Frank Sinatra was born on this day (December 12) in 1915 in Hoboken, New Jersey, and his influence on American music is immeasurable. Perhaps the one song that people most associate with Sinatra is 1969’s “My Way,” which was penned by Paul Anka and became Sinatra’s signature tune.
Fellow New Jersey native and Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora explained to LAUNCH why he considers “My Way” to be one of the greatest songs ever written. “It’s a very, very concise song,” he said. “It encompasses a feeling. I think the thing about songwriting is you try to relate to people and communicate in that particular way. As a songwriter, all of us aspire to do that, and I think (with) the song ‘My Way’ everybody has been in a position where they’ve felt like that.”
Sambora was so inspired by the Sinatra song that in the Bon Jovi anthem “It’s My Life”-from the band’s multiplatinum album, Crush-he included the lyric, “…like Frankie said I did it my way.”
Sinatra died in May 1998 at the age of 82.