Me) She's Funny That Way"
11. "Speak Low
    Speak Low
    "Speak Low" is a popular song composed by Kurt Weill, with lyrics by Ogden Nash. It was introduced by Mary Martin and Kenny Baker in the Broadway musical One Touch of Venus . The 1944 hit single was by Guy Lombardo and his orchestra, with vocal by Billy Leach...
    
    "
12. "Close To You"
13. "My Shining Hour
    My Shining Hour
    "My Shining Hour" is a song composed by Harold Arlen, with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. It was written for the 1943 film The Sky's the Limit, where it was introduced by Sally Sweetland - who dubbed for Joan Leslie - backed by Freddie Slack and his orchestra. It was nominated for an Academy Award for...
    
    "
14. "Long Ago And Far Away"
15. "Some Other Time"
16. "Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are"
17. "Put Your Dreams Away"
18. "And Then You Kissed Me"
19. "All The Things You Are
    All the Things You Are
    "All the Things You Are" is a song composed by Jerome Kern, with lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II.It was written for the musical Very Warm for May , where it was introduced by Hiram Sherman, Frances Mercer, Hollace Shaw, and Ralph Stuart...
    
    "
20. "All Of Me
    All of Me (song)
    "All of Me" is a popular song and jazz standard written by Gerald Marks and Seymour Simons in 1931.First performed by Belle Baker over the radio and recorded in December 1931 by Ruth Etting, it has become one of the most recorded songs of its era, with notable versions by Russ Columbo, Bing Crosby,...
    
    "
21. "Nancy (With the Laughing Face)
    Nancy (With the Laughing Face)
    "Nancy " is a song composed in 1942 by Jimmy Van Heusen, with lyrics by Phil Silvers. It is commonly believed that the song was written for the birthday of Nancy Sinatra...
    
    "
22. "Mighty Lak' a Rose
    Mighty Lak' a Rose
    Mighty Lak' a Rose is a 1901 song with lyrics by Frank Lebby Stanton and music by Ethelbert Nevin.The lyrics are written in an approximation of an African American accent; such "dialect songs" were common in the era. The title thus means "Mighty like a rose"; this assessment is addressed by a...
    
    "
23. "Falling in Love with Love
    Falling in Love with Love
    Falling in Love with Love is a show tune from the Rodgers and Hart musical The Boys from Syracuse, where it was introduced by Muriel Angelus. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1938...
    
    "
24. "Cradle Song (Brahms' Lullaby)"
25. "I'll Follow My Secret Heart"
26. "There's No You"
27. "Someone to Watch Over Me
    Someone to Watch over Me (song)
    "Someone to Watch Over Me" is a song composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin from the musical Oh, Kay! , where it was introduced by Gertrude Lawrence...
    
    "

Disc two

1. "Let Me Love You Tonight"
2. "Just Close Your Eyes"
3. "If You Are But A Dream"
4. "Strange Music"
5. "Cradle Song (Brahms' Lullaby)"
6. "Dick Haymes, Dick Todd And Como"
7. "None But The Lonely Heart"
8. "Ol' Man River
   Ol' Man River
   "Ol' Man River" is a song in the 1927 musical Show Boat that expresses the African American hardship and struggles of the time with the endless, uncaring flow of the Mississippi River; it is sung from the point-of-view of a dock worker on a showboat, and is the most famous song from the show...
   
   "
9. "Homesick, That's All"
10. "The Night Is Young And You're So Beautiful"
11. "Aren't You Glad You're You"
12. "You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me
    You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me
    "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" is a 1930 popular song. The credits list music and lyrics as written by Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal, and Pierre Norman...
    
    "
13. "I'll Never Smile Again
    I'll Never Smile Again
    "I'll Never Smile Again" is a 1939 song written by Ruth Lowe.The most successful and best known version of the song was recorded by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra, with vocals provided by Frank Sinatra and The Pied Pipers. This recording was released as a Victor 78, 26628A, in 1940...
    
    "
14. "Without A Song"
15. "Was The Last Time I Saw You (The Last Time)"
16. "Don't Forget Tonight, Tomorrow"
17. "Oh! What It Seemed To Be"
18. "Over The Rainbow
    Over the Rainbow
    "Over the Rainbow" is a classic Academy Award-winning ballad song with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg. It was written for the movie The Wizard of Oz, and was sung by Judy Garland in the movie...
    
    "
19. "Where Is My Bess"
20. "My Romance
    My Romance (song)
    "My Romance" is a popular song, with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, written for Billy Rose's musical, Jumbo . In the 1962 movie version of Jumbo, Doris Day performed the song....
    
    "
21. "The Song Is You
    The Song Is You (song)
    "The Song Is You" is a popular song composed by Jerome Kern with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It was written for their musical Music in the Air and sung in that show by Tullio Carminati. In later years the song became often associated with Frank Sinatra."The Song Is You" is the recurring...
    
    "
22. "I Fall In Love With You Ev'ry Day"
23. "They Say It's Wonderful
    They Say It's Wonderful
    "They Say It's Wonderful" is a popular song written by Irving Berlin for the musical Annie Get Your Gun , where it was introduced by Ethel Merman and Ray Middleton.It was sung by Kirsten Dunst in Spider-Man 3 .-Notable recordings:...
    
    "
24. "You Are Too Beautiful"
25. "Come Rain Or Come Shine"
26. "Stormy Weather"