Judge Jim Stewart, DVD Verdict -- "Where does Frank Sinatra go in Frank Sinatra: Around the World? Los Angeles, New York, London, and Japan. The four concerts span 1970 to 1985. The accompanying booklet suggests that only two--Ol' Blue Eyes is Back and Sinatra: The Main Event--have been screened on U.S. television, so there's something new here even for longtime fans. Sinatra doesn't sing exactly the same playlist each time, but you'd better like "My Kind of Town," "The Lady is a Tramp," and "I Get a Kick Out of You," since he does them a lot. Fortunately, he does variations each time, once even mentioning Yokohama in "My Kind of Town" (he switches back to Chicago by the end, though). You'll notice, if you watch these in a marathon session, that he tries to make things fresh each time out, changing moods or tempos so that a classic is something new for a live performance. Two concerts make this set the one to choose. Ol' Blue Eyes is Back is more intimate than the others in the collection, and it provides a career retrospective, starting with older songs like "I Get a Kick Out of You," moving into his mid-career wistfulness with mature songs like "Last Night When We Were Young," and sampling his then-new album with "Let Me Try Again" and "Send in the Clowns." He jokes around a lot about his advanced age, especially in "We Can't Do That Anymore," a duet with Gene Kelly, who still has a few tap moves. The lighting and occasional sets aid that sense of intimacy; the studio is often darkened to make it feel like he's alone. Sinatra in Japan collects a lot of favorites in one place, including his first hit, "All or Nothing at All," and his favorite song, "Come Rain or Come Shine." The accompanying booklet tells me that it's a rarity that collectors have been trying to find for years. If you could only see one Sinatra concert on DVD in your life, either one of these would be a good choice, and they're here together. Picture quality is good for video, with the occasional ripple or other flaw. Sound quality is good, if unspectacular. A booklet provides playlists and background on the concerts."
