Even in the early version of the song, his sense of phrasing was quite advanced and his interpretation wrung every bit of carnal desire that is nestled between the lines of Porter's lyrics into a smoldering torch song that would set any teenybopper's bloomers en fuego.
But I personally prefer the recording from his 1962 charity concert in Paris, which features just "the Voice" and his guitarist, Al Viola, without any other orchestral backing. The recording is included as part of the Sinatra and Sextet: Live in Paris album, which was first released to the public some 32 years later in 1994.
What I love about this recording is that he's obviously struggling with a cold or some sort of vocal ailment throughout the entire concert; he coughs pretty audibly at the beginning of "Night and Day." But it doesn't stop him at all. He uses it, he adjusts to it, and it gives the performance a very real, husky sound. It's a key example of how Sinatra viewed his voice as an instrument and "played" it, just like trumpeters or pianists would play their instruments.
The performance is confident. Viola walks this line between flamenco and jazz guitar throughout, providing the perfect backdrop for Sinatra's words of longing--words that are tinged with different colors as a 47-year-old vocalist rather than as a teen heartthrob crooner. That nuance comes through partly because his voice is really on display with such minimal backing. But it's also because he'd done a helluva lot of living, had been to the brink and back, and had battle scars to prove it. The emotion is loud and clear. There's also the feeling that he's singing to someone specific this time around. (My guess is that it was actress and ex-wife Ava Gardner.)
I don't think there's a bad Sinatra performance out there. But this one has its own sort of magic and majesty.
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