What Genre Is Frank Sinatra’s Music?

Frank Sinatra’s main genre is “traditional pop” or “classic pop.” His music also includes “easy listening,” jazz, swing, and big-band.

Defining Frank Sinatra’s genre can be challenging. Many fans think of him as a jazz musician because he performed with top jazz artists of his time. However, jazz wasn’t his primary genre.

Key Takeaways

• Traditional Pop: Frank Sinatra’s main genre is often classified as traditional or classic pop, reflecting popular music before the rock and roll era.
• Easy Listening: Popular from the 1950s to 1970s, this genre includes many Sinatra hits like “I Won’t Dance.”
• Jazz: While debated, Sinatra’s work includes many jazz-influenced songs, such as “That’s Life” and “Girl from Ipanema.”
• Swing: A subgenre or variation of jazz, swing music was especially popular in the 1930s and 1940s, contributing to Sinatra’s style.
• Big Band: Sinatra’s early career began with big bands like Tommy Dorsey’s. Songs like “New York, New York” and “Fly Me to the Moon” highlight this genre.

Sinatra rose to fame in the Big Band era of the 1940s and sustained his popularity through the 1950s Great American Songbook period.

Traditional Pop

Sinatra is best known as a pop musician. This genre specifically refers to the popular music before the rock and roll era, often called traditional pop or classic pop today.

Other Genres of Frank Sinatra

Sinatra’s music transcends a single genre and touches various styles. His music falls into:

• Traditional Pop: Perhaps the primary genre that Sinatra performed in.
• Easy Listening: This genre was particularly popular between the 1950s and 1970s. Songs like “I Won’t Dance” can be considered to fall into this category.
• Jazz: This is the genre that Sinatra is best associated with. While calling Sinatra a jazz musician is a hotly debated topic, it cannot be denied that many of his songs fall under some level of the jazz genre. These include songs like “That’s Life” and “Girl from Ipanema.”
• Swing: Swing music can be considered a subgenre of jazz or a variation of jazz music. It was particularly popular in the 1930s and 1940.
• Big Band: “Big bands” were essentially jazz bands made up of ten or more musicians. These jazz bands dominated the American music scene – particularly the jazz music scene – in the early 1940s. The popularity of big band music coincided with Sinatra’s initial rise to popularity, and many of his songs are big band songs. These include popular songs like “New York, New York” and “Fly Me to the Moon.” In fact, Sinatra started his career as a big band singer and played with various big bands, including the Tommy Dorsey and Harry James bands.