Frank Sinatra’s 1966 album “Strangers in the Night” included his version of “Summer Wind.”
Summer won’t officially be over for another couple of weeks, but psychologically, it always ends on Labor Day Weekend, which makes today the perfect time to listen to Frank Sinatra’s definitive version of the bittersweet Heinz Meier/Johnny Mercer song, “Summer Wind,” as recorded for his 1966 album, Strangers in the Night.
Sinatra’s “Summer Wind” peaked at No. 25 on Billboard magazine’s pop chart in October of ’66, two slots behind The Beach Boys’ “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” and one ahead of Wilson Pickett’s “Land of 1,000 Dances.”
Wayne Newton had released a single of “Summer Wind” a year previously, but it only rose to No. 78.
(Nov. 11, 2021 Update: On “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” last night, Bruce Springsteen called “Summer Wind” the one song he would listen to, if he could listen to just one song for the rest of his life.)
New Jersey celebrated its 350th birthday in 2014. And in the 350 Jersey Songs series, we marked the occasion by posting 350 songs — one a day, from September 2014 to September 2015 — that have something to do with the state, its musical history, or both. To see the entire list, click here.
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