Only the Lonely Songwriting Credits by Frank Sinatra

Only the Lonely is the twelfth studio album by Frank Sinatra, released in August 1958 on Capitol Records and produced by Dave Cavanaugh with arrangements by Nelson Riddle. It is generally regarded alongside In the Wee Small Hours as the second of Sinatra's two great concept albums of romantic despair, and the record in which the late-night loneliness theme reached its fullest and most orchestrally ambitious expression. Sinatra did not write any of the tracks; the album's 11 songs (including 'Only the Lonely,' 'Angel Eyes,' 'One for My Baby (and One More for the Road),' and 'What's New?') are unified by the specific emotional register of a man drinking alone past midnight, reviewing loss with clear-eyed self-knowledge rather than sentimentality. Riddle's arrangements are at their most complex here, with 'Ebb Tide' and 'Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry' featuring string writing of particular richness. The album required multiple sessions and significant rehearsal investment compared to Sinatra's faster production pace on other Capitol albums. Only the Lonely spent five weeks at number one on the Billboard album chart and was certified gold within a year of release; it won the Grammy for Best Album Cover and was nominated for Album of the Year in the second Grammy ceremony. The album is consistently cited by critics as the most emotionally powerful of all Sinatra's recordings and as the high-water mark of the Capitol period.