Our Town

Written for the 1955 NBC television production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, this gentle, philosophical number rounds out the trio of songs Cahn and Van Heusen contributed to the broadcast — alongside “Love and Marriage” and “Look to Your Heart.” Where those two songs deal with romantic love, this one steps back to contemplate the bigger picture of small-town American life.

Sinatra’s performance in the broadcast is one of his most understated and affecting — a reminder that he was as comfortable with quiet reflection as he was with swinging bravado.