Fridays Are For Frank: “Fly Me To The Moon” (Propeller Fest Edition)

As Propeller takes off on the Hoboken Waterfront, celebrating the spirit of innovation that drives so many of us who call this area home, we give a nod to a Hobokenite who famously took things to unbelievable new heights—Francis Albert Sinatra.

“Fly Me to the Moon”, the popular song written in 1954 by Bart Howard, was originally titled “In Other Words.” As is often the case with jazz standards, Frank Sinatra‘s 1964 version off his album with Count Basie It Might As Well Be Swing (arranged by Quincy Jones) became the authoritative recording.

The song was closely associated with the Apollo missions to the Moon. A copy of the Sinatra version was played on the Apollo 10 mission orbiting the Moon, and later became “the first music ever heard on the Moon” when played on a portable cassette player by Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin after he stepped onto the Moon.

Propeller is certainly easier to get to—running all day today down on Pier A, concluding with a concert tonight by The Naked and Famous.

Meanwhile, here’s Hoboken’s foremost “propeller” of society, with some inspiration for those aiming to fly just a little bit higher…