New York, NY (Top40 Chart/ Universal Music Enterprises) Dean
Martin sang the way all men imagine they sound in the shower... He worked that deep, mellifluous voice of his with a casual grace that somehow carried a weight of romantic implication other crooners never quite achieved." - The Los Angeles Times
There is only one man who Playboy called "the coolest man who ever lived" and who
Elvis Presley worshipped and admired. Simply put, that man is
Rat Pack legend Dean Martin. He is one of the greatest recording artists of all time with a career spanning almost 50 years.
Martin was one of the biggest stars of the 20th century who conquered the four corners of entertainment including film, stage, television and music. He starred in over 50 films, recorded over 30 original albums and earned a long line of hits with a warm, sensual voice that continues to captivate a steady stream of fans each year. His influence resonates today with the biggest stars and shows taking a page directly from Martin's style book -- from the Don Draper character on TV's Mad Men to the top of the fashion world with Gucci's men's line, and from the movies with the pivotal scene from the
Tom Cruise blockbuster Mission: Impossible -
Ghost Protocol to the world of song, with the likes of international superstar Robbie Williams.
On June 12, 2012, Universal
Music Enterprises (UMe) releases DEAN MARTIN - COLLECTED COOL, the first and only career-defining, four-disc box set that combines his biggest hits and signature tunes from both his Capitol Records and Reprise years. Live rarities and spoken word intros make their CD debut including, in its entirety, the rare and unreleased audio recording of his 1962 Lake Tahoe show capturing Martin's unique vocal styling that cemented his reputation as one of the most revered and emulated artists of all time.
COLLECTED COOL also includes a DVD of a live performance filmed at the London Apollo
Victoria Theatre in 1983. This show was only aired on cable in 1983 for a brief time and has never been aired or available since then.
Martin commands the stage with his own unique and charismatic presence and that's all captured on this DVD for fans and newcomers alike to experience why
Dean Martin still remains a superstar. Musician/Actor Steven Van Zandt commented about Martin, "He was the coolest dude I'd ever seen, period."
Dean Martin's early autobiography is as gritty as that of any hip-hop star: delivering bootleg liquor, serving as a speakeasy croupier and blackjack dealer, working in a steel mill, ruling the ring as boxing phenomenon Kid Crochet, and rubbing elbows with members of the nightclub underworld.
Born Dino Paul Crocetti, he soon christened himself Dean Martin.
Martin developed his own style, not content to follow the others. He later paired up with comic Jerry Lewis and the comedy duo became the hottest ticket around and parlayed their onstage success into a string of hit movies and television appearances. But
Martin was also a formidable solo artist, scoring such hits as "Memories Are Made of This," "That's Amore" and "Powder Your Face With
Sunshine (Smile! Smile! Smile!)" for Capitol Records; all are represented on this box set.
After
Martin and Lewis parted ways,
Martin continued to wow crowds in
Vegas and impress critics with a series of dramatic film roles, successful TV specials and a consistent string of hit singles and albums. Not long after, Martin's affiliation with Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and the rest of the fabled
Rat Pack became a new chapter in his life. He fueled his image as a boozing playboy through onstage antics with his pals in ensemble films like Ocean's 11 and
Robin and His 7 Hoods.
DEAN MARTIN - COLLECTED COOL: Disc one follows Dino's early rise to stardom and features the best of his Capitol Records years, packed with his biggest hits, signature songs, rarities and career-defining recordings. Included are some of Martin's most well-known numbers such as "That's Amore," an instant classic and one of his most beloved songs that reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100; "Return to Me" which hit No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100; plus Martin's signature tunes "
Volare" (peaking at No. 12 in 1958), "If I Could Sing Like Bing" (his homage to vocal great Bing Crosby), the stereo version of "On An Evening In Roma," the ever-popular "Ain't That A Kick In The Head," and the unreleased "Dean's
Spoken Word Introductions," taped in 1949.
In early 1962,
Dean Martin left Capitol and began to record for Frank Sinatra's newly formed label, Reprise Records. Disc 2 features some of Martin's biggest and most cherished hits from his rich and fruitful Reprise years plus a stripped-down version of the No. 1 hit single "Everybody Loves Somebody," which originally topped the charts and knocked the
Beatles from the No. 1 spot. Also included are his No. 1 Adult Contemporary hits "In The Misty Moonlight," "In The Chapel In The Moonlight," "
You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You" and the track "The Door Is Still Open To My Heart," which also reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Other notable highlights include "Guys and Dolls"(featuring Frank Sinatra), the top-10 hit "I Will," which entered at No. 3 on the Adult Contemporary charts, and his duet with Conway Twitty, "My First Country Song," which reached the top 50 on Billboard's Country & Western chart and earned
Dean Martin his first ever country hit.
