FRIDAYS ARE FOR FRANK: “Just One of Those Things”

“It was great fun, but…”

On the eve of the first Saturday in March, this “Fridays Are For Frank” tips a cap to the Hoboken St. Patrick’s Day tradition—arguably one of the more polarizing topics here in town.

What was once a proud occasion for celebration here in town has unfortunately evolved over time to put Hoboken atop the list of the “Douchiest Cities to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day” (yes, that’s a real list).

While the Parade itself had rarely seen any incidents, the revelry that followed often got a bit messy. Year after year, complaints stemming from all sorts unruly behavior saw arrests skyrocket, to the point where the City of Hoboken and the Parade Committee were at an impasse as to how to handle the event—the City wanted it moved to a weeknight, the Parade Committee declined, and the Parade sadly fell by the wayside in 2012.

Hoboken Historical Museum Photo

“It was just one of those things…”

Obviously the bar community took it on the nose when the parade was cancelled. In protest, there have been various incarnations of Irish-themed pub crawls, Lepre-Cons, Hoboken St. Patrick’s Day Parties, etc. hosted by individual or even groups of local bars. They have fundamentally been a success, occurring with minimal incident as patrons are served by professionals at a licensed establishment. More often than not, it’s the house parties that contribute to the majority of incidents these days, as opposed to the bars.

Of course the Sinatra’s themselves were “Irish Bar” owners, with Marty O’Brien’s taking up the corner of 4th & Jefferson—right about the time that Cole Porter wrote “Just One of Those Things” for the 1935 musical Jubilee.

The ultimate critic of all things phony, Holden Caulfield—the narrator of J. D. Salinger‘s novel The Catcher in the Rye—was a noteable fan of the song, remarking that even the “stinking band” in the hotel lounge “couldn’t ruin it entirely.”

While their perennial favorite “Fairytale of New York” may be heard once or twice this weekend, The Pogues and Kristy MacColl deliver a curious yet rousing rendition of “Just One of Those Things” at the end of “Miss Otis Regrets.”

Here’s Frank Sinatra singing a version for the 1954 film, Young At Heart.

Speaking of young at heart, have fun this weekend and enjoy Hoboken—but don’t get out of hand. The City’s “ZERO TOLERANCE” enforcement can translate to fines upwards of $2,000.

“If we’d thought a bit, of the end of it
When we started painting the town…”