Forever Cool

Dean Martin | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 14, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B000RHRGOO
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,502 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Who's Got The Action (with Big Bad Voodoo Daddy)

2. Ain't That A Kick In The Head (with Kevin Spacey)

3. I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face (with Chris Botti)

4. Baby O (with Paris Bennett)

5. Who Was That Lady (with Orchestra)

6. Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone (with Robbie Williams)

7. I Can't Believe That You're In Love (with Joss Stone)

8. Just In Time (with Dave Koz)

9. Baby It's Cold Outside (with Martina McBride)

10. King Of The Road (with Kevin Spacey)

11. You're Nobody Til Somebody Loves You (with Shelby Lynne, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy)

12. Arrivederci Roma (with Tiziano Ferro)

13. Everybody Loves Somebody (with Charles Aznavour)

14. Lullaby (Dean Martin acoustic)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Whether you see Dean Martin as an iconic, velvet-voiced crooner or a repugnant symbol of Vegas excess, Forever Cool is a fascinating--if flawed--experiment in keeping the celebrated performer contemporary. A reworking of his vocal tracks as duets with internationally known collaborators (from British singer Joss Stone to Italian chart-topper Tiziano Ferro), the album additionally features new arrangements as well as one previously unreleased track (an a cappella version of "Brahms' Lullaby"), all seamlessly mixed with droll studio banter ("Last time I was this hot I had a kid") that gives the recording a palpable immediacy. In keeping the new instrumental backing tasteful and smart, producers Rob Christie, Phil Ramone, Patrick Williams, and Bobby Colomby spotlight Martin's considerable vocal skills and rescue him from his unctuous, drunk, and schmaltzy self-caricaturizing, even as some of the spoken prattle threatens to lift the martini glass to that trait. While trumpeter Chris Botti and saxophonist Dave Koz prove sparkling choices as collaborators, the selection of vocal guests sometimes seem head-scratchingly strange. Stone, who appears on "I Can't Believe That You're in Love with Me," is far too husky a singer to pair with Martin's smooth mega-baritone (and one can't help but think she could be his great-granddaughter), while Paris Bennett, the American Idol finalist, comes off as lightweight as Tinkerbell. Perhaps not surprisingly, actor/singer Kevin Spacey, with his hipster Bobby Darin chops, comes closest to matching Martin's joie de vivre, while Martina McBride's elastic, adaptive soprano makes her the most believable female counterpart, even as she is forced to truncate her usual phrasing. All in all, this is a thoroughly enjoyable invitation to a fantasy cocktail party where Dino is always, and ever, the star. --Alanna Nash

Product Description

To honor Dean Martin's broad appeal and countless contributions to modern entertainment via his legendary music, stage, film and television career, many of the world's top artists have recorded new collaborative tracks with him on Dean Martin: Forever Cool. Forever Cool's 14 tracks pair Martin's original vocals with new arrangements and an all-star group of collaborators in a salute to the unparalleled talent and charisma of the man known around the world as "Dino". A special CD/DVD edition of Forever Cool is also available & contains a 25 minute "making of" & interview documentary footage.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful tribute album, I like to think Dean would approve..., August 17, 2007

By 

Ruth Anderson "Book Reviewer" - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forever Cool (Audio CD)

I tend to be a little leery of duets that pair current singers with deceased ones. There's so much potential for the pairings to fall incredibly flat. Happily, Forever Cool is a duets album done right. The disc pairs vocal performances of Dean Martin in his prime with artists such as Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Kevin Spacey, Chris Botti, Robbie Williams, and Joss Stone, to name a few. Kevin Spacey is featured on two tracks, "Ain't That a Kick in the Head" and "King of the Road." He's comfortable singing swing music and it shows -- his surprising vocal chops and talent for vocal mimicry (first displayed in his performance as Bobby Darin in Beyond the Sea) is so good that there are moments where I had difficulty distinguishing his voice from Martin's. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy swings with Dino on two tracks -- "Who's Got the Action?" and "You're Nobody Till Somebody Loves You" -- the latter featuring Shelby Lynne. Lynne & Martin's duet is one of the highlights of the album -- she does a really fabulous job of entering into the spirit of the project, so much so that it's easy to imagine her actually performing with Martin -- her playful give and take with his vocal is expertly balanced. On "Baby, It's Cold Outside" Martina McBride's famous "big" voice is held in check and she delivers a wonderful, playful vocal as remarkable for its restraint as much as its crystalline purity. Robbie Buchanan's duet on "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone" is also outstanding -- Buchanan's vocal complements Dino well.

There are a few slight missteps. I love Joss Stone's unique voice, but her vocal on "I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me" is one of the weaker cuts on the album. Her voice sounds strained and "breathy" at times, as if she's forcing herself to sing in an uncomfortable register. Nonetheless, it stands far above the gross misstep that is the Paris Bennett track, "Baby-O." Please. Honestly it's a embarrassing to hear Martin's sublime voice mixed with Bennett's squeaky vocal. Renee Olstead would've been a much better duet partner for this track in my opinion.

The instrumental duets are among the best tracks on the album and some of my favorites. My favorite track is, not surprisingly, "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" with trumpeter Chris Botti (this track will also be featured on Botti's upcoming Italia album, set to release September 25th). Botti is a master at accompanying vocalists (as evidenced on his own duets album, To Love Again). He's an expert at complementing a vocal, and the fact that duet with Martin sounds so real, so convincing, is a testament to his skill as a performer. It's a great track, very classy. Dave Koz's saxaphone duet on "Just In Time" is likewise wonderful ear candy...I'm not really familiar with his music, but his performance here has piqued my interest.

Kudos to the performers and the production team for delivering such a classy, well done, polished tribute CD. Can I just throw out one idea? There needs to be a Sinatra version of Forever Cool. Let's face it -- the Duets albums he recorded in the early '90s did not feature him at the peak of his vocal abilities, and some of the arrangements are a tad dated. Forever Cool combines snappy, swinging, timeless arrangments and worthy duet partners (for the most part) with Dean Martin in his best vocal form. If a Sinatra project was executed with the same production values, I'd be a very happy woman. (FYI: Target sells Forever Cool with a bonus track -- a duet with The 5 Browns on "Everybody Loves Somebody.")

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Subtraction by Addition...., January 4, 2011

By 

Eddie-Oh! - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Forever Cool (Audio CD)

Dino is rolling over in his grave. Easily the worst collection of remakes ever assembled. The accompaniment is bad, and the canned 'new' band worse.
Gone is the lush sound of the original recordings, added are the vocals of what most would considered B-List vocal artists at best.

Resist the temptation to buy this CD. This whole thing is a musical felony!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Karaoke Night With Dino, November 16, 2009

By 

Scott T. Rivers (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forever Cool (Audio CD)

Well-intentioned but ultimately disappointing, Dean Martin's "Forever Cool" (2007) offers posthumous duets with contemporary artists ranging from Martina McBride to Joss Stone. What works are the instrumental touches - notably Big Bad Voodoo Daddy's ultra-swinging "Who's Got the Action?" and Dave Koz's smooth sax licks on "Just in Time." In the vocal department, only Paris Bennett's "Baby-O" has any punch. Though an intriguing concept, the digital pairings with Charles Aznavour and Kevin Spacey come across as contrived gimmicks. Dino's a cappella rendition of "Brahms' Lullaby" makes for an effective closer. Hopefully, the Dean Martin Family Trust will assemble a genuine duets album featuring Nat King Cole, Peggy Lee, Sammy Davis Jr. and, of course, Frank Sinatra. Now THAT would be something!