Acclaimed archival label Light in the Attic (LITA) continues their partnership with legendary singer, actress, activist, and icon Nancy Sinatra with the latest two installments off their Nancy Sinatra Archival Series: definitive reissues of the 1967 albums Sugar and Country, My Way.
Sugar was the fourth album recorded by Sinatra in 1966, an uncanny feat considering The Beatles were recording around two albums a year at the time. The album followed on the heels of her hit debut album Boots, her sophomore follow-up How Does That Grab You?, and the Swinging Sixties offering Nancy In London. In 1967, Sinatra would continue her artistic ascent into the pop stratosphere with the James Bond You Only Live Twice theme song, the groovy technicolor television special Movin’ With Nancy, recording one of the most beloved duets of all time, titled “Some Velvet Morning,” and a cross-country pilgrimage to the center of the country music scene to record Country, My Way.
Due out November 29th in vinyl, CD, and digital formats, with both LP editions being offered on classic black wax and special limited-edition color wax (Sugar is available on “Sugar Town Pink” and "Let's Fall In Love" pink and white swirl; Country, My Way is available on "Bye-Bye Birmingham" blue and "Hello LA" red and white swirl). Sugar and Country, My Way are available to pre-order beginning today (10/2). All formats feature audio freshly remastered from the original analog tapes by GRAMMY®-nominated engineer John Baldwin. Pressed at Record Technology, Inc. (RTI), both vinyl editions are presented in expanded gatefold jackets accompanied by 20-page booklets (featuring a new Q&A with Sinatra conducted by the reissue’s GRAMMY®-nominated co-producer Hunter Lea, plus never-before-seen photos from the artist’s personal archive). All music configurations, plus limited-edition autographed vinyl, will also be made available at Nancy’s Bootique.
Sugar and Country, My Way mark the latest releases from LITA’s ongoing Nancy Sinatra Archival Series, a partnership with the celebrated artist, which honors her musical legacy through lovingly curated reissues, including her 1966 debut Boots, 1966’s How Does That Grab You?, 1966’s Nancy In London, 1968’s Nancy & Lee and 1972’s Nancy & Lee Again (both with Lee Hazlewood), as well as the broadly-acclaimed 2021 career-spanning retrospective Start Walkin’ 1965-1976 and its 2023 companion Keep Walkin’: Singles, Demos & Rarities 1965-1978. The series also includes a wealth of limited-edition merch and other special releases.
More about Sugar and Country, My Way:
Sugar features the iconic Ron Joy cover photo of Sinatra in a pink bikini (the first on an album cover and seen above), quite the bold move in 1967 and one that helped propel the album to #18 on the charts (Sinatra’s second highest charting album after Boots). It is a peculiar record that pairs one of Sinatra’s biggest songs, “Sugar Town,” with mostly 1920s compositions recorded in a contemporary Dixieland jazz pop fusion style that could have only been concocted by producer Lee Hazlewood.
Sinatra then traveled to Nashville to cut her fifth album at RCA Studios, where many of the greatest country songs of all time were recorded. On Country, My Way, Sinatra fuses her own personal style with country music, resulting in a new hybrid sound. Producer Lee Hazlewood called it “hippie-billy.” While many people get credit for pioneering the contemporary country sound, like many milestones of the 1960s, Nancy was one of the first.
Both Sugar and Country, My Way feature candid Q&As with Nancy and co-producer Hunter Lea. Each release also features a sidebar interview with Wrecking Crew keyboardist, bandleader, and songwriter Don Randi with whom Sinatra performed with for decades. After stepping back from the industry in the 70s to focus on her young family, Sinatra returned to the spotlight in the mid-90s, releasing a string of new albums, including the star-studded Nancy Sinatra, which paired the artist with some of her biggest fans (including Morrissey, U2, Calexico, and Sonic Youth). Since then, Nancy’s legacy has only continued to grow. In more recent years, her impact has been recognized by the likes of Pitchfork, NPR, and Rolling Stone, while in 2020, “Boots” was inducted into the GRAMMY® Hall of Fame. Most recently, Beyoncé sampled “The Boot Are Made for Walkin’” on Cowboy Carter (2024). Today, Sinatra remains a force in the industry, as new generations discover her influential catalog, which boasts nearly 20 studio albums and dozens of charting singles.
For more info, visit NancySinatra.com