Disc 3 features a rare, live audio recording of Dino's concert at Cal-Neva Lodge in Lake Tahoe, CA, on July 27, 1962. This show captures
Martin at the apex of his career, during his post-Capitol years and extremely prolific tenure at Reprise. This performance has never been released in its entirety -- only a few tracks were available as bonus material -- but it's now available on this box set. Featured are incredible performances of "Volare," "On An Evening In Roma," "It Had To Be You/Nevertheless," "
Beautiful Dreamer" and his only recording of Matt Monro's hit "My Kind Of Girl." Dino's quick wit and sense of humor shines bright through his onstage banter and parodies of classics such as "I Love Tahoe (Paris)"and "Drink To Me Only With Thine Eyes," all caught on this 51-minute rare recording.
Collected Cool also contains a DVD featuring 60 minutes of live footage from his show at London's Apollo
Victoria theatre show in 1983. This performance originally aired only on Showtime and has never been made commercially available until now. This live concert features Dino performing some of his biggest hits and well-known songs including "Everybody Loves Somebody," "That's Amore," "Little Ole Wine Drinker Me" and "Welcome To My World," plus classic
Martin parodies of "Pennies From Heaven," "Please Be Kind" and "It's Magic."
Dean Martin's effortless vocalizing has become modern shorthand for cool, as evidenced by the use of his songs in films, television, and ad campaigns, and this box set chronicles one of the most important artists of the 20th century. The Washington Post summed it up by saying, "Somewhere in the public identity of
Dean Martin was a kind of essential Everyman of wonder, celebrating the fact that everybody does love somebody sometime, and that we could do worse than raise a glass to joys like that."
Track listing:
Capitol Records Years (CD-1):
Dean's
Spoken Word Introductions
My Own, My Only, My All
Powder Your Face With
Sunshine (Smile! Smile! Smile!)
I Don't Care If The Sun Don't Shine
That's Amore
If I Could Sing Like Bing
Sway
Long, Long Ago
Memories Are Made Of This
Pardners (with Jerry Lewis)
Volare
Rio Bravo
On An Evening In Roma
Sleep Warm
Ain't That A Kick In The Head
Just In Time
Arrivederci Roma
Return To Me
A Hundred Years From Today
Reprise Records Years (CD-2):
Tik-A-Tee, Tik-A-Tay
Senza Fine
Who's Got The Action
Guys And Dolls
Marina
Everybody Loves Somebody (with instrumental quartet)
The Door Is Still Open To My Heart
You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You
In The Misty Moonlight
Sophia
Send Me The Pillow You
Dream On
In The Chapel In The Moonlight
Welcome To My World
Houston
I Will
Somewhere There's A Someone
My First Country Song (featuring Conway Twitty)
LA Is My Home
LIVE FROM LAKE TAHOE (CD-3)
Drink To Me Only With Thine Eyes
Almost Like Being In Love
I Love Tahoe (Paris)
Show Banter #1
My Kind Of Girl
Show Banter #2
Show Banter #3
June In January
Show Banter #4
Break It To Me Gently
Show Banter #5
Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody
Instrumental
Show Banter #6
Primrose Lane/You Are Too Beautiful/Carolina In The Morning/Love Walked In/I Love Being A Girl
Beautiful Dreamer
You Made Me Love You
It Had To Be You/Nevertheless
I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter
Volare
On An Evening In Roma
Show Banter #7
I Love Paris (Tahoe)
Outro
DEAN MARTIN LIVE IN LONDON (DVD):
Everybody Loves Somebody
Drink To Me Only With Thine Eyes
When You're Smiling
Pennies From Heaven
L-O-V-E
Everybody Loves Somebody (reprise)
Where Or When
Welcome To My World
Drinking Champagne
That's Amore
Love Walked In
Please Be Kind
It's Magic
Ken's Noodle
Bad, Bad Leroy Brown
For The Good Times
Here Comes My Baby Back Again
Little Ole Wine Drinker Me
Bumming Around
One Hour With You
