Ain’t That a Kick in the Head? Rat Pack Comp to Feature Unreleased Sinatra Track

The three core members of the superstar collective known as “The Rat Pack” – Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr. – have had their share of catalogue reissues and box sets, more than all the riches in Las Vegas. But together, there have only been a few compilations, thanks to the necessary wrangling between labels (Sinatra’s Rat Pack era material was captured between Capitol and his own Reprise label; both of which saw releases from Martin and Davis). The last such release was probably Eee-O 11: The Best of The Rat Pack (2001), which came from EMI.

Now, Rhino will be throwing their effort into the ring – apparently to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Vegas-era Rat Pack (which is close enough; Ocean’s 11 was released 50 years ago in 2010) – with the forthcoming The Very Best of The Rat Pack. It’s a simple volume that compiles the most notable hits of each man, from “Come Fly with Me” in 1958 to Martin’s “Volare” in 1965. Their greatest tunes are all here – “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head,” “Witchcraft,” “Birth of the Blues,” “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “Luck Be a Lady” and many, many more. There’s also one new track from the vaults: an alternate take of Sinatra singing “I’m Gonna Live Until I Die.”

Look for The Very Best of The Rat Pack on January 25. Order it here and check the track listing after the jump.

Note: Sinatra in particular recorded some of his signature songs multiple times. We’ve cross-referenced the track times on Rhino’s site with each performance and deduced our discographical info from there. If we missed something, don’t hesitate to let us know!

Various Artists, The Very Best of The Rat Pack (Reprise/Rhino, 2010)

  1. Come Fly with Me – Frank Sinatra
  2. Ain’t That a Kick in the Head – Dean Martin
  3. Too Close for Comfort – Sammy Davis Jr.
  4. I’ve Got You Under My Skin – Frank Sinatra
  5. Who’s Got the Action? – Dean Martin
  6. A Lot of Livin’ to Do – Sammy Davis Jr.
  7. Ring-a-Ding Ding! – Frank Sinatra
  8. Eee-O Eleven – Sammy Davis Jr.
  9. Luck Be a Lady – Frank Sinatra
  10. Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu) – Dean Martin
  11. Birth of the Blues – Sammy Davis Jr.
  12. Witchcraft – Frank Sinatra
  13. You’re Nobody ‘Til Somebody Loves You – Dean Martin
  14. I Get a Kick Out of You – Frank Sinatra
  15. Sam’s Song – Sammy Davis Jr. & Dean Martin
  16. I’m Gonna Live Until I Die (Alternate) – Frank Sinatra
  17. Everybody Loves Somebody – Dean Martin
  18. Me and My Shadow – Frank Sinatra & Sammy Davis Jr.

Track 1 from Come Fly with Me (Capitol, 1958)
Track 2 from non-LP single (Capitol, 1960)
Tracks 3 and 6 from What Kind of Fool Am I and Other Show-Stoppers (Reprise, 1962)
Track 4 from Sinatra’s Sinatra (Reprise, 1963)
Track 5 from non-LP single (Reprise, 1962)
Track 7 from Ring-a-Ding-Ding! (Reprise, 1961)
Track 8 from non-LP single (Verve, 1960). First CD appearance on Sammy and Friends (Rhino, 2000)
Track 9 from Sinatra ’65 (Reprise, 1965)
Track 10 from This is Dean Martin! (Capitol, 1965)
Track 11 from A Treasury of Golden Hits (Reprise, 1963)
Track 12 from Sinatra’s Sinatra (Reprise, 1963)
Track 13 from The Door is Still Open to My Heart (Reprise, 1964)
Track 14 from Sinatra and Swingin’ Brass (Reprise, 1962)
Tracks 15 and 18 from non-LP single (Reprise, 1962)
Track 16 previously unreleased. Original version from non-LP single (Capitol, 1955)
Track 17 from Everybody Loves Somebody (Reprise, 1964)

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Mike Duquette
Mike Duquette

Mike Duquette (Founder) was fascinated with catalog music ever since he was a teenager. A 2009 graduate of Seton Hall University with a B.A. in journalism, Mike paired his profession with his passion through The Second Disc, one of the first sites to focus on all reissue labels great and small. His passion for reissues turned into a career, having written at and worked for all three major catalogue music labels and contributing to Allmusic, Billboard, Discogs, City Pages and Ultimate Classic Rock. He's penned liner notes for Verve, Chess, Mondo and Soul Music Records.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Mike lives in Astoria, Queens with his wife, a cat named Ravioli, twin daughters and a large yet tasteful collection of music.

